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Phoenix (34-28) at San Antonio (41-20)
The San Antonio Spurs have eliminated the Phoenix Suns in three of the past four postseasons, and as the NBA enters the final stretch of the 2008-09 regular season, the Spurs are again one of the favorites in the Western Conference.
The Suns, however, might not make it back for another crack at San Antonio.
Phoenix has lost three in a row to fall further out of the West’s final playoff spot, a skid it hopes to snap Sunday afternoon as it tries to salvage the finale of a four-game trip against the Southwest Division-leading Spurs.
San Antonio (41-20) took the Suns out of the playoffs in five games after the 2004-05 and 2007-08 seasons, and beat them in six games in the controversy-filled 2007 Western Conference semifinals that was best remembered for one-game suspensions to Phoenix’s Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw. The Spurs have also won two of three matchups this season.
While the Spurs will certainly be back in the playoffs competing for a fifth NBA title since 1999, the Suns (34-28) may not be joining them. Phoenix won six of eight after Alvin Gentry took over for fired coach Terry Porter, but it’s lost the first three games of this trip and is currently stuck in ninth place.
Nash had a season-high 32 points and 13 assists on Friday in Houston, but Aaron Brooks had a career-high 30 as the Rockets held on for a 116-112 win after Nash missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer.
“We got the pace of the game where we wanted it—up-tempo,” Gentry said. “Houston likes to play that way too. We seem to be snake bitten with the way things have gone at the end of games lately.”
While the Suns continue to adjust to playing without Stoudemire, who won’t return until next season after having surgery to repair a detached retina, Nash has started to score more.
Nash has averaged 27.0 points on 58.6 percent shooting during the road trip after missing three games with a sprained ankle.
He’ll have an especially tough matchup on Sunday against Tony Parker, who has thrived in head-to-head meetings with Nash. Parker has averaged 26.3 points on 51.2 percent from the floor in his past eight regular-season meetings with Phoenix.
Nash has averaged 15.8 points and 11.5 assists in those matchups.
With Manu Ginobili having missed the past 10 games with a stress reaction in his right ankle and Tim Duncan sidelined for three games in that same stretch, Parker has picked it up offensively. His numbers in his seven games since Feb. 24—26.3 points per game on 51.4 percent shooting—are nearly identical to his recent efforts against the Suns.
Parker had game highs of 19 points and seven assists in just 24 minutes Friday in the Spurs’ 100-78 win over Washington, a much-needed easy victory after they’d lost three of four.
“At this time of year when you get a game like this, when every once in a while your starters can rest, it’s usually a good thing,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “So that worked out for us.”
Ginobili won’t be ready for at least another week, and Duncan hasn’t quite looked like himself since coming back from a sore right knee. He’s averaged 14.0 points in four games—six below his average.
Duncan, though, hasn’t had any problems inside against Shaquille O’Neal this season. The two-time league MVP has averaged 25.7 points and 12.7 rebounds in the three games, including two wins in Phoenix.
The Spurs, though, have lost three straight regular-season games at home to the Suns.
The San Antonio Spurs have eliminated the Phoenix Suns in three of the past four postseasons, and as the NBA enters the final stretch of the 2008-09 regular season, the Spurs are again one of the favorites in the Western Conference.
The Suns, however, might not make it back for another crack at San Antonio.
Phoenix has lost three in a row to fall further out of the West’s final playoff spot, a skid it hopes to snap Sunday afternoon as it tries to salvage the finale of a four-game trip against the Southwest Division-leading Spurs.
San Antonio (41-20) took the Suns out of the playoffs in five games after the 2004-05 and 2007-08 seasons, and beat them in six games in the controversy-filled 2007 Western Conference semifinals that was best remembered for one-game suspensions to Phoenix’s Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw. The Spurs have also won two of three matchups this season.
While the Spurs will certainly be back in the playoffs competing for a fifth NBA title since 1999, the Suns (34-28) may not be joining them. Phoenix won six of eight after Alvin Gentry took over for fired coach Terry Porter, but it’s lost the first three games of this trip and is currently stuck in ninth place.
Nash had a season-high 32 points and 13 assists on Friday in Houston, but Aaron Brooks had a career-high 30 as the Rockets held on for a 116-112 win after Nash missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer.
“We got the pace of the game where we wanted it—up-tempo,” Gentry said. “Houston likes to play that way too. We seem to be snake bitten with the way things have gone at the end of games lately.”
While the Suns continue to adjust to playing without Stoudemire, who won’t return until next season after having surgery to repair a detached retina, Nash has started to score more.
Nash has averaged 27.0 points on 58.6 percent shooting during the road trip after missing three games with a sprained ankle.
He’ll have an especially tough matchup on Sunday against Tony Parker, who has thrived in head-to-head meetings with Nash. Parker has averaged 26.3 points on 51.2 percent from the floor in his past eight regular-season meetings with Phoenix.
Nash has averaged 15.8 points and 11.5 assists in those matchups.
With Manu Ginobili having missed the past 10 games with a stress reaction in his right ankle and Tim Duncan sidelined for three games in that same stretch, Parker has picked it up offensively. His numbers in his seven games since Feb. 24—26.3 points per game on 51.4 percent shooting—are nearly identical to his recent efforts against the Suns.
Parker had game highs of 19 points and seven assists in just 24 minutes Friday in the Spurs’ 100-78 win over Washington, a much-needed easy victory after they’d lost three of four.
“At this time of year when you get a game like this, when every once in a while your starters can rest, it’s usually a good thing,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “So that worked out for us.”
Ginobili won’t be ready for at least another week, and Duncan hasn’t quite looked like himself since coming back from a sore right knee. He’s averaged 14.0 points in four games—six below his average.
Duncan, though, hasn’t had any problems inside against Shaquille O’Neal this season. The two-time league MVP has averaged 25.7 points and 12.7 rebounds in the three games, including two wins in Phoenix.
The Spurs, though, have lost three straight regular-season games at home to the Suns.
