The Phoenix Suns were defeated by the Lakers on Thursday (November 20, 2008) by a score of 105-92. During this game, it seemed that the Suns were quite slow and appeared confused regarding what they were supposed to do. Some easy shots were missed by the team and the ball was turned over frequently. When one probes into the reasons of these failures, it is found that their stars are aging, their new coach is trying to overhaul the system and Shaquille O’Neal exhibits a game that decelerates everything.
Steve Nash is a two time Most Valuable Player of the league and although his current game cannot be classified as bad, it is certainly ordinary. In the previous four games, he had an average of 12.3 points and 7 assists per game. In the game with the Lakers, he ended up with 8 points and 10 assists. However, the dark side is that he missed 4 3-point attempts and could shoot only 3 of 9 from the floor. Nash is generally renowned to be a skilful and innovative point guard and it has been a long time after which he is displaying a mediocre performance.
Another problem is that Nash and O’Neal do not have any idea how to play off each other. As a matter of fact, no player in the team has any hint of playing off O’Neal. If the game of the Suns is closely observed, it can be easily concluded that O’Neal, who is now 36 years old, growls down the court, plods in position on the low block and becomes a hurdle on several possessions. Additionally, O’Neal is not a very efficient defender as he was in the past and by his overall play the observer is astonished that he is an assistance as well as a hindrance in equal amounts.
