Some of you guys forget the Suns have been in back to back WCF finals. They took the Mavs to 6 last year without Amare or Kurt Thomas, and basically a very thin 6.5 man rotation. Infact they had to rely on a very 1 dimensional Tim Thomas (who would barely crack the current rotation) for over 30 minutes. Let's also remember they smoked the Mavs 2 years ago in the playoffs. With Amare--who the Mavs have no big remotely quick enough for--they probably beat them last year. This year, if healthy, they are deep in all positions. I honestly believe a healthy Suns squad is our biggest obstacle. They shoot so well from deep and Nash is so good at creating, they are the one team who might break down our defense. The Mavs are an oustanding overall all team, but really neither great defensively or offensively. They actually shot worse than their opponents in the last 3 series of last year--SA, Phx, Mia. They overcame (barely) the 1st two series by killing those teams on TOs and boards due to their length and athleticism. The Rockets gave them fits 2 years ago with an older, shorter, less versitle, less athletic squad around Tmac and Yao. Keep the TOs relatively down and hold your own on the boards and the Mavs will be dispatched over a series. Against the Suns you have to do more, I think you will need a higher level of defensive and offensive half court execution and efficiency to beat them.
Counterpoint on the Mavs: This year's team is much better than 2 years ago. Dirk is now a legit superstar, top 5 player who doesn't shrink in crunch time. Josh Howard has stepped it up several levels also. I know most people here don't like him, but I've enjoyed watching his growth as a player while strongly disliking the Mavs as a team. Almost by themselves, these two guys put today's Mavs on a different plane than two years ago. I'm going to do a poll in the GARM on who our worst western conference matchup is. I say it's the Mavs.
Good grief. You can pretty much justify anything huh? Yes, the Suns took the Mavs to 6 games last year without Amare. Well, Amare has taken his Suns team to 0-2 against the Mavs this year. And if taking the Mavs to 6 games is an accomplishment how can the Mavs be "smoked" by the suns 2 years ago when they lost the series in the same 6 games?
huh? Dirk 2 years ago: 26.1 pts, 9.7 rb, 3.1 assists Dirk now: 25.1 pts, 9.5 rb, 3.2 assists Saying dirk is clutch now is also VERY questionable. See last years finals.
<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Y7cG9NrfhM0"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Y7cG9NrfhM0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object> sorry, this video just warms my heart
Thought is was 5, but ok it was 6, whatever. So the Suns didn't smoke them. They did beat them and Dallas didn't remotely have an answer for Amare. They also took Dallas last year to 6 with no bigs whatsoever (no Amare, No no Hunter, no Thomas even). As for 2 regular season contests, you get two big from me. Regular season means nothing, besides one basket the other way and Phx beats Dallas in Dallas. Dirk has been great for 4+ years. They might have gone to the finals back in 2002-03 had Dirk not gotten injured in the Spurs WCF series. I agree with Josh Howard's progression. He is an oustanding all-around player who gets better. But unlike you I don't enjoy his porgression at all, still an arrogant butthead and probably my least favorite Mav, but he can play no doubt. The above said, I think the development of Barbaso has been just as fast, and now add Amare in the mix where he wasn't there last year, and Kurt Thomas and James Jones (shooting well now for them) to provide more front court and wing depth--I think they have progressed as a team a lot farther than the Mavs. They really now have 7 interchangable parts around Nash, something they have never had. Feel free but it won't effect my view. In preseason, like last year, everybody (fans here as well as league coaches) said the Spurs were the team to beat--they were wrong. Going into this season I was saying the Mavs, Suns and Heat were the teams to beat, well 2 out of 3 is not bad. After seeing the Mavs out-athletic and out-tough the Spurs last year for the life of me I could figure out after this seasons moves (the Spurs added mainly 1 dimensional scrubs to their already aging unathletic roster) how the gap would not widen. So fans around here will be scared of the Mavs. The Mavs are an excellent team and could very well win the title. But I am not interested in being popular, I want to be right For my money I think the NBA champion is going to have to knock off Phx and if the health of the Rockets, Mavs and Suns are all good the Suns are whom will be out greatest obstacle. I really like how the Rockets (with the addition of longer quicker wing players like Battier, Wells, Snyder) match-up with both the Mavs and Spurs, the Suns with their perimeter offense, deadly outside shooting, and uptempo game are just a different type of challenge.
Well I guess most people here agree with me too: http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=124150 But that will make it sweeter if you are right--like I said being right not popular is much cooler, except that would mean Dallas beats the Rockets and/or Suns
Desert Scar, according to the very lopsided poll, your view on the Suns is popular indeed. I wasn't trying to affect your view at all with the poll. On Dirk, comparing his current stats to 2 seasons ago misses the point. You have to watch the games and his body language. There is no question he is a much better, mature player now and he actually wants the ball in crunch time. I never said he was "very" clutch, but he's come a long way. In clutchness, he isn't yet in Wade's or Kobe's class. He was a monster in crunch time during last year's playoffs against the Spurs and Suns and finally won my respect. The Finals were a different story.
The reason most fans fear the Suns over Dallas is because the Mavs when it really comes down to it are totally reliant on Dirk to be the best player in the series. That's a big difference and when you have Yao and T-Mac he's most likely the 3rd best player in the series. Now when you have Nash, a presumably healthy Amare, guys like Marion, Barbosa, Diaw are just ROLE players on the Suns, that's a hell of a lot to go up against. That team is much much better than they were the last two years.
I agree that he is cockier now... but go back and watch all the spurs v mavs, and suns v mavs playoff games, or at least read the play by plays... In close games they lost, it often came down to dirk missing or turning it over in crunch time, in close games they won, it often came down to dirk getting bailed out by the refs in crunch time. The choke city mavs are not a crunch time team.
Completely agree. Barbosa, Bell, Marion, Diaw--their role players--all can totally make you pay. You can stop Amare and Nash from getting their points and still lose. James and Thomas (if healthy) gives them further quality 7th and 8th guys. Also, unlike previous years, Nash will not have to log insane playoff minutes because Barbosa and Diaw can come in with a much less drop off in scoring and playmaking. This is the strongest of Nash's teams (Suns or Mavs) in lots of key ways. In my view Dirk has gotten a bad rap. He was a playoff monster back in 03. 30+ points in two winning game 7s, and 30+ points in a game 1 WCF victory at the Spurs. Then game 3 he bumps knees (I think Nash got injured in that series too) and it is over. Dirk was one of the best players those playoffs and has been since. His team has been a little up and down, but that has been mostly because of better or lesser teammates. Dirk is great. But the guys you want to throw at him are like Haslem, Posey, Battier, Tmac, Marion, Diaw. Forwards with good length and quickness who can extend to the perimeter. Dirk will still get his but these guys can really make him work.
Ok, your main argument was that Phoenix, with Amare, would handle Dallas easily because without Amare they lost the series in 6 games. Well, the only Dallas/Phoenix games we have seen since Amare has been back are both Phoenix losses. Yes, the Suns could have won the last game between the two with a shot here or there but the Mavs could have won by 10 with a shot or miss here or there too. You can paint any picture you want. And the regular season does mean something because it gives us a glimpse of what is to come.
IF Tmac can keep up this pace, which I believe he can, and IF Yao is as dominant as he was before he got hurt, then I will take our chances with anyone. Those two guys along with Battier, Bonzi, and our shooters will be unstoppable in the playoffs. The Lakers a few years ago won it with basically Shaq/Kobe and a few role players, and I think we can do the same. I honestly believe we have a better bench than the Lakers did during those championship years. The Suns, Mavs, and Spurs may have 3 or 4 superstars, but the Rockets have 2 legit MVP candidates in Yao and Tmac. I dont think any other team can make that claim. Again, if healthy, NOBODY and I mean NOBODY will want to face Yao and Tracy in a seven game series. Those two guys alone can wear out a team.
