Suns are missing mark
Is Williams overthinking the problem? The Suns just can’t shoot
Suns coach Monty Williams knows a whole lot about basketball. But columnist Greg Moore believes Williams might be overthinking things. The way Moore sees it, the Suns just can’t shoot.
Suns coach Monty Williams knows more about basketball than we ever will, but perhaps that’s the problem. Maybe he’s overthinking this? From here, it just looks like the Suns can’t shoot.
“Until we learn how to play the right way and follow a game plan consistently, we’re gonna have these nights,” he said Sunday after the Suns’ 121-114 loss to the Grizzlies.
He was angry and walked off before taking questions.
Maybe he’s right.
Maybe this is a game-plan issue. But Phoenix shot 23 percent from three-point range against Memphis.
That’s 6 for 26, if you’re counting.
What’s the plan?
Williams didn’t elaborate on what he meant by “game plan.” Maybe it’s about drag screens and dribble hand-offs and after-timeout plays and out-of-bounds situations and split cuts and pin downs.
Or maybe he’s talking about the reality that some of his guys can’t move their feet well enough to play man defense without reaching, and he’s left to switch between 2-3 zones and 3-2 zones and at some points it even looks like he’s got guys running a box-and-one.
But, we’ll leave all that to the experts. They know basketball.
I just know how to apply Occam’s razor to almost any problem, because the simplest solution is almost always the best solution.
And putting it simply, the Suns aren’t making enough shots.
They were down 61-51 at halftime against the Knicks on Friday.
Wanna guess how well they were shooting from three-point range? Try 0 percent.
That’s 0 for 9, if you’re counting. Phoenix shot 10 for 19 from deep in the second half and won the game going away.
If I were Williams, I’d talk about that and nothing else.
I’d be challenging guys to get up extra shots before practice, after practice, before games and after games.
I’d be showing video of Ray Allen instead of the next game’s opponent.
And I’d start chirping at General Manager James Jones to go get some guys who can shoot.
But, again, Williams knows basketball.
Over the eight-game losing streak, the Suns shot less than 30 percent.
If he says it’s an X-and-O issue that has his team playing like a roller-coaster, then we should take him at his word.
‘A lot of nights like this’
The Suns have been setting for about six weeks now. Lose three. Win one. Lose three more. Alternate a few. Lose eight in a row.
They’re in danger of falling out of the playoff chase.
But it looked like the team was on an upswing, winning three of four. Then came the Memphis loss.
“Until we learn how to play the right way consistently,” Williams said, “we’re just gonna have a lot of nights like this.”
Or … or … and hear me out on this, because it might sound bonkers, but the Suns could try knocking down some open three-pointers.
The Suns are 23rd in three-point percentage, which wouldn’t be so bad if there were 100 teams in the league.
They’re sixth in attempts, which wouldn’t be so bad if they could make more of them.
There’s not a guy on the roster shooting 40 percent, and Ricky Rubio, Mikal Bridges, Tyler Johnson and Ty Jerome are all shooting 32 percent or worse.
Over the eight-game losing streak, the Suns shot less than 30 percent. That’s 80 for 273, if you’re counting. Their opponents meanwhile, were hitting 41 percent.
That’s 99 for 240, if you’re counting. It makes sense that Williams wants his guys to play a certain way.
He’s an NBA lifer who’s learned the game under and alongside some of the greats.
And it’s clear his approach is having some positive effects.
Anyone who’s been following this franchise for any length of time knows that this is the best basketball we’ve seen in years.
The Suns are sixth in the NBA in scoring (114.2) and first in assists (28.3). It’s been a few years since Phoenix finished a season inside the top 20 of either of those categories.
And most importantly, it feels like Phoenix has a chance to win every single night.
That hasn’t been the case around here in a long, long time.
So, again, we can defer to Williams when he says his guys aren’t consistently doing the right things.
He’s a smart coach.
I’m not.
I just want them to consistently hit some open shots.