The Brooklyn Nets and coach Steve Nash ended the Phoenix Suns ‘six-game winning streak with a strong fourth quarter that exposed some of the Suns’ shortcomings. (Photo by Christian Petersen / Getty Images)
PHOENIX – A nine-year NBA veteran, Phoenix Suns striker Jae Crowder promised to hold himself and his teammates accountable when he signed to the franchise in November. He definitely kept his word on Tuesday night and called the Suns’ 128-124 defeat to the Brooklyn Nets, where they had a 24-point lead in the first half, as « disgusting ».
« It’s not pretty, » said Crowder. « It’s a lot of angry people because we’re slipping a game. If it’s someone else, this was a game we should have. »
Despite having a 21 point lead at halftime and an 8 -Points lead of 2:48 could not hold back Phoenix Brooklyn, which was injured without the stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. The Nets made a 12-0 run to end the game and finished a second half with 74 points against a Suns team that finished sixth in terms of defensive efficiency.
The defeat ended a six-game winning streak for Phoenix, which had a Jekyll and Hyde personality with final games this season. The Suns’ bad habits turned their ugly heads against the nets, preventing them from sweeping a seven-game homestand and lowering their record to 17-10.
After the defeat, Sun’s coach Monty Williams pointed out problems that also hurt his team before the winning streak: transitional defense and lack of urgency.
Phoenix allowed Brooklyn to score 1.67 points per ball possession in transition and 1.82 points per ball possession on live ball rebounds, according to Cleaning The Glass. In the second half, the nets took off aggressively from the sun’s limited ball movement and shot 25 of 40 (62.5 percent) off the field, including 12 of 22 from 3-point range.
With a smaller rotation in which Jeff Green, the 6-foot-8 forward, was the tallest player, Brooklyn frequently beat Phoenix’s transitional defenses, taking advantage of its switches halfway up. Four of the nets’ seven 3-pointers in the fourth quarter made a defensive rebound in eight seconds, including guard James Harden’s triple start by 31.4 seconds.
« From a defensive standpoint, the ability to protect people and keep the guys from getting into the basket wasn’t great tonight, » said Williams. “And I thought for the first five or six minutes of the third quarter our offense was in the mud. The ball movement wasn’t there, the urgency just wasn’t there and we gave a team life. «
According to TNT, Brooklyn was last in the NBA in scoring (121.6) since earning Harden on Jan. 13. Phoenix used their first-half fights to make mistakes through their mistakes Identify actions on half the pitch and turn the ball well away from him.
Sun watchman Devin Booker – whose friend Kendall Jenner appeared in a viral social media post with Cronkite students at the game – had 18 in the first half of his 22 points and used off- and on-ball screens to generate his chances to score. As a team, Phoenix supported 18 of his 29 shots and tested the discipline of the nets against their « point-five offensive » in which a player within one half a second to pass, shoot or dribble.
After Phoenix had the best 75 points of the season per TNT in the first half, he only scored 49 points in the second half, 17 of which in the fourth quarter from point guard Chris Pa ul originated. Outside of him, the Suns shot just 12 of 31 (38.7 percent) off the field and haven’t had a double-digit score from another player for the last two periods.
Part of this was due to Brooklyn’s effective switches in the second half. The nets disrupted Paul early in the third quarter with center Deandre Jordan on the edge, creating difficult angles for him to pass or create his own shot. Furthermore, the Suns couldn’t see any advantages when they had them. This was a by-product of Williams’ feelings that after building a 24-point lead in the first half, his team was no longer urgent.
« The way we came out in the third quarter was really bad, » said Williams. “And so we have to take to the streets and we can’t just step on the ground and think that the teams will lie down when we have a lead. Our intensity must always be high when we step on the ground. “
Since Sun’s center Deandre Ayton is often the biggest player on the floor, Phoenix often missed the opportunity to get him the ball when Brooklyn switched a smaller player on him or overplayed the pick and roll. Outside of an alley-oop finish from Booker, Ayton only attempted three shots in the second half.
However, he did not always use the opportunities he was given. With a 6-foot-11 listed, Ayton gave up his height advantage by keeping the ball low after catching it, making it easier for the smaller defenders of the nets to contest it and force sales.
« I didn’t think we did a good job. There were times when we threw it in and our big ones brought the ball down and allowed their little ones to get a hand on the ball », said Williams. “And then we got pushed off the block several times this evening. We didn’t take advantage of it. «
With his team leading 124-116 by 2:48 minutes, Williams decided to keep Ayton on the ground while Brooklyn continually attacked him aggressively. The nets turned him on Harden and Green and created multiple drives to the basket and 3-point opportunities when the Suns defense was forced to help.
After a six-game winning streak, Phoenix might have a better chance of extending its streak if Ayton was replaced by a smaller defender was replaced or if he changed his cover. At the same time, there are only 27 games in the planned 72-game season to build trust and continuity within his principles and staff.
« We could get small and one small Play ball, but that’s to their advantage with the guys who can attack the basket, « Williams said. » With James in the game, you hope your rim protector and rebound can help when he does Missed shot. I just didn’t miss much in the second half. «
The suns were completely healthy on Tuesday for the third time in a row and for the fourth time this season. After starting forward Frank Kaminsky in the last six games, he didn’t play against the nets while Crowder took his place , a sign that Phoenix has been refining its rotation even further.
The Suns failed to overtake their homestand but have won nine of their last eleven games and are developing positively, according to Williams and his players, losing to Brooklyn on Tuesday revived some bad habits, but Phoenix is optimistic that the latest game showed that it is closer to wiping them out.
« You have to be honest about what happened tonight, but you can also point out that we had a really good homestand, « said Williams. » We didn’t close it the way we wanted it to, but we played really good basketball and hopefully we can we learn from it. «
Trevor Booth is expected to earn a bachelor’s degree in sports journalism and a minor in business administration in May 2021. Booth, who reports for Sun Devil Source, ASU’s 247Sports subsidiary, will join Cronkite Sports this spring.
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