What week two taught us: And… here… we… go

After week one we weren’t quite sure who the Suns were and how they’d fare against quality opponents. After week two we have some answers, although caution is still advised. Through two weeks the Suns sit at 6-1, their only loss to the defending Eastern Conference champions in Orlando, the night after a hard fought road game against the Heat.

Many questions remain but here is what week two taught us about this Phoenix Suns team.

• The Suns will struggle in the tail end of a back-to-back:
  The Suns have only looked old on one occasion early on this NBA season. In last Wednesday’s game against the Orlando Magic, the Suns may have lost by twenty-two points but it wasn’t until the second half that the game got out of hand. Heading into the locker room at halftime the Suns trailed by only six, 58-52, despite neither Jason Richardson or Grant Hill scoring. Amare Stoudemire looked strong with 19 points and 11 rebounds and the defense had kept Dwight Howard mostly in check.

  In the second half things stalled for the Suns as Hill and Richardson never found their stroke and the defense faltered. They looked tired and understandably so. Two good teams, in two nights, 3,000 miles from home.

  This game exposed a weakness for the Suns. When you play fast paced basketball predicated on two thirty-somethings, you are bound to look tired when you have to travel to play your second game in as many nights against a good opponent.

  Mark it down, the Suns won’t look as good in the second game of back-to-back games. They’ll win a few against weaker or evenly matched opponents but when faced with an elite team, they’ll struggle. Unfortunately for the Suns it will occur seven more times this season (11/11 vs. NO, 11/12 @ LAL, 12/1 @NYK, 12/2 @CLE, 12/5 vs. SAC, 12/6 @ LAL, 12/11 vs.ORL, 12/12 @DEN, 1/31 @HOU, 2/1 @NO, 2/16 @MEM, 12/17 @DAL, 4/13 vs. DEN, 4/14 @UTA).

• Alvin Gentry can coach:

  When you see a coach who has had head jobs in three different cities, none of which lasted more than three seasons, you begin to wonder about his ability. Not the case with Alvin Gentry.

  Although he has been the “the head guy” in Miami (Interim), Detroit and with the Clippers, prior to taking the Suns job, he never had as talented, or as veteran laden, of a team as he does in Phoenix. In week two he proved that he has the ears of his players and can keep them focused in the midst of a long road trip. They’ve rebound well and played smart team defense, two things Terry Porter could never get a similar group of guys to do, along with play at a breakneck speed on offense. The NBA may only be entering week three but Alvin Gentry has already made his impact felt and put his name in for “Coach of the Year” consideration.

• The offense can still score:

  We saw that the Suns put up solid numbers against some of the “weaker” opponents in week one. Many people felt there’d be a dramatic drop off in week two. Not the case.

  Against some tough Eastern Conference opponents known for their defense, the Suns have averaged 104 points. Along with averaging 104 points, they earned the distinction of being the only team to score more than 90 points on the Celtics this season and did it with 110 points.

  The offense may not score 120 this season as often as it did under Mike D’Antoni, but it certainly will still score in bunches and if the defense continues to improve, it may not need to.

• The rumors of Steve Nash’s demise was greatly exaggerated

  A road trip opening, 30 point, 8 assist performance against Miami coupled with a 12 assist performance in a win against the Celtics and 17 assists against Washington, more than the entire Wizards team, is enough to prove the “old” Nash is back. He may have some off nights this season but he week two showed MV-Steve still has plenty left.

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