J-Rich a perfect fit for Phoenix
by Yannis Koutroupis of HoopsWorld.com
At first it seemed like the Phoenix Suns acquired the high-flying and explosive Jason Richardson a year too late. Under Terry Porter, Richardson looked like another player who would be better off in Mike D’Antoni’s system. They ended up being two months early, though, as they made the decision in mid-February to fire Porter and revert back to D’Antoni’s style of play under Alvin Gentry. Richardson’s numbers are up as a result of playing in a scheme that fully utilizes his strengths.
“This is more my style of basketball,” stated Richardson. “It’s up and down and run and gun. That’s when I’m at my best, when I’m in the open court for me to do what I do.”
Steve Kerr’s first big move as the GM of the Suns was bringing in Shaquille O’Neal from the Miami HEAT in exchange for Shawn Marion. The Suns remained a running team with D’Antoni at the helm, but after some disagreements with management he decided to move on with his career elsewhere. He was replaced by Terry Porter because they felt their personnel fit best in a half court system. Although O’Neal benefitted the most from the switch he’s been perfectly content with the decision to speed things back up.
“Yeah, he likes it,” revealed Richardson. “This team has the best of both worlds. We’re an up and down team but when we need baskets or we need to be a half-court team we can definitely throw the ball into him so he can get his shots up. He also gets everyone else involved.”
O’Neal has always been a willing passer and at the ripe age of 37 he still commands a double-team on the block. Even with Amar’e Stoudemire out, Shaq has no shortage of offensive firepower around him, which has led to the Suns leading the league in scoring once again. It’s because of their numerous offensive threats that there’s no one person they depend on with the game on the line.
“It really doesn’t matter,” said Richardson when asked about who the go-to guy was in the clutch. “Whoever has the hot hand that night. We’ve got so many scorers. You’re always going to see three of them. You got Shaq, when Amar’e was healthy with us, Steve (Nash), Matt (Barnes), and Grant (Hill). We just got so many scorers it’s pretty much who has the hot hand that night is gonna get the ball. We’ve got the type of team where nobody is selfish and we share the ball with each other.”
The game of H-O-R-S-E became an event during All-Star Weekend this year, but it’s been a longstanding tradition before and after practice for decades now. The Suns would have to be one of the top teams to watch because they have so many guys who can really shoot the ball.
“I don’t know (who holds the crown in H-O-R-S-E),” admitted Richardson. “Every other day it could be anybody. I’m definitely up there, Steve’s definitely up there. We got a lot of shooters on this team, a lot of great shooters.”
When the Suns are in a structured environment on the court they’re doing their best to become a team that can rely on their defense. If there’s one lesson this season has taught them, it’s that you cannot just outscore people every single night.
“Of course we want to outscore people, we’re not going to take away what we do best,” explained Richardson. “But at the same time when the game is on the line and things come down to it we have to learn how to get stops. We’re learning that right now and hopefully it carries on to the rest of the season and even into next year.”
The Suns will need it to carry over into next year because their season has realistically come to an end this year. They’re four games out with just five remaining and would need to win out in order to make it, while the Dallas Mavericks would have to lose out. The Suns struggled to find an identity this year but they finally have their players having fun again. Come next year, if they can stay healthy and together, they should see a much different result . . .and likely a return to the playoffs.
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