It’s amazing how people who make a living, and an excellent one, doing something complicated and involved can at times seem utterly clueless about it. Take, for instance, several members of the Phoenix Suns at this for them unfortunate stage of their season.
The Suns, you’ll no doubt recall, are the run-and-gun team featuring Steve Nash, the sometimes floppy-haired anti-war Canadian point guard whose sensational passes as he pinballs around the court, plus his deadly three-point aim, have brought him fame, awards, and fans from many nations, but so far no championship. He seems a likable sort, if not particularly deep. The Wikipedia entry on him, for example, records his reluctance to do a lot of endorsements, and his wish to work with socially responsible companies, both quite admirable, as well as his longstanding relationship with Nike.
Last year, the playoff series between Nash’s Suns and their rivals the San Antonio Spurs, who’d already knocked them out of the playoffs twice in prior years, was a knock-down drag-out affair, not settling for mere arguments and posturing, but extending to hard fouls and rule violations resulting in suspensions.
In the end the Suns lost, and one Sun was so begrudging of his opponents’ victory that he’s sometimes satirized by the substition of “whiner” for “mire” at the end of his name. This year the networks seemed to play up that image in the broadcasts I saw, using as his stock photo a shot of him with arms out, palms up, and a look of disbelief on his face. The stock Spurs photos that shared the screen showed players making layups or snatching rebounds.
Despite his lack of the big ego common to basketball players (particularly West Coast point guards, not to mention anyone’s name, or call him by the name of the felony he committed), Nash’s skill as the quarterback of his team is beyond question. Late in last year’s series the Suns lost an extremely closely contested game. At one point late in that game occurred one of the hard fouls the teams exchanged; this one left Nash’s nose bleeding on the sidelines. Until they could staunch the bleeding and get some bandage to cover it, by rule he had to be off the court. During that period the Suns fell apart on offense, exhibiting a tenderfoot’s sense of stability and direction; and by the time Nash returned it was too late. To top it all off, his children’s godfather, Dirk Nowitzki, beat him for the individual trophy.
Nash was instrumental in transforming the Suns into one of the top teams of the Western Conference. He led the Suns to the Western Conference Finals in the 2004–05 season, and was named the league’s Most Valuable Player. He was named MVP again in the 2005–06 season, and missed out on a third consecutive MVP title to Nowitzki the next season. Named by ESPN in 2006 as the ninth greatest point guard of all time, Nash has led the league in assists and free throw percentage at various points in his career, although he has occasionally been criticised for his poor defence. He is ranked as one of the top players in league history for three point shooting, free throw shooting, total assists and assists per game.Nash, who is married, is also heavily involved in charity and humanitarian work. His other interests include soccer and film-making. In 2006, Time magazine named Nash as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. On 28 December 2007 it was announced that Nash will receive Canada’s highest civilian honour, the Order Of Canada.
You can count on Time magazine to keep you informed about what’s really going on.
In the most recent offseason, the Suns were in conflict with four-time All-Star Shawn Marion. Like many offensive-minded players, he considered himself underused, in his case as the third option in the offense after Nash and Stoudamire; thus he expressed, somewhat explicitly, his desire to leave. Rather than lose him for nothing, the Suns decided to seek compensation for Marion by trading him, and a deal was cobbled together with the Miami Heat: Marion and Marcus Banks to Miami in exchange for Shaquille O’Neal. One might think from the respective records — Phoenix tied for fifth in the deep Western Conference at 55-27, Miami trailed the league by five games at 15-67 — that history’s verdict was in favor of Phoenix.
’Tis not so. After last year’s thrilling six-game series, this year the Spurs won four of the first five, and will get a few days to rest before the next round. How, Suns fans are no doubt asking, could this happen — we added the legendary Shaq to our A-list offense, yet we lost faster this year than last? Some of the Suns themselves seem uncertain as to the answers.
“We went up against a team that knows how to win,” Suns coach Mike D’Antoni said. “Every time we needed to close something out — a half or a game — they got the best of us. That’s why they’re the champions.”
A team that knows how to win? The Spurs finished one game ahead of the Suns for the season. But they knock the Suns out of the playoffs once again.
“They beat us with the intangibles,” said [Raja] Bell, who had 14 points. “They beat us with the little things. They beat us with the gamesmanship. They beat us with the attention to detail. The game plan. The commitment to doing all the little things to win games.“That’s why they’re the champs. That’s why year-in and year-out no matter what people say about them they find a way to be right there in the mix and vie for a championship.”
What kind of training leads to improvement at the intangibles? In fact, how does one even know whether improvement is happening? Other than the the won-lost record, of course.
Here, note the quiet reference to the departure of Marion:
“Every year it seems like we always play the Spurs, and they beat us every single time,” [Amare] Stoudemire said. “As long as I’m here we’re going to break it sooner or later, because I’m tired of losing to these guys. I’m sick and fed up.”
Most telling of all, perhaps, are the words of the team’s leader, Nash.
“I think on paper we have more talent than they do. But I think their experience, their commitment and understanding of what they’re trying to do is greater than ours. Their ability to play together and make small plays on both ends of the floor is unsurpassed.”
Stock statements of self-belief, no doubt. But what I find striking is that other than one instance in the Wikipedia entry, the concept of defense didn’t arise, and the single use by Wikipedia was to note that Nash isn’t considered a good defensive player.
San Antonio, on the other hand, is consistently among the top two or three teams in the league in defense, as measured by statistics such as points allowed per game and opponents’ shooting percentage. They feature Tim Duncan, whose Shaq-supplied nickname is The Big Fundamental, but they also have some great outside shooters, some great lane penetrators, and most of all a team-wide commitment to play the real game: defense.
In basketball defense wins, over the long term, for a good reason. Shooting the ball is very much a touch sort of thing; there are good days, when you can throw up a hook with your off hand confidantly, and bad days, when you miss layups. Defense requires quickness, but it’s mainly effort and knowledge. If you’re willing to work, and you know what to do, you can be part of a team that plays excellent defense. Thus defense will be there when you need it if you’re willing to put in the energy, while your shooting touch can disappear at any moment and be gone for a quarter or so.
Steve Nash, a wonderful point guard on the offensive end, seems to me a more athletic version of his coach, Mike D’Antoni, whose style of play was similar: quick, good hands, excellent passer, good outside shooter (though not as good as Nash), middling defense. And relatively short, which means easy to shoot over.
It seems to me that Phoenix continues to do the same thing, expecting a different result. The idea that a team which is great on offense but so-so on defense might not be able to beat, in fact might be less talented than, a team that’s very good on offense and great on defense is beyond their horizon.
The Phoenixians have more talent because they run faster and jump higher; what else is talent about? Their announced strategy is to shoot the ball within seven seconds of touching it. (Presumably Shaq will take up a location in one half of the court and remain there.)
But there is talent also in the mind of the player who thinks, What is my opponent planning? How can I frustrate those intentions? How can I turn the situation to my advantage? There is talent in the hand that anticipates the shot and deflects the ball to a teammate. Most of all, there is talent in the team that dedicates itself to defending its own goal first and foremost. On a team, the big stars are comfortable with their own numbers for the year dropping, because the only number that really counts is going up: team wins.
The final series I look forward to is the Spurs and the Celtics. But the league will probably rig in the rapist.
Update: It appears that D’Antoni’s version of run and gun in the desert has come to an end. J.A. Adande at ESPN thinks the Suns will now admit the need for defense. I think they’ll find another fast-break coach and look for some players who are a bit faster, or can jump a bit higher.
