By Randy Hill
FOXSportsArizona.com
Now checking in at 20-24, the Phoenix Suns are providing considerable evidence to support the theory that they're going nowhere.
But at least they seem to be going nowhere fast.
And, based on an exciting new metric, they're going faster than we thought.
According to Rohan Cruyff of SB Nation, the Suns squeeze off shots more quickly than their NBA peers. The shooting-quickly method of measuring offensive tempo appears to do the Suns more speed-related justice than highly regarded basketball-reference.com, which ranks the pace of teams based on field-goal attempts per 48 minutes. But the latter statistic can be corrupted by turnovers, offensive rebounds and so forth, leaving Coach Alvin Gentry's team at a measly sixth in the basketball-reference standings.
So, while Suns fans are suffering through their team's work in the Win-Lose metric, they can take a smidgen of solace in knowing the system of play is humming right along.
Unfortunately, the tune is a bit off.
How's that? Well, with point guard Steve Nash on the payroll, it certainly is more than reasonable for Gentry to continue the push-the-pace mandate. Even though Nash won't win many (if any) foot races with other NBA point guards, he's the gold standard of the kick-ahead pass that creates instant offense.
For a team that wants to run, his vision and timing make Nash the perfect triggerman for scoring in as little time as possible.
But his playmates aren't exactly world-class speedy, making it increasingly difficult for the Suns to run the opposition out of the gym. Through Wednesday night's loss to the Charlotte Bobcats, the Suns are ninth in the league in fast-break points per game.
Before examining the speed issue, please note that ranking 29th in defensive rebounding and 19th in forcing turnovers doesn't make it a breeze for Nash to generate fast-break points.
Anyway, despite this need for speed -- or at least enough to provide Nash with receivers for his fly patterns -- the Suns start each game with four other guys that rarely are mistaken for a relay team.
We'll begin with the fastest of the bunch -- 38-year-old small forward Grant Hill. Without this guy, there would be very few fast-break layups in Phoenix. But even though the maintenance of his north-south speed is remarkable, Hill has lost some of the lift that enabled him to easily finish most of those all-out sprints from the left wing.
We should be seeing 34-year-old Vince Carter (happy birthday, by the way) on the other side, but Vince hasn't been filling the lane with much consistency since arriving from Orlando. Ironically, Carter used to be one of the most explosive athletes the league has ever witnessed. This reluctance/inability to go from point A to point B in transition is exacerbated by a lack of to-the-basket burst in the halfcourt. While realizing the importance of attacking the paint (especially during late-game struggles for the entire offense), Carter doesn't drop his hips or bend his knees enough to beat quick defenders off the bounce. This often leads to contested, multi-clutch shots that occur from a much lower altitude than they did when Vince was spry.
During his birthday loss to the Bobcats, Carter was 5 of 8 from 3-point range, but only 3 of 9 inside the arc.
The shooting guard he replaced, Jason Richardson, is younger and still capable of using his remarkable athleticism to solicit the fast-break lob.
In the middle, we find 7-foot Robin Lopez, who -- after showing considerable promise when not injured last season -- is as swift in transition as a street sweeper. Although it's not exactly shameful for Lopez to be a bit tardy going from defense to offense, this ponderous movement also limits his production in pick-and-roll offense and rotations on defense.
The fifth starter in Gentry's current lineup is 6-11 Channing Frye, an ordinary athlete (by NBA standards) who runs to the 3-point line in transition. Adhering to the system, Frye can be quite a transition-3 weapon if he's balanced and locked in.
The best off the bench is swift center Marcin Gortat, who plays hard but doesn't have great hands or much lift off of two legs. At his age and reasonable contract, Gortat is a keeper.
Back-up point guard Goran Dragic is fast but needs to learn to mix in a change-up now and then. Hakim Warrick can run and jump, but defends and rebounds at levels even below the Phoenix standard. The ninth rotation player is super-sub Jared Dudley. Dudley is one of my favorite players but is unofficially registered as one of the least-athletic wing players in the league.
So, there you have it. This is a team that often lines up with four players offering less speed and quickness than the guys they're matched against. And it's a team that dares other teams to play fast. Yeah, there are other factors -- such as timing, intelligence and skill -- that go into running effectively, but the speed element certainly is nice to have.
For context, we now harken back to the halcyon days when Nash had running buddies who could actually outrun defenders. During this age of pace-goosing enlightenment, the Suns' point guard could kick the ball ahead to streaking teammates such as Leandro Barbosa or Shawn Marion, an undersized (sometimes) power forward whose ability to rebound the position presented Phoenix with a crazy speed advantage over everyone. These Suns could score in this manner ... after the opposition's made field goal.
Working at center (and hardly thrilled about it) was Amar'e Stoudemire, who often ran past opposing post players to gather in a pass from Nash and bend the rim.
Critics of this frenetic style refuse to accept that Mike D'Antoni was really close to making a breakthrough to The Finals and, perhaps, creating tempo-accelerating copycats all over the NBA. With the right players and some pressure defense mixed in to maintain the pace (something most coaches are afraid of, given the league's talent level), attack basketball could bring a parade.
On the flip side, the critics remind us that eight of the NBA's top 10 fast-break teams currently have losing records.
As a fan of the attack style, I'm not advocating a drastic change in the Suns' style of play. We saw what happened when Terry Porter attempted that with Nash at point guard and Planet Orange nearly exploded. Gentry took over for Porter, declared the throttle would be wide open, and the Suns responded with a tremendous scoring spree.
But the defense then sank to levels that were lower than they'd been with D'Antoni sitting in the big chair. That includes the triumphant run of last season.
Even though he's conducted several defense-revival meetings this season, Gentry's players have been unable to maintain the usual offensive production when the defense does improve. High performance at both ends of the floor in the same game has been rare.
Legendary coach Pete Newell once reminded me that basketball is not a track meet. We were discussing the merits of top candidates for the 1995 NBA Draft. Newell, who had become the sport's foremost expert on teaching post play, was explaining why Maryland's Joe Smith would be a better pro than North Carolina's bouncy, seemingly less-skilled Rasheed Wallace. As his career evolved, Wallace did improve his skill level and -- combined with his lift and agility -- became the superior (and more volatile) player.
We shouldn't use Joe Smith as an absolute for anything, but -- with huge respect to the late Coach Newell -- going from point A to point B swiftly can be terribly important in the NBA. Players like Nash and Dudley are glaring exceptions, but the majority of the league's great players have tremendous quickness and acceleration relative to their positions.
This doesn't mean Gentry and the Suns should walk the ball up the floor; based on their limited creative skills (aside from Nash), scoring in the half-court can be tricky with this group.
But without elite athletes that used to make the system deadly, converting their pace into victories is that much tougher.
