Monday, May 10, 2010
Suns show D'Antoni's flaws
The further that the Phoenix Suns advance in the playoffs the more New York Knicks fans realize they were sold a bill of goods. The Suns are advancing because they got rid of wildly overrated Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni. The Suns are doing just what D'Antoni teams did not do. They are playing a deep rotation and hard-nosed defense.
The stubborn, short-sighted D'Antoni refused to play more than seven or eight guys a game when he coached the Suns to various playoff failures. He did the same thing last year in New York, when he banished the dynamic Nate Robinson to the bench. Robinson sat for fifteen plus games. Rookie Tony Douglas was also stuck on the end of the bench, as D'Antoni continued to force the limited Chris Duhon down Knicks fans gullet.
The Suns are playing tough defense, something they were never able to do under D'Antoni. The consensus used to be that Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire were soft defensive players. Turns out they just needed a better coach. Alvin Gentry has the whole Suns squad hustling on defense. D'Antoni's disdain for the defensive end of the floor was symbolized by the soft as tissue paper Italian jeans model he and Donnie Walsh drafted in the first round. The Knicks, like D'Antoni's Suns, play defense like Loyola Marymount used to, not at all. No matter how fun to watch this run and gun style is, it is a sure recipe for playoff failure.
If the Knicks are unable to get LeBron this off-season, another dark decade looms ahead. D'Antoni's philosophy is bankrupt, great for the regular season, useless in the playoffs. Los Suns terrific run this postseason underlines that reality.
The stubborn, short-sighted D'Antoni refused to play more than seven or eight guys a game when he coached the Suns to various playoff failures. He did the same thing last year in New York, when he banished the dynamic Nate Robinson to the bench. Robinson sat for fifteen plus games. Rookie Tony Douglas was also stuck on the end of the bench, as D'Antoni continued to force the limited Chris Duhon down Knicks fans gullet.
The Suns are playing tough defense, something they were never able to do under D'Antoni. The consensus used to be that Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire were soft defensive players. Turns out they just needed a better coach. Alvin Gentry has the whole Suns squad hustling on defense. D'Antoni's disdain for the defensive end of the floor was symbolized by the soft as tissue paper Italian jeans model he and Donnie Walsh drafted in the first round. The Knicks, like D'Antoni's Suns, play defense like Loyola Marymount used to, not at all. No matter how fun to watch this run and gun style is, it is a sure recipe for playoff failure.
If the Knicks are unable to get LeBron this off-season, another dark decade looms ahead. D'Antoni's philosophy is bankrupt, great for the regular season, useless in the playoffs. Los Suns terrific run this postseason underlines that reality.
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