First Week Woes

The first week of the 2011-2012 season has not been kind to the Phoenix Suns. They sport a lowly 1-3 record, despite the fact that three of the four games so far have been against teams the Suns would have run off the court three to four years ago. My have things changed in so short a time.

The win/loss record is not the only unfamiliar territory for this team. In six of the seven years since Steve Nash returned to the Suns, they have been ranked as one of the top two teams in offensive efficiency, and in the top five in possessions per game. In other words…the Suns were running, and the Suns were scoring.

Through the first week of the season, this team looks very different. So far, the Suns rank 25^th in offensive efficiency at a mere 94.9 points per 100 possessions, compared to their highest mark of 115.3 in 2009-10. Even without Amare Stoudemire last season they managed to put up an offensive efficiency of 109.5, good enough for 9^th in the NBA. So, what is so different about this year’s team versus last year’s squad?

As I mentioned in an earlier post, there a many potential factors that have played into the Suns’ slow start; age, lockout, no training camp. But statistically, there is another factor that makes this team look far different than any other version under the Nash Era; and that is pace.

Ever since Mike D’Antoni rolled out the “Seven Seconds or Less” offense in 2004, the Suns have finished in the top five in number of possessions per game in six out of seven years, and in the top ten every year. Currently the Suns are ranked 25^th in the NBA in pace according to hoopdata.com. They just aren’t pushing the ball up the court this year, and in my opinion, it’s hurting the team. Steve Nash-led teams have finished in the top ten in pace every year of his career. Even at age 36, last season, he was pushing the ball up the court, using his excellent court vision while the defense scrambled to get back and defend. Using Steve Nash in any other way just seems unnatural. It does not seem wise to try and drastically adjust the team’s style of play when the leader and identity of the franchise is still Steve Nash.

If this new style is part of the new defensive philosophy of new assistant coach, Elston Turner, then it might be time to really start thinking about trading Nash and Grant Hill and starting the rebuild from the ground up. If the front office continues to hold firm that Nash will not be traded under any circumstances, then at least for the fans’ sake, make the team watchable and let Steve Nash do what Steve Nash does best…and that’s push the basketball and let his team score a lot of points.