Suns, Lakers taking different paths
The Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns are the best turnaround stories in the NBA. It’s fitting that the Pacific Division rivals are getting better in opposite ways.
In true Hollywood fashion, the Lakers have added big-name stars, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, over the last two off-seasons and surged to an 8-2 start, their best in nine years.
The blue-collar Suns, meanwhile, picked up the hottest coach on the market in Monty Williams and have opened the season 6-4 — a dramatic improvement from last year’s 2-8.
The first game between them, a 123115 win by the Lakers on Tuesday at Talking Stick Resort Arena, showed the difference so far in the two approaches.
“It’s LeBron there, sometimes. It’s Anthony there, sometimes,” Williams said. “Hall of Fame. Hall of Fame.”
‘Much improved’
That said, the Suns are clearly building.
They’ve beaten title contenders in the Clippers and the 76ers. And they’ve stayed close deep into the fourth quarter against probable playoff teams in the Lakers, the Nuggets and the Jazz.
And judging from pregame comments from two of the best players in the sport, no one is surprised.
“They’re much improved,” James said. “What’s helped them a lot is bringing in some vets. Getting some real professionals in here to balance out the young guys that they’ve had.”
He mentioned the stability that Ricky Rubio, Aron Baynes and Dario Saric have provided. And he gushed over
Phoenix’s centerpiece, Devin Booker.
“He could be an All-Star every year,” James said.
Davis echoed James. “Everything that they’re doing right now, toughness, great pace, they play hard, the roster fits Monty’s style, his system … I expected nothing less,” Davis said.
Williams, for his part, is acknowledging the short-term progress while staying focused on the long-term goals.
He’s been pleased with his team’s effort and defense. And he’s been careful to keep expectations measured.
“We’ve played some really good teams, teams that could win a championship,” he said. “So, we’ve got a decent sample size of who we are.”
‘How much better we could be’
The Suns are missing second-year center Deandre Ayton for another 16 games. He certainly could have made a difference against the Lakers.
The L.A. rotation features skyscrapers in Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee to go alongside James and Davis.
All that size and length has created a huge advantage for the Lakers.
“We’re a work in progress,” coach Fank Vogel said. “We’ve been ahead of the curve on some things, particularly on the defensive end.”
The Lakers can cover so much space defensively that it causes opponents to see the “Ghosts of Shot Blocks Past.”
With about 4:30 left in the game Baynes rushed and missed a layup that would have given the Suns the lead.
With about a minute left Booker sliced by James only to find Davis waiting under the rim. He tossed up a floater that Davis couldn’t reach, but the shot didn’t fall.
Aside from Ayton, the Suns also expect a contribution from rookie Ty Jerome, who’s been out all season with a bum right ankle.
“Think about how much better we can be when we get those guys in the fold,” Williams said.
Jerome could help guard.
Booker and Rubio each flirted with 40 minutes played against L.A., which has the second-best record in the NBA behind the 8-1 Boston Celtics. with
‘This is going to happen’
depth at
Williams said his guys are learning how to win big games.
“Every possession is so important … you have to value every possession,” he said.
Booker, who’s been with the Suns through the lowest period in franchise history, echoed his coach’s message.
“Every possession, every detail, every missed coverage,” he said, “teams will make you pay for it. You just have to be locked in at all times.”
Rubio, who’s been to the playoffs the last two seasons with Utah, is keeping the growth in perspective.
The Suns have been right there. Now, they need to learn to put teams away. It’s not something they can expect to learn overnight.
“We did a pretty good job against Philadelphia, closing out the game,” Rubio said.
“We didn’t do it (against the Lakers), but this is a process. With a lot of new guys on the team, a lot of young guys, that is going to happen. We didn’t do it in Denver or against Utah. … We learn from it, and on to the next one.”
It’s clear the Lakers are ahead of the Suns at this point.
But they meet again on New Year’s Day.
(Ayton and Jerome should be back.) Let’s see how many lessons the rising Suns can learn between now and then.
Based on what we’ve seen so far, they’re not that far behind.