NBA Preseason Nuggets@Suns (2008) – Allen Iverson , Carmelo Anthony & Steve Nash
The following is a presentation of TNT. Bringing you the thrill of the NBA, the drama of NASCAR, and the prestige of golf’s final two majors. He has the unique ability to be aware of what’s going on around him. A keen sense that embraces the imagination. His vision considered a skill, but also a gift. [Music] But what vision holds true in Steve Nash’s eye this season? Another division title is predictable. But is this the year where he and the Suns claim the coveted Larry O’Brien trophy? Tonight they face the Denver Nuggets, a team also searching for their place in a powerful Western Conference. Carmelo Anthony, Alan Iverson, two superstars brought together last season to change the fate of the franchise. But a first round playoff exit left questions. Where does the answer lie for Denver this season? The drama is set to unfold. It’s Nuggets Suns. Next on TNT. It is a blistering 85° night in Phoenix. We’re at the US Airways Center in the Valley of the Sun for a TNT preseason special. The Denver Nuggets facing the Phoenix Suns. We were scheduled to be in San Diego for the Lakers and the Utah Jazz, but that game was cancelled due to the wildfires in Southern California. So, we’re here in Phoenix and we extend our very best to all those going through such a difficult time. Welcome to our broadcast location. I’m Marv Albert along with future Hall of Famer Reggie Miller. And back with us, the Zar of the Teleustrator, Mike Fell of a new broadcast combination here at Turner Sports. A lot of pressure, Reggie, on the Zar, not to mess things up, I thought things were kind of smooth the last I agree. Couple of years. All right, first let’s talk Phoenix. The Suns, a team that last season won 61 games. They finished first in the Pacific second overall in the West. Once again, they lead the NBA in scoring, but in the postseason after beating the Lakers in five, they lose in the conference semis in a wild series to the Spurs. What’s your feel for the Suns this season? It’s all about Omari Starttomire and people tend to forget that he was the only Sun to play in all 82 games last year. Now, this will be his first preseason game tonight. He says he’s lighter, he’s leaner, which is going to help him more defensively. What is surprising, people here are saying that in the Valley of the Sun that Gran Hill was the big upgrade. Well, a healthier, more agile Amari Starter, that’s the biggest upgrade. All right. As for Denver, Mike, they go 45 and 37 last year. They they do make the playoffs again. And in the playoffs, they have their their difficulties. They lose in the first round to the Spurs. And it’s now the Nuggets of Carmelo Anthony and Allan Iverson. But there are certainly issues going into the season. The two most pressing issues for Denver right now as they approach the start of the regular season would be health and chemistry. Let’s deal with the health issues first. Going back to a year ago, their key players missed significant number of games. Marcus Camry surprisingly high 70 games for Marcus Allen Iverson traded over from Philadelphia. Carmelo and Jr. both missed games due to the league suspension. Then they had a real bad back last year. Kenyan Martin his second micro fracture surgery. Therefore, he played only two basketball games. So, a big need to see how healthy they can remain and obviously limiting minutes will be a concern for George Carr. Now, the second issue we’re talking about is chemistry. A fine balance of egos, priorities, minutes, distributions by head coach George Carl. Anytime you have three allstars and a defensive player of the year, they all want to be happy and all want to play all the minutes, it’s difficult. All right, so coming up momentarily, it is a pre-season special here on TNT. The Denver Nuggets and the Phoenix Suns. We’ll be right back. [Applause] [Music] Back in Phoenix, this most unusual for a preseason game. It is a sellout crowd. 19,000 showing up here at US Airways Center. As we check out the starting lineups, the Denver Nuggets missing only one starter. Marcus Cami is bothered by back spasms, although he is dressed and may see some action uh for Canyon Martin. Only his third preseason game back from a second microracture surgery and he has looked very good in camp. Phoenix with its customary starting five and as Reggie uh mentioned a moment ago, this is Amari Starta’s preseason debut after undergoing arthoscopic surgery earlier this month. And the officiating crew, James Capers with Bill Kennedy and Kevin Cutner in his rookie NBA season. The Suns at 4 and2 in the exhibition season. The last game this past Sunday at Staples in LA. They beat Charlotte by 10, while the Nuggets at four up and two down. Their last game this past Tuesday night at home as they beat the Bucks by 12. Nothing like tweaking your roster in the offseason. Just add a Grant Hill. Not bad, Reggie. Well, I I think what’s interesting is both coaches are looking at this by getting a lot of their regular starting the game. This is going to have the feel of a regular season game. And both teams finish up tomorrow night. Suns have to travel to Vancouver to go up against the Seattle Sonics. That’s a traveling uh violation. while the Nuggets will travel to Redmond, Oregon to face the Portland Trailblazers. [Music] This is Kenyan Martin with the driving hook over Shawn Marian. Any one of the coaches that you talk to on Denver amazed with the athleticism that Kenya Martin is showing his agility. The fact that they’re trying to keep him somewhere between 15 and 20 minutes a game right now for around the first 20 games of the season to see how he recovers. And a strong move by Stallemire about an hour before game time when we were talking to George Carl, the head coach of the Nuggets, and try to check out the starting lineup. It was thought as Martin throws the floater up, rebounded by Marion, and it was thought that Carmelo Anthony would not play, Alan Iverson would not play, Marcus Candy would not dress. Yes. But we’re told about 20 minutes before the guys head to the floor to warm up that yes, Romelo Anthony and Allan Iverson wanted to play and here they are. Well, they knew coach was coming back for his first preseason game. So, they got they got excited for that. Oh, this coach, the former coach. [Applause] This gives both coaches a great opportunity tonight to finally start to work on their rotations, minutes, trying to figure out what the right combinations are on the floor. And one of the things that George Paul mentioned was he has gone and completely changed their philosophy entering training camp this year from a year ago coaching from the offensive standpoint to this year making defense their first priority. Dawara called on the foul. They double up on Nash. Marryiam with a catch and shoot and rebounded by Dawir. I should point out that George Carl had a most intriguing proposal as Carmelo Anthony rims out which was directed at uh Reggie Miller. Kind of a Roger Clemens deal was offered up. He said if you’re interested in making another comeback attempt you could play just home games 41 games in Denver and uh as thear and I brought up he could also continue doing his work at TNT. I think it it all fits. I’m going to tell you Marv, it took me two years just to get this seat right here and now you’re already trying to trade me back into the league. I’m a little disappointed in both of you guys for that. Well, you see, you’re looking at it all wrong as Brad Hill is able to finish up. We are looking from a career point of view. It would get a lot of play. You could help this club off the bench. And he said he’s going to check back with you in January. That’s a defensive 3second violation. He said he didn’t need him the first two months of the season. You can show up in January. Well, Coach Carl and I, we had a great time in the 2002 World Championships in Indianapolis when he was the head coach there. He really knows how to move the basketball. I understand his philosophy, so I can understand where he’s coming from. But those three weeks I went through to try to get ready for the Boston Celtics were incredible. My body has never been the same. I’m happy to be over here with you two and I’m set in my retirement ways, as they say. So, is that a no to George? That is a no. N able to knock it down. And for N, it’s only his second preseason game. a host of injuries as you pointed out, Mike, as we opened up that the Denver Nuggets are dealing with here at as we approach the start of the season. And that’s a travel called on Grant Hill. I think Reggie, you’ll have to admit that if you’re going to make it to the championship and have have any chance of winning a world championship, two things have to take place. You need a little bit of luck and you need good help. If you lose your key players, you’re not going to have a chance to win an NBA championship. So it starts there for the Denver Nuggets having their key guys for most of the games. Iverson able to drill it. George Carl feels that and unfortunately so that November’s regular season games will be similar to an extended training camp with so many players sitting out preseason. Nash getting inside. He challenged Martin. Rebounded by Carmelo Anthony. This is a team Denver made up of pieces. Obviously, you have your allstar pieces, Ian Iverson and Carmelo Anthony. And then you have your other pieces. Yara is their stopper. They start him out on Nash tonight, which is certainly a great challenge for this young man. Then Kenya Martin with his athleticism. You saw him switch off a moment ago and guard Nash Marian. You mentioned Dawara and I know Reggie, you’re quite familiar with Yakuba Dawir because he’s out of Pepper Pepperdine, your home territory. You’ve guess you’ve worked out with uh as they say Kuba. Yakuba. Yes. Uh my last few years in the league and even now I’d go up there and work out with the Pepperdine team and he would come up and we had early workouts that I required for the Pepperdine kids as well as Yakuba to be up there. Now, he didn’t make all the early workouts, but he made some of them. And I was telling Coach Carl that I wanted to camp him out on the three-point line, but he wouldn’t show up at the 7:00 a.m. workouts. He was like, “Well, it’s funny because come come game times, our game starts at 7:30. He jumper really doesn’t start to fall till 10:30, so we call him 10:30 instead of 7:30.” Foul was called to Dioir. Steve Nash, 90% free throw shooter last season. And what a year it was for for Nash. Averaged 18 points, 11 assists, led the NBA for the third straight year in assists. Shot 53%. It was actually a career season from a statistical point of view. He felt he had a better year than the previous two when he was most valuable player. One of the keys for Phoenix will be the minutes that Steve Nash has to play. I think Mike Anton will admit readily that he would like to get his minutes down a little bit, but on the other end, the team suffers when Nash is on the floor because he is such a dominant player in his position. Anthony had to fire it up with the shot clock running out. Here’s Iverson. He draws the foul. Yes. And it counts the foul charged to Raja Bell. Now I’m going to tell you what coach Maitoni is excited about right here as Allan Iverson goes for the and one right here off the second shot opportunity. It’s one thing AI has always been good for is being able to draw contact for the foul. But did you see Amari Starter guarding Carmelo Anthony on the perimeter? Now, you got to remember this is a guy that had microactive surgery on his left leg and is coming off arthoscopic surgery on his right knee being able to guard one of the premier perimeter players on the perimeter. I Anthony able to put it home and the Nuggets with a 13-10 lead. Is there any more pure scorer than Carmelo Anthony in this league you could think of as far as just scoring points outside, the inside, in transition? Who does it better than Carmelo Anthony? off the ground. Here you’ve got Allen Iverson who is exploring under the basket to see what he can find exactly. And Carmelo knows that if he just keeps running the floor, keeps running the floor. I’m I’m sorry. I was going to go back a second ago to the score, but that was a defensive foul right there. Foul on Dawara. That is three here in the early going. A diara Nash. A rainbow thrown up by Nash. It’s a two-pointer. Had a foot on the line. The Nuggets now lead by one. Six and a half to play in this first quarter. Martin makes his move. He is fouled. Hit on a reach in by Bell. All right, we talked about the key addition for the Phoenix Suns, Grant Hill. How about the Nuggets? Well, one of your former players in Memphis, Chucky Atkins, added to the roster, Bobby Jones, who began his career with the 76ers as came from Philly, as did Steven Hunter. Steve Blake goes back to Portland. Chucky Atkins, a big big pickup for them, especially since Anthony Carter broke his hand recently. He’ll miss a few weeks. Chucky Atkins, the kind of guy who can get you on a given night anywhere between 25 and 30 points. come down, hit threes. He’s a terrific free throw shooter and he gets to the foul line a number of times. So, picking up Chuck You. Real good move by the Nuggets. And I think another surprise player for the Denver Nuggets has been Bobby Jones and his play. He came over in over the trade from the Philadelphia 76ers and coach Carl has been really surprised at his offense. He was known for a defensive player, but been very surprised at his offense. Not to be confused with a another Bobby Jones who pretty good player for the for the Sixers a couple of decades ago. And here is Iverson. Allan Iverson able to penetrate and the Nuggets have a 1712 lead. Bell for three. Rebounded by Anthony. Suns get back and you know you this league is all about trends as Carmelo Anthony goes in for and one and that leads to a timeout. Nice move on the hesitation by Carmelo who now has seven points. Foul on Bell. Just under six remaining first quarter. The NBA on TNT brought to you by Southwest Airlines, official airline of the NBA, by Progressive Direct. Think easier, think Progressive. Call 1800progressive today. By autotrader.com, the ultimate automotive marketplace, and by T-Mobile, the official wireless partner of the NBA. T-Mobile, stick together. Welcome back to Phoenix. Our preseason special between the Suns and the Nuggets. Originally scheduled for the Lakers in Utah and San Diego, but that game among many sporting events canled in the California area due to the devastation from those wildfires. 23 fires causing a billion dollars in damage. A half million acres burned, 1,600 homes destroyed. About 40 members of the Chargers organization, the NFL team, had to be evacuated from their homes. The Chargers set up camp here in Phoenix last couple of days to prepare for a game against the Houston Texans on Sunday. A game that has yet to be determined when and where it will be played. I talked to several of the Chargers this afternoon after their practice. They said they are still hopeful that they will be able to play that game either Sunday or Monday in San Diego, but their uh stadium right now being used for one of the many shelters. Several of those players also voiced an interest far and coming to this game later tonight. All right. Thank you, uh, Craig. And we’d also like to send our best to our former colleague, now the president of basketball operations and general manager of the Sun, Steve Kerr. They had to evacuate their home in the San Diego area due to the fires, which burned down 30 houses in their neighborhood, but it appears that their home is safe. The out just came out is off the mark. Denver Nuggets turning it with a 10-2 run. and they have a 20-2 lead. Reggie, I know you have a home in Malibu. How are things there? Yeah, everything is fine. Uh people in the neighborhood is great. They evacuated, but everything is okay. But more importantly, I want to thank the men and women firefighters who’ve been working tirelessly throughout the night to try to get this thing contained. I think that’s where the focus should be is on these men and women firefighters. Eduardo Nahara has checked in coming on for Canyon Martin. One of the pleasant surprises of the Phoenix campus. Marian is able to hit. Sha Marks has come on for the first time along with Bars Dia. Carmelo Anthony remaining on the floor along with Net Nahara. They are up front. And here’s N with a strong move. It counts. And the foul. You mentioned Shan Marks a second ago. Mark, one one of the big questions for Phoenix will be, can a combination of Shawn Marx and Brian Skinner combine to give them what Kurt Thomas did a year ago, that presence against the big strong guys that post up night in and night out? Can they stop them from scoring without having to double and triple team all the time? Shawn Marks last season appeared in only three games. He was inactive for 62 games, but now figures to be in the rotation with the departure of Kurt uh Thomas going in his ninth season out of the University of of California. You know, Steve Kerr was uh always an admirer of Shawn Marx, even though he hardly played and they did not cross paths in San Antonio, but his former San Antonio teammates had a lot of good things to say about about Shawn, primarily because of his his practice habits. Well, when you’re the 11th and 12th man, a lot of sacrifice goes into that position. And you’ve got to be willing to sacrifice uh time and you got to be able even though you feel that you should be on the court, you got to sacrifice that sometimes for the betterment of the team. Looked like Barry was out of bounds. So Nuggets will get it back. You know, Marv, I’d like to take a minute to thank Robert Sarly, managing partner of the Phoenix Suns, for finding a spot for Steve Kerr and bringing him back home, which opened up this spot in the broadcast. Thank you, Mr. Sver. Appreciate it. And that’s exactly what was on his mind. wanted to shuffle things. I looked at it. I thought it was kind of like another guy you just drove out of here. Jeff Van Gundy, me. Yeah. You know, Steve Kerr Rich. Uh-oh. Am I in line here for something here, gentlemen? Here is Iverson. Yes. Well, I’m going to tell you this. I think the combination of this game being switched to national TV and obviously the two-time MVP Steve Nash is really why Allan Iverson is playing tonight. He licks his chop when he is going against some of the other top point guards in the league. And I think that was one of the reason because he did not have to play tonight. Allan Iverson, but he recognized going against Steve Nash. Let me lace him up a little bit. See where the chips fall. Foul was called on Bobby Jones. I think Allen also computed in his mind. Well, there will be some people watching the world the World Series game, I believe, tonight. But there will be folks tuned in. So, he and Carmelo decided yes, uh, they would be in the lineup here tonight. And TNT will have coverage of NBA Tip Off07 beginning Tuesday night. And the evening begins 7:00 with NBA Tip Off presented by autotrader.com, followed by game one between the Blazers and the Spurs. And then the second of the Twin Bill, the Rockets and the Lakers coverage wrapping up with the award-winning Inside the NBA. And then next Thursday, another NBA double header. Game one, Tistans and Heat, followed by the Suns and the Sonets starting 8:00 Eastern time. It all gets underway. Opening night on Tuesday. Oh, beautiful alleyoop Nash to Marian. The Nuggets now lead by six. Here’s the quick decision in transition. Steve Nash looking it over. Understands that no one’s going to jump with Marion. Lays it up above the rim on the other side. Marion the great finisher. Anthony with the snap. It counts. send the foul. What a move. Carmelo Anthony going to his left. And everyone’s talked about Shawn Marian and the trade rumors. This is why the Phoenix Suns are able to go is because of Shawn Marian. And you come right back at the other end and there’s that pure scorer Carmelo Anthony strength ability to put it down. One dribble facing up the basket. Tough guard right there. And yes, Sha Marian has been the subject of much trade speculation. Now, the Suns have have made it clear that at least for the moment, he will remain, if that’s possible, a a Phoenix Sun. The There’s no way this offense goes without Shawn Marion. He spreads the floor, but it’s more importantly, it’s defensively because he can scale down and guard uh the big men and the fires. He can guard power forwards. That’s why they’re so effective is because of his strength. This has been kind of a year, Reg, of players that either talk about being traded or unhappy early on in the season and want to be elsewhere, it seems. And it’s the high price players. You got Andre Karolinko in Utah. Obviously, everyone knows about Kobe and the Los Angeles Lakers. And you got Shawn Marian. All three guys are in unique situations on good teams. Nash for the beautiful feed. Marian could not convert. Marks keeps it alive. Marks is fouled by Nahar. You know, you talk about opportunity presenting itself. Can you find a much better situation than Phoenix for Shawn Marian? 208 to go in this first quarter. Nuggets up by nine. Throughout tonight’s telecast, both Reggie and the Zar will be filling us in on some of their assessments as the season gets underway. And we’ll start with uh Reggie’s feelings on the best teams in the Eastern Conference. Well, not in no particular order. I I really like Detroit and what they did with their back court. Aaron Aalo and and Stucky, even though he broke his hand last night. Everyone’s going to be all eyes will be on Boston in the big three. Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, KG, and Chicago. I think last year’s experience beating Miami, sweeping Miami. I think right now, if I had to make a pick, I I say Chicago wins the East, but it’s going to be very competitive. What about the Celtics? We know about the big three. Uh, obviously, they’ve come a long way and it’s terrific for the NBA, but is there enough coming off the bench over the long haul? Well, that’s going to be the big question. And I I think uh right now Danny A is the whole motto is let’s win now. I think he mortgaged the future with a lot of these younger players to to win now. And you’re talking about young players. There’s Chicago who has taken those young players, developed the young players, added some key vener pieces like Wallace, etc. And now I think they’re right in the thick of things. I actually have them ahead of the Celtics because of the lack of depth then with the Nets, their starting center returns, and they add the Mccclure, who I think is going to be a very important piece for them in center position. And there’s Chucky Atkins who just came on with his first shot attempt coming up on the final minute of this first quarter. Marcus Banks checking in for Phoenix for the first time. And this is the exper experiment that coach Mike Danton is going to look at. Marcus Banks trying to get a lot of minutes off the bench to relieve Steve Nash. But now here’s the luxury you have. You have Grant Hill who’s a point forward who could run the offense from that position. DJ Strawberry a moment ago hitting on that hitting on that jump shot and then Strawberry is called for the foul. Mike, you were saying your selections for the best in the East. It’s supposed to be three. I mean, what is this? A hedge? I Well, I I just flip-flopped the Celtics and the Bulls as far as the Reggie going and and then the Nets. I I think they’re really got a chance to be pretty good this year, especially since the center position will be very strong. Kid was Jason Kid was sensational with the United States team in the offseason to get Jefferson back healthy again. And there’s one more guy from North Carolina that scores a few points every once in a while out there. So, well, you do know LeBron and them are not playing on his team. Jason, that that helps a little bit. Yes. Iverson showing us the crossover and scores. And Alan Iverson with a terrific start. 5 for six from the field. He has 11. Denver up by eight. Nuggets. 12 for 24 from the field. Phoenix starting out eight of 17. Here’s Hill using the pick. Rebounded by Clay. Iverson gets it down to Anthony. That will count and the foul. Foul is on Hill. He does a great job in transition, Carmelo, of running and then he stops short in the lane. Catches the defensive player on his back and that long lead lob pass. He’s so strong, has such great hands that he then can finish up around the rim. Well, the good thing about it, you’ve got to have a point guard who has good vision. Alan Iverson is that point guard who can see ahead, understand that Carmemelllo Anthony is using his bodies to get position. Basket did not count. Anthony fouled before the the shot attempt. So he now has 12. He’s four for four. Make it five out of five now at the line. One thing Denver does more that other teams cannot do against Phoenix, they can score points back against Phoenix just outscores so many opponents during the course of the year because the other rosters aren’t capable of scoring 110 points like Phoenix does. This Denver team can do that. Banks putting behind the back. Rookie Strawberry just to beat the shot clock. Rebounded by Jones. Anthony played by Strawberry. DJ Strawberry, the son of Daryl Strawberry. And DJ, a one-time Yankees bat boy when his dad played for the Yankees. We’re down to the final seconds of this first quarter. Shot clock down to one and that won’t count. It’s a shot clock violation and still 1.6 remaining in the quarter. Greg, nothing like that feeling of a teammate passing the ball with8 seconds remaining on the 24se second clock telling you get it off quick. [Music] And here’s Strawber has been waved off. At the end of the first quarter, Carmelo Anthony with 13 points and Allan Iverson with 11. Good shooting start for the Nuggets and they lead by 10 after one here in Phoenix. I just felt like it was a good fit. I like to get up and down the court and play in the open court. um you know and you know it it was one of those situations where I felt it would be the ideal situation. Wasn’t sure if they felt the same about me but uh once we uh you know went through the whole free agent process uh you know it worked out well I think for both sides and you know I think we’re both both excited that I’m here. Grant signing as a free agent taking a major pay cut for a chance at an NBA title. spent the last seven years with Orlando. Seven injury play frustrating seasons as he played through a number of ankle problems. Well, another seven is that he’s a seventime allstar. He’s second among active guards in triple doubles. But I think the reason why they really brought him in here is because of his versatility. He’s really going to uh when Steve Nash goes out of the game, when you can have a point forward, someone who can control the offense and at his size and get into the paint and create in late game situations, Grant Hill is my man. Spoke with uh Vinnie Delenegro prior to the game. Vinnie Delenegro, former player in the NBA, now named assistant general manager here with the Phoenix Suns. Steve Kerr goes into the president’s position and Vinnie, assistant general manager, he said, you know, there’s a drop off. He may not be the old Grant Hill, but he said he hasn’t dropped off that much. Wait till you watch me, Jim. Best shape he’s been in in six years. And a guy who certainly should thrive in this Phoenix frenetic offense. It is deflected into the back court. Dia able to chase it down. Hill is on the floor along with Markx and Dia up front. Strawberry and Banks are at the guards. Dahara able to tip it over to Anthony. Atkins Carmelo being played by Hill. Quick release by Anthony. Swept aside by Marks and a nice save. Tell this kid Bobby Jones is active. Active defensively. He’s active on the offensive glass. Nice pickup for the Nether. DJ Strawberry hitting from downtown. So that’s his second bucket. Strawberry, a second round pick out of the University of Maryland, tested number one in athleticism at the pre-draft camp. Of all the athletes they tried out, he scored the highest in all their tests they did. So, what do you go in the second round for then, coach? Good question. Exactly. Terrific pick for them at number 59. 3se second violation of the ball. Back to Denver. coaches feel he has the potential to be a very strong defensive player. Still needs work with the outside shot. Although he’s hit a couple here. They’re trying to get his shot and Vinnie Denegro that’s one of his areas to help work with these young players. And he mentioned we’re trying to get a little more elevation on a shot. Kind of a flatline shot when it came in. We’re trying to get the ball up in the air more reach up and out for it. And during the summer league when he had to play point guard, that’s when Jay Humphre and assistant coach Phil Weber, that’s when they really worked with him and said, “Look, you can play point, but let’s concentrate on the defensive end once the season starts. Little adventure going out. Here’s the cover though by the Suns and they are able to take advantage on the reverse.” So the Suns are within six. Atkins rebounded by Dia and the pace picking up for Phoenix. Here’s Dia challenging Nahar Strawberry. Banks puts the move on Jones. Got the step. Rebounded by Nahar. And isn’t that the case so many times that makes the difference between a guy making the league and not making it or being a big time player and not? Can you convert when you get to the rim? J.R. Smith who just came by not able to hit. Rebounded by Aaron. Nice look as Clea is able to stuff it. Lennis Clea in his third year out of Missouri by way of Lithuania. Last year has several outstanding scoring performances, but his playing time was limited because he plays behind Carmelo Anthony. That’s an offensive foul on Hill. Well, I like Clay because he’s one of those luxury players. He can play the swing position at two and three. He can knock down threes. He’s tough. He likes to guard the Tracy McGradies and Kobe Bryants of the world. So, this is a luxury that coach Carl has when he can bring him into the game and swing them from the two guard or the the the small forward position. Plays a go 68 about 250 lbs. Another offensive foul. This time it’s called on Jr. Smith. Well, this is this is going to be a very interesting time for J.R. Smith. We all know the legal problems that are surrounding him right now. Uh the death of his friend during the summer. He was involved in a car accident while he was at the wheel. Uh got cited for improper lane changes and improper passing. Then 12 days later, the incident at a lounge got cited for that as well. He suspended the first three games of the year for the Nuggets. So this is going to be interesting time. Coach Carl is trying to find someone to play that shooting guard position. He is clearly the best outside shooter between Yakuba Diawara himself, Kaza. So this is going to be interesting time for for coach Carl. Defensive 3second violation was just called on Denver. So a hill of the line shoot the the technical see the current resume. Jr. Smith and as you mentioned Reggie suspended by the Nuggets for the first three games of the regular season for what they call contact detrimental to the team for that alleged incident at a nightclub. Timeout called seven-point Denver lead. [Music] All right, guys. We heard your thoughts on the best of the East. What about the West Zar? I have to pick San Antonio first. Why would I not pick them? They bring that same guy back in the middle again, Tim Duncan. Now Dallas, I would think has a slight chip on their shoulder after the series with Balden State. Plus, they’ve all been taking dancing lessons with their owner, Mark Cuban. I said, so they’re much more agile than they were last year. And then the Utah Jazz, who had a great run in the playoffs last year, a year under their belt, more experienced team. All right, we’ll continue to hear some of these fascinating analysis from Resar as the game progresses. Off the steel, Smith for Jones who can leap and he’s fouled by Banks. Reggie, your thoughts on the West? Well, I also agree with coach. I’m tired of fighting them. I always come up with reasons not to go with San Antonio. Until someone beats this team four games out of seven, I’m going with San Antonio. I’m telling you, a surprise team for me is Houston. I like the Argentine, Lewis Skola. It’s the power forward that Yao Ming needs. I like coach Alamin and his system, his Princeton offense. And I like these Barry Suns. I think the pickup of Grant Hill is going to be pay dividends come playoff time because you add a player that understands the game and understands how to finish a playoff game. That’s why I’m going with Phoenix. Nice reaction for DJ Strawberry as he and Marcus Banks sit down. Steve Nash makes his return with Raja Bell. We’re watching Bobby Jones. Originally a second round pick of Minnesota, then traded to the Sixers, appearing at 44 games for Philadelphia last season. Here’s Bell for three. Kept alive. Diao able to lay it home. You have to love Phoenix when they come out of a timeout. Mike Danton always seems to come up with something and there’s a turnover and they’ll take that opportunity right there and convert it into two easy points by Steve N. But Danton usually gives him something great to run coming out of timeouts. Four minutes gone by in the second quarter. Marv Albert with Reggie Miller and the Zar Mike Patello. Five-point Denver lead. Kaharra from downtown and the Suns let it carry out of bounds setting the the Phoenix lineup. Amari Stomire is back. Starttomire up front with Hill and Dia. Nash and Bell at the guards. Nice back door pass. Nash for Dia and Bobby Jones got cut on the pick. since Stockton Jim to Malone. Is there another pick and roll player as good as those guys? It just and it no doesn’t matter who’s in the pick and roll with him. He’s going to find you. Here’s the lead. Nash with the lob to start. Well, before we saw it to show Mary and this time we see it to start and big men figure it out. If I run the floor hard, he’s going to know that I’m there. Then it’s a matter of can you catch and finish. And those two guys, Marion and Sodtoire, can’t do that. Well, Jones stepped out of bounds as he attempted that shot. Steve Nash with assist number five a moment ago. And this is Bobby Jones not reading the scouting report right there. You got to get over on the pick and roll right here. And look how he’s surveying the court right there. And he sees this big fella running down the middle. Easy dunk since Steve Nash checked back in. It’s an 80 run for the Suns. Hill for three. Yes. Now they say it too. The outside official of Bill Kennedy said he had a foot on the line. Canyon Martin back on the floor. This is J.R. Smith. Jones. Smith off the head. Fake. Smith. Beautiful adjustment. He has talent. The athletic the athleticism that he shows. He can help this team out. But mentally is he going to be there for them. Bell came up short. And back comes Nahar. And here’s Smith going all the way and draws the foul. Blocking foul as Dia hit the floor as the league has changed over the last couple years with an emphasis shifting towards the offensive end floor. Kind of like the NFL Marv where Bellich figured out in New England that if you’re going to beat Indianapolis, you’ve got to score points because they’re going to put 35 on the board each night. So Bellich goes out for New England, brings in a few more weapons, and all of a sudden they’re averaging over 40 points a game. Right now in the NBA, with the rules the way they are, the game is designed and favored for offensive players. If you can put it on the floor, penetrate, and the defensive men are not allowed to use their hands any longer, you’re going to score a lot more points. 4138 Nuggets. Phoenix Suns last year won 61 games. Dia perhaps got away with the extra step. The Suns finishing first in the Pacific, second in the West behind Dallas in the playoffs. beat the Lakers in five, then in the conference semifinals in that bizarre series lost to San Antonio in six. AR Smith able to go glass and he has six points in a hurry. Smith able to break it up. Atkins in the open floor. Beautiful feed and Nahar was fouled. Foul on Rajel. This is your power forward now that’s going to make this play for Phoenix. Boris Dia comes in. He plays the four spot. Starttomire at the five spot. His ability to put it on the floor and finish with an extra step. The NBA on TNT, brought to you by T-Mobile, the official wireless partner of the NBA, T-Mobile, Stick Together, and by Southwest Airlines, official airline of the NBA. Welcome back to Phoenix. Next door at Chase Field, well, relatively quiet. The Arizona Diamondbacks despite winning 90 games this year were eliminated by the Colorado Rockies in the National League Championship Series. But their ace pitcher, Randy Johnson, who is a season ticket holder for the Suns, is here with his son Tyler. And a very spirited and competitive preseason game here. In fact, it’s a sellout. 18,422 on hand for uh what promises to be a very exciting year for the Phoenix Suns. And Randy Johnson recovering from back surgery back in July hopes to be ready for spring training as the Diamondbacks hope to go back to the National League Championship Series and on to the World Series next year. But a sellout tonight, Marv Greg, what World Series Randy Johnson sitting here rather than watch the Red Sox and Colorado. Coincidentally, they are in the sixth inning of the Red Sox up, we’re told, two to one. Five and a half to go in this first half. Starter is fouled. He was hacked. National coverage of the NBA continues Friday on ESPN. A preseason double header as the Cavaliers take on the Celtics, followed by the Kings and the Lakers from Las Vegas. Coverage starting 7:00 Eastern time. And then next Saturday, NBA tip off 07 continues on NBA TV with the Blazers and the Rockets. Coverage starting 8:30 p.m. Eastern time. Foul called on Kenny Martin putting Amari Starter at the line. Amari Starttomire making his preseason debut here tonight. Phoenix 9 for9 at the line. Denver spending lots of time at the line. They’re 15 of 19. Nice move by Martin. And both Martin and Stratomire have looked sharp in this first half. Well, I want to tell you this. If I’m grade Owen and I’m sitting at home watching this game and he had micro fracial surgery, this is two success stories right here looking at Kenan Martin and Amari Starter because the future of the NBA is in Portland and he’s going to be shelled for a year and this is a chance to say, you know what, I can come back from this. And there have been other examples of guys who have come back and I would think at at his age. Greg Odin has an excellent chance of being right back at it next season. Here’s a rainbow attempt by Hill and it’s handled by Atkins. You can remember the gloom in doom around the organization when starter had his done at such an early young age. You don’t, you know, associate that with such a young player. As you mentioned, he’s bounced back tremendously from You know, I can see gloom, but gloom and doom, Reggie, you you just don’t want to see that. That’s double barrel, coach. Double barrel. That’s bad. Let’s go to Craig. Well, Greg Oden obviously very disappointed that he won’t be able to play this year, but he’s doing all the right things in that community. It’s amazing how well they have uh responded to his being drafted. I I actually called up there today, Marv, and uh he’s going to a high school football game in the Portland area tonight just to make an appearance to show his support for the great community that supported him. Greg, do you have him on your speed dial? Yes, sir. He’s one of his top five. Greg bothering Greg Odin on a regular basis. Dash tried to get it inside to Marian and a foul on Clay. That was 43. Well, do you come over for the pick and roll and the pick and pop or do you slip which Sean Marian did right there which Lionus Clay had to hold on to him cuz he would have had a wideopen dunk right there is all the options that this Phoenix Suns team possesses. Nice move by Bell. Roger Bell off the fake and able to hit on that spin move. So Phoenix goes with its starting five down the last four or five minutes here of the second quarter to see if they can finish the half up strong and take the lead going on in to halftime. A good looking three-point shot for Bobby Jones. I’m telling you, Coach Carl is really high on this kid. Defensively, he’s solid, but more importantly, they’ve been really surprised as Kenya Martin’s throwing this down. He looks great. There’s no there’s no leg pass. He’s just playing hard. And Jones is the guy you mentioned defensively. He made this the stop and was able to get it down to uh Martin. Jones with the rebound. Bell took a hit. He went down looking for a call. Jones. Now that’s a late whistle. And actually, Marv, that no call right there is one of the new interpretations this year with officials that if a defensive player jumps in the air and goes straight up and down and doesn’t bring his arms down, if the offensive player moves into him, it’s not going to be a call against the defender. And that time they felt that the defensive man had gone straight up and down initially and that the impetus of the offensive player is what caused the contact. with the letter of the law. That shouldn’t have been a no call right there, which initially it was. You look at the replay right there and Amari went straight up. Amari went straight up. His his arms didn’t extend. He go straight up. Maybe he got him with the off arm and that’s what Bill Kennedy saw because he was the outside official. And a a much better example would be if the player put both hands up in the air. That low left hand is where the call probably came from on his hip. But often times a defender will walk in the air with both hands. He’ll stay in his area so to say. The offensive guy bangs into him. They don’t want that to be a call this year against the defender. And the foul is called. 70 run here by by Denver. And this time it is on the Nuggets. It is on Jones, his second with just under three to go in this first half. A look at downtown Phoenix. We’ll be right back. TNT presents NBA Tip Off. The San Antonio Spurs open their title defense against the Portland Trailblazers. Then Kobe Bryant and the Lakers take on the Rockets. Blazer Spurs and Rockets Lakers Tuesday at 8 only on TNT. And on the NBA tipoff show, Ernie Charles, Kenny, and Magic will be talking with NBA Commissioner David Stern. John Thompson sitting down with the Celtics Big Three. Earlier today, the commissioner spoke at a news conference in New York following a board of governors meeting, and we will touch on some of those subjects later on tonight. Just under three left in this first half and it’s a 24se second violation. So the ball goes back to Denver. Nuggets are up by eight. 12 turnovers committed by the Suns. Allan Iverson got most of the way in this first half. Iverson played by Nash. Beautiful feed to Clay. Iverson drawing the double team. He had a wide open Lennis Glazer. Usually Steve Nash is the one going underneath the backboard and finding a teammate open in the lane. That time Alan Iverson taking a page from his book. Pleas by Marian. Anthony being played by Hill. Here’s Carmelo. Rebounded by Dia. Nash pops it down. Too far for Marian. Iverson going behind the back. Smith try to get it to Anthony. Kept alive by Iverson. Anthony. Anthony keeps it alive. Carmelo with a terrific second and third effort and he draws the foul. Well, he knew he should have had that first assist from AI when he got the pass, but reli’s walking over to him saying, “Listen, you cost me an assist on that one.” But Carmemelllo says, “But I got an offensive rebound and I’m still going to get to the line for two free throw attempts with the extra effort.” Foul on Marion, his third. Denver with nine unanswered points over the last two minutes of play. Hello Anthony who was slated to sit out tonight but he and I in the starting lineup along with Kenyon Martin Carmelo Anthony last year played the best basketball of his NBA career career highs in scoring just under 29 a game four assists per game second in scoring to Kobe Bryant’s pass deflected out of bounds. Carmelo looks a little bit lighter as well. And people are saying, “You’re in the best shape of your life.” He’s like, “Look, I’ve been playing in three years straight between his commitment with Team USA and so forth. So that’s why he’s in the best shape.” And his body fat is down. He’s in the best shape. And Carmelo committing the foul. With that shot clock running down, he’ll try to fire away. and felt the contact. That’s the first foul on Anthony. But you got to like the effort here. Take away the left hand initially by Grant Hill as he tries to put it on the floor. Go to the middle of the floor. Then he forces Hill into a pullup jump shooting routine. And he’s right there challenging hand on ball. Maybe a little body on the bottom. That’s where the foul took place. But here’s what you got to like. Take away the middle. Don’t let him have that drive. Stay up close enough to challenge the shot when Grant Hill elevates. And you can see right there that looked clean up on top. and whether the bottle got him or his legs couldn’t tell. And as we watch this first half, this is about as close as you could hope for to regular season play for a preseason game. Then you will see it is game number seven of the exhibition schedule for for both teams. Probably as a gets inside and then is able to follow, probably most of the starters will get get the night off tomorrow night. And I think that was the hidden agenda that coach Carl was talking about for his club knowing it was a backto-back. He figured if or really if Carmelo and Allen said, “Look, if we play tonight, we’ll probably have tomorrow off and we’ll probably have the next day off.” So, this is two days for us to get ready uh get rest before we get ready for the regular season open. It’s amazing how players figure that stuff out. You don’t think did it all the time. They don’t huddle up and talk about that. Did it all the time, guys. Little hustle on the part of the players. Iverson with the fadeaway. 13 points for Iverson. Bell for three. Roger Bell, one of the better three-point shooters in the NBA. Here comes Anthony. Carmelo Anthony. That’s what they do to you. They come right back at you and put points on the board. This is a team normally that outscores everyone. Denver right now up 13 points as we go into the half. Oh, Kenyon Martin hit with a technical foul. Did not like that foul called. So Martin gets the personal and a technical. That was called Martin. Right there. There’s a loose ball and Kenyon Martin feels that basically he’s just jumping up higher than Steve Nash is. And whether or not he had something to say that perhaps the official didn’t feel was appropriate. Well, that’s another point of emphasis that we talked about at the league meetings was the cursing. I think right now, see what Keen is saying is look, it’s a it’s a it’s a wide open ball. I got just as much right to go get it as Steve does. And it was what happened afterwards, the profanity laced at the official. Easy technical foul right there. They’re going to try to clean this up this year. It’s also the action of the player not to show up the official He may have gotten away with the little hand gesture if he did not complete it with the adjective. Yeah. Does that mean we’re going to get technical fouls over here between us three as well? Guys, speak for yourself. I know I am clean when it comes to that, but Phoenix Suns 81% at the line last season. and they led the NBA, but it’s a team that does not get to the line frequently because of the fast-paced style. They were 30th in the league in terms of getting to the foul line. And the other thing is they don’t have a number of players that they go to on a regular basis in the post up type situation. They take you off the dribble, they shoot the quick threes. Let’s face it, if you play for Phoenix, here’s what you have to do. Try and defend. Get to spots. Run hard. Catch and shoot. And that’s really your responsibility because you got Steve Nash that’ll find you if you get to those open spots. 10 seconds left in the half. Here’s Iverson. Yes. Oh, what a move by Iverson. Final seconds of the first half as Nash hurries it up and gets the shot off. Solid half of play for the Nuggets. They 51% on 23 of of 45 and they go to the foul line 23 times. Carmelo Anthony with 19 points. Allan Iverson hits seven of eight from the field. He had 15 points. Steve Nash leading the Suns 11 points and six assists. Let’s go to Craig. Well Marv, so much for production meetings. At our production meeting today, we were told that, well, Alan Iverson, Camille Anthony won’t be playing in this preseason game, resting up for the regular season. Instead, you go out here and you have 19 points in 15 minutes. Why the change of heart? I just like to play basketball, I guess. Now, I thought my body weren’t going to be able to do it, but I said, “Hey, it’s preseason, last two preseason games, I’m going to go out here and give them my all.” Both these teams lost to the Spurs last year in the playoffs. Now, you have a full season with Allen Iverson, also a Kenya Martin. Tonight, the three of you combined for 42 points and a half. What’s it like? What’s different this year? It’s great. It’s great. We got a lot of confidence. Um, uh, the biggest thing for us is Kenya Martin being back. You know, I bring another tougher opponent to our, you know, to our team this season and we looking forward to getting out there, you know, everybody on the court together and having a great year. You playing the second half? Yeah. Good to hear. All right, back to you, Mark. You sure Carmelo? Well, the way Carmemelllo is going, Carmemelllo Anthony with 19 points in the first half. Alan Iverson with 15. And it’s Denver up by 12. Welcome back to Phoenix, Arizona, as our TNT preseason special continues. We’re headed to the second half and Denver with a 12-point lead on the hometown Suns. Barb Albert, Reggie Miller, Lazar, Mike Patella, well, Alan Iverson, and Greg an Greg Carmelo Anthony. Greg will be very pleased you mentioned them plug. Yes, they were not supposed to play tonight. Uh they uh decided to play about 20 minutes, a half hour before the game started. And with the combination of Anthony and Iverson doing so well, the Nuggets starting five in particular was able to take command in that first half. When you compare starting five, Denver’s first five clearly outplayed the Suns and in way fewer minutes. Phoenix left their guys on the floor a lot of minutes in the first half. And for Phoenix, little turnover problem in that first half. Yeah, something that’s not indicative of a Sun’s team. 14 turnovers at half. Last year they were a little over 14. It led to 20 Nuggets points. So very interesting. They got to take care of the basketball which falls on Steve Nash’s shoulders. Uh let’s take a look at tonight’s Jeep game summary. Nuggets shoot 51% 23 of 45 from the field. 23 trips to the foul line. And the Suns just under 49% at 19 of 39. You see second chance points for Denver and they have the edge and points in the paint. Moments ago, Craig Sager talk with Suns head coach Mike Danton. Well, coach, obviously preseason games, we always don’t know what to expect, but this is a very competitive and spirited game. Our first look at Amari Starmmer. What are your impressions of the first half? Uh being little and slow is not a good combo and that’s where we are right now. They’re beating us to the ball and they’re beating us down the floor and they’re beating us on with their quickness and we just don’t have the energy or the motor right now. We got to pick it up. Too many turnovers, you know, never played well. We didn’t. Are you pleased with what you’ve seen from Amari? Oh, yeah. Yeah, he he’s been great and he’s uh and he wants to play more. We’re going to hold him to about 15 to 18 minutes, so we’ll hold him out a little bit, but uh he’s ready to go. All right, thanks a lot. Back to you, Mark. All right, Mike Danton has led the Suns to three straight Pacific Division titles, developing his basketball philosophy as a star, point guard in the Italian league, and a successful coach in Italy. As this third quarter gets underway, Bill Kennedy making the call. Blocking call on Nash. So Nash called for his first and a day to the line. These two teams have so many skilled players out there that instead of your normal 1415 pick and roll or 2425 pick and roll, you’ve got small forwards and power forwards running pick and rolls. Well, and another thing that we haven’t seen tonight, you look at the front line right now for the Denver Nuggets with K. Martin, Kenya, Martin, and Na Na, Marcus Cami, who isn’t playing tonight. They can match up with the Houston, with the Dallas, with the San Antonios. Win healthy. Remember when we posed this question to Coach Carl before the game, when everyone’s healthy, can you beat everyone and eat for a little bit? When healthy, they can. Sean Marian on the drive and that won’t count. It’s an offensive foul. It’s four on Marian. And from that point right there, from that view, it was tough to see whether Net got out the front of that line, but his left heel looked like it was on the restricted line area. It should have been called a block. [Music] I want to go back to what you mentioned about Coach K. He he took that long time because as he mentioned a lot of it is who do you get in the first round, second round, third round. Foul on Net Hill being played by Anthony. And here’s Bell. It counts as a foul. Well, the foul on Iverson that does not like the call and Roger Bell will go to the line. Well, what AI was trying to do right there was what we call mirror the basketball right there. He had his hand extended right there and Roger Bell did the old uh Allen Houston trick. If the arm is out there right there, you just swing through it and try to get the shot off and try to get the foul. Nuggets now lead at 66 57. They go with Carmelo Anthony, Kenyan Martin, Nay up front. Yakuba Diawara and Allan Iverson in the back court and the foul is charged to Grant Hill. So the whistles are blowing here at the start of the third quarter. That’s four on Hill. No one really affects Carmelo Anthony from scoring. He really does. I I haven’t seen a defender that really he does it that he hesitates against. He just takes it, figures out whether he’s going to overpower you, face up, shoot it over the top of you, put it on the floor, beat you off the dribble, and get fouled. And then he works for second shots. Besides, Carmelo 81% at the line last season. 20 points for Anthony, 10-point Denver lead. Bell had to save it. Dash start and rebounded by Nay. Amari was surrounded there by three Nuggets. Four shot. Oh, the loav attempted by Iverson. He was looking for Martin. Here’s Bell and he is fouled. Roger Bell will head to the line. The foul committed by Na. Well, it wasn’t a great law by Alan Iverson. And then on the defensive end, you can’t gamble if you’re AI right there. You’ve got to get back and form a wall or or double team right there. When you go for the gamble right there, you’re basically taking yourself out of the play. Well, from complete repeats of the Embi award-winning inside the NBA to indepth interviews with some of the NBA’s brightest stars, visit TNT Overtime at its exclusive home on NBA.com. TNT Overtime, where the NBA is always on. [Applause] [Music] Nuggets up 67 59. Denver last year with 45 wins. They went 45 and 37. They finished second to Utah. Now looking for a foul. And now traveling violation is called on Dawara. That was hot potato right there between Na Ne and Yaku Diawara right there. I didn’t know who really wanted the basketball. Oh, even George Carl’s getting a little a little smile out of that one. Sometimes you get going a little bit too fast. Suns also going with their starting lineup. Grant Hill, Shawn Mary, and Amari Stomire up front as Grant Hill knocks down a three. Roger Bell, Steve Nash in the back court. Phoenix with an 81 run to start the third quarter. Near. Starter one hands the rebound. [Applause] Here’s Starttomire kicking it out. Marrying for three. Well, the Suns have come out strong here on the third. They’re now within two. Talk about the energy level being picked up. That’s what Mike Danton mentioned to Craig Saga that you have to be a little bit quicker, have to play a little bit harder to get back into this game. Iverson coming right back for Denver. [Applause] Here’s Iverson on a fadeaway. Alan Iverson knocks down two in a row and the Nuggets lead 7165. Bowara called for the contact on Nash and Steve Nash was going to get that call. He had his mind made up for the time the ball was inbounded from the previous play when he felt he should have been uh given the foul opportunity. He came and drove right in his chest. This time Alan Iverson faces up, knows he has the guy backing up with the potential crossover and then just elevates and hits the in between jumper. There’s Nash stopped by Martin. [Applause] [Music] Anthony the three-point attempt handled by Stomire. Starttomire. Oh, beautifully done. He wanted the and one as he went right at the name. Let me ask you a question. With the style of play that both these teams are playing, is there a bad shot? You know, coaches talk about look high percentage shots, take good shots. Is there a bad shot really for these teams between these two teams and the philosophy from the two coaches? No. Now, obviously, if we were sitting here and San Antonio was playing Greg Papovic, that’s not the kind of shot for a San Antonio Spurs. You know, they’re more a controlled offense. But for these two teams, this is the way they play. But with Phoenix in particular with that run style that is so effective during the regular season, most teams can’t keep keep up with the uh the track, particularly when they’re playing four games in in five nights. But can it work in the playoff run where teams get more rest between games as Marian stepped out of bounds? Can this team go all the way with this style? Well, we’ll never know because if Ory Gate last year, you know, when Boris Dia and Amari Starttomire were suspended for game five, this Phoenix team could have been on the verge of going to the NBA finals. Now, obviously, we’ll never know because uh San Antonio handled their business, went to the finals, and swept Cleveland. But in the right situation, when there’s always a day in between, you never know. These kind of athletes could get to the finals and anything is possible. The other thing is they just have no one to answer for Tim Duncan. I mean, if you have to boil it down to one thing, why does San Antonio wind up beating this team? Comes down to the one guy, Tim Duncan. Because when they need a basket, they can throw it to Duncan. If they come and double and triple team, he’s good enough to find the open man and then their other perimeter players can make shots. But I will say this, coach, on the flip side, as Alan Iverson was dared to shoot a three, they really didn’t have an answer for Amari Starter a couple years ago. Oh, a strong move by Grant Hill and the foul. This is a long outlet pass and then you have to get guys to run the floor hard and then when you hit him about at the 28t marker, one dribble and Grant Hill is able to take it to the rim and finish. This was made him so great while he was in in Detroit. It’s his length, it’s his size, and it’s his ability to handle the basketball. You got to remember this was James Jones position who’s in Portland right now. James Jones would not have been able to finish that play. He probably would have ran to the short three and probably spotted up for a three, but Gran Hill’s more of a slasher. Suns are now within a point and May drawing the double team. Nash came over to help and the foul is called. [Music] It’s number three on Starttomire and the fourth team foul on the Suns. Denver also has four. Phoenix has outscored Denver 165 in this third quarter. Offensive foul. It’s on Carmelo Anthony. That’s his second. Raja Bell playing pretty good defense that time. A little bit of acting on his part as Pomemelo to push off. Who flops in this league? I’ve never heard of that before. Bass was trying to find the angle and could not. [Music] And with Nash moving up on the nay, he caused the double dribble. And that’s why coaches tell centers, will you please get the ball to the guards and let them advance it? But you know, N felt everybody else on the team has been dribbling down the floor. Why not me? Well, Alan Iverson was cross half court with the shooting guard. Yakub Dawaro was spotted up at the three. So he said, “Why not?” Phoenix with a chance to take the lead. They trail by as many as 14. And they do. What a beautiful feed from Nash. 11 points from Mario. But you talked about slipping screens early and that’s just what happened that time. The slip screen. [Applause] Oh, Harold slapping it away from the deflected out of bounds. Last touch by Denver. [Music] Nash getting the step. Decided to take the shot and he thought he was fouled. That’s why he threw it up there, Mark, because he knew he had created body contact. He figured he’d get a three-point play or at least two free throws. Instead, he just gets a basket. There’s a lot of one pass stop. The ball is getting held down low. There’s not a lot of movement now on the Denver side. Defensive 3C violation was called. Suns have outscored the Nuggets 20-5 in this third quarter. [Music] The NBA on TNT brought to you by Jeep. With seven Jeep vehicles, there’s one for you and Adidas. Run with the brotherhood. Text team to Adidas. Impossible is nothing. TNT presents NBA Tip Off. The San Antonio Spurs open their title defense against the Portland Trailblazers. Then Kobe Bryant and the Lakers take on the Rockets. Blazer Spurs and Rockets Lakers. Tuesday at 8 only on TNT. Opening night last season. Uh we were in Miami for championship ring night. I used the generic Wii off the technical foul. Carmelo Anthony able to connect on the the free throw. Reggie, you were in the studio. Yes. I’m trying to forget last year was trying to forget it. Yeah. Dealing with the Memphis Grizzlies. But in that game after the championship ring ceremony, the defending champs Miami Heat went out and lost to the Bulls by 42 points. So now with a nice pass to set it up for N. Well, are you trying to send a message to San Antonio right now? I think they have uh Rick Papovic has other thoughts on his mind as they face the Trailblazers. Beautiful lead Nash for Hill and then as I recall the Bulls went to Orlando for the next game and they were blown out by the Magic. [Music] Coming up on five minutes to go in the third quarter. Reggie, I just asked Lazar where he was. He says he doesn’t remember. He’s trying to forget his days with the Grizzlies. Marv, leave it alone. Let it go. I didn’t remember very much after I was sitting up at 3:30 in the morning watching Spain play and Tasol broke his foot during the uh previous summer. And from that point on, it was very little hazy. Yeah, very hazy. Can’t quite remember. Well, it’s funny because we were all in anticipation of watching the number one pick, Greg Odin, play against Tim Duncan. Obviously, he’s out, but you got LaMarcus Aldridge. You got last year’s rookie of the year, Brandon Roy, Jared Jet, Steve Blake comes over in a trade. So, they still got some pieces. Nick McMillan still has some pieces that can be very competitive for this upcoming year. I I I like the young players they have and I think Nate McMillan has done a terrific job. That team came and played hard every night. They were competitive in the majority of their game. Sure, there were a couple nights where the the youth in the four and five nights caught up to him, but overall that team gave the effort night in and night out. They’re heading in the right direction. Oh, what ball movement to set it up for Shawn Marian hitting the shot from downtown and a technical foul has been called on Allan Iverson. Apparently Allen had something to say to Bill Kennedy, the lead official. So, Steve Nash will shoot the T. Well, let’s go back a few plays earlier, Marv, when Iverson had his hand in on that jump shot and he was called for the foul on the jumper and he was unhappy with that call and then he had a little more to say and this is, you know, that continually complaining type of thing that the officials said they’re not taking it anymore. They’ll they’ll listen a little bit, but then enough is enough. Suns now lead by five, their biggest lead of the game as they have turned things around here in the third quarter. [Music] Sellout crowd here in Phoenix. That won’t count. Foul before the the shot. Suns have outscored the Nuggets 26-9 here in the third. Foul on Kenyon Martin. That’s number five. Close to 19,000 here at US Airways Center for both teams. Their seventh game of the preseason. Both have won four and lost two. both wrap it up tomorrow night. The Nuggets will make the trip to Oregon. They’ll be in Redmond, Oregon to face the Trailblazers and the Suns conclude tomorrow night against Seattle in Vancouver. Well, they haven’t been to Redmond, Oregon very much. Is there a lot to do there? Very nice at this time of the year. Greg, do you spend a lot of time there? Uh, I have to say no. Sorry, guys. Steve Ash will be very happy to get back to Vancouver, British Columbia. That’ll be a big crowd as Nash and the Suns come in. Nash with the fadeaway. Rebounded by Dia. Here’s Bell for three. They’re all ready to catch, all ready to elevate and shoot because they know Nash will find them when they’re open. Well, Roger Bell tied for the league in and three-pointers made 205. And this is one of the reasons why they’re so successful in the half court operation is because of that catch and shoot. Suns four for four from beyond the three-point line here in the third quarter. And the rookie from Wisconsin, Orlando Tucker has come on and is able to score. Orlando Tucker, first round draft pick, the Big 10 player of the year last season with his first bucket of the night. Well, Denver was coasting in the first half, up by as many as 14 points. The intensity level rises in this third quarter and the Phoenix Suns come out and really get back to their signature basketball of running the basketball and knocking down threes. Ryan Skinner with that rebound. He’s checked in for the first time. This is Tucker on the back tap. Foul is called. Loose ball foul as Nahar and Dia came together. Foul on Nahara. Well, when you’re not a great outside shooter, nice back door cut right there by Alando Tucker. If you try to get a layup in this system, try to get some rhythm going. Try to get some confidence when you’re a young player. At Wisconsin, he was more of a small power forward. That’s how he played. Close around the basket. Scored over 2,000 points playing within 15 ft of the basket. Big 10 player of the year. Suns 18 of 18 at the line. Both teams over the foul limit. Baris Dio from Bordeaux, France. Such an unusual player. Can play all five positions. Played so well two years ago as the point center. There’s Clay Boston. [Music] Yeah, nice move on Fraser but not able to finish. Iverson slashing his way and it’s handled by Skinner. AI is trying to get a foul very much the same way Steve Nash did. Trying to draw contact and create contact, but he’s not getting the whistle tonight. Nash looking looking for a cutter. He thought Tucker was going to move along that baseline, but was deflected out of bounds. 33-10 advantage for the Suns here in the third. Spot up. You know that a guy like Nashville pull two defenders. Then it’s just catch and shoot. Get back. I got the ball. [Applause] Get that trailer. Switch it. You understand where I think I want you, AI? When Melo’s in the five here, I know you want to try to keep vision with your man, but I I kind of even almost want to be in a zone more than man-to-man principle. What about his the big man up under here? I was just standing on him. Look, Denver’s strengths to date have been they’re going to try to run you a death, especially with that altitude in Denver. And they have great two great one-on-one players, Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson. Because you look at that piece, they’re talking all about defense. And I think George Carl is trying to have some type of a defensive identity to his team. You got uh Yakuz diara, you got Na N, you’ve got Kenya Martin, and you got Marcus Campy, the defensive player of the year. He’s trying to get a a defensive edge and an identity for his ball club. Richard, were you bothered by the Albert’s endeavor? Yes, because you don’t have a lot of time to prepare for it. They’re there at the most 48 hours, sometimes shorter if it’s a back to back. There’s no time to train for it and they use that to their advantage. Z, were you bothered as a coach? Personally, I was I was tired. I was usually tired at the end of the first quarter. Yeah. Walking up and down, pacing the sidelines. Nahar getting it over Skinner. 9178 Suns. Minute and a half left in the third. Real talk about the edge that George Paul was trying to create. If you can get Allan Iverson and Carmemelllo Anthony, the two players that most people say don’t really want to try and defend and dig in. You get them heading in that direction, then you’re off to a great start. And that’s what George Carl said. They they’ve bought into it. They understand they have they went the first 11 to 12 days of practice dedicating six to seven minutes alone in just stance, slide, footwork defensively. And Carmemelllo Anthony in particular talking with Coach Carl before the game, he says he’s he’s no longer going to get a free ride. He’s going to guard the LeBron James, the Tracy McGradies, the Kobe Bryants. Now, are we going to leave him on there 35 minutes? No. But it’s time for him, as we call it in this league, man up. He’s going to have to start manning up and guarding these guys and putting some pressure on them. We know how great he is offensively, but he’s going to have to start defensively pulling up his shorts and going against some of these other superstars. Iverson at the line, fouled by Tucker. Atkins checks back in. Al Iverson, fourtime NBA scoring champ, eighttime all-star and played well after coming to Denver in the deal involving Andre Miller. Iverson averaged 25 points per game and is 50 games as a member of the Nuggets. [Music] That’s a three-point attempt coming up short attempted by Tucker. Tucker wants to play on this ball club. He’s going to have to work on his outside shooting. As I makes the move, he is fouled. Fouled on Dial. That’s number four. Both teams are in the penalty. As we talk about this turnaround in the third quarter, the one thing that jumps out at you, three-point shooting, you go back a year ago, Phoenix was number one in the league in three-point shooting, almost 40%. Denver 28th in the league, right at the bottom last year. Well, right now, Denver just 1 for 10 from the three-point line tonight, which is 10%. Meanwhile, Phoenix 6 for 15, 40% tonight. So, the three-point line, a huge weapon. And again, Denver has to find a solution for that. And their two best shooters, Lionus Clay and Jr. Smith. Last year, uh, J.R. Smith 149 threes made and Lionus 83. After that, it was a big drop off. So that’s why coach Carl is concerned at that shooting guard position. Tucker battling for position as they double up. Now Tucker posting and lost it. Naharon came over to knock it aside. Here’s Iverson with the lead. Smith rejected by the combination of Hill and Skinner. Tucker ice fake on Cle. the couch. And that all starts with number 33 Grant Hill. The experience that he’s going to breathe. Steve Nash goes to the floor. He comes up with the big block here and he starts the fast break himself. He gets it. He looks up. He finds the rookie streaking out of out ahead for the N1. That’s the experience that Grant Hill is going to bring to this team during the regular season. But I’m telling you, it’s going to be more importantly come postseason what he can do for this team. Lando Tucker Sunday night against Charlotte. Six of seven, 14 points in 13 minutes, six quick points here. Final seconds of the third quarter. Clay from way downtown. And that is the end of the third here in Phoenix. A turnaround for the Suns as they outscore the Nuggets 3915 in the third. They lead by 12. You’re watching preseason NBA basketball on TNT. Back in Phoenix. And as we touched on earlier, NBA Commissioner David Stern spoke at a news conference in New York this afternoon following a board of governors meeting and dealt with an offshoot to the Tim Donahe scandal. And he said, “Our ban on on gambling is absolute, and in my view, it is too absolute, too harsh, but not particularly well enforced over the years. We’re going to come up with a new set of rules that make sense.” Well, guys, he actually acknowledged that more than than half of his 56 referees had violated what were then NBA policies about casino gambling, but said that none will be punished because he felt that the rules were outdated. Instead, as we watch the fourth quarter get underway, instead he said he’s altering the policies, leaning toward allowing the refs to gamble in casinos during the off season except for betting in sports books. So basically, many of these rules or policies were outmoded. for example, officials over the years were not allowed to buy a lottery ticket, which is pretty amazing that that now will go by the board. Well, I I think we have to applaud the commissioner, the fact that he is recognizing that, you know, times have changed and sometimes you have to look back at things and say, you know what, this isn’t right. It’s not fair. The the demands are too high. We want it to be too perfect and live in this world that’s not for real. So, uh, I admire the fact that he’s willing to say that and give these people the opportunity to do things that are what we think within the limits. Well, he’s got to understand that these referees are human beings, too, too. They go on cruises where there’s gambling during the summer. They like to go to Vegas and just walk into a casino. If you’re going to tell me that an official can be fined for putting a quarter in a slot machine potentially, I think that’s absolutely crazy. And I applaud the the commissioner as well. You’ve got to have a leeway for these guys because they are human beings as well. And plus, I’m looking forward to rolling a little craps with the commissioner now. Be right next to them. I’m going to be rolling some dice with the commissioner now. Let’s not get crazy here, Reggie. Okay. All right. I thought since he was lowering it, maybe we can we can throw some dice together. But there will be a new set of rules which will be enforced. And here’s Atkins going to knock it down from straightaway. Chucky Atkins coming back from a a pulled muscle. Suns now lead at 96 to 83. We’re early in the fourth. Marv Albert, Reggie Miller, the Zar, Mike Patello. Tucker tried to draw the foul. Thought he was hit by Smith as the ball carried out of bounds. DJ Strawberry, Alando Tucker. I’m going to give him my phone number. Shootouts start at 7 a.m. at Pepperdine University. Steve, you got my number as well. They need to get That’s That’s all they’re missing. That’s their job on this team is to make wide open shots. That’s what you have to do. Run the floor hard, get down there, and be ready to catch and shoot. J.R. Smith with the bucket a moment ago. Came up with the errant pass. His Naha Rod gives it up. Not Not the pass that Iverson was looking for. Iverson able to recover and draws the foul. He He’s been wanting that foul all night and he finally got it from Bill Kennedy. And it was a delayed whistle, too. Alan was on his back wondering if it was going to blow or not. Eventually, he takes the contact right here along the baseline, concentrates on the rim. A little bit of acting on the way down, looks for the whistle, and gets it. [Applause] Alan Iverson has already played 29 minutes and as George Carl was telling us prior to the game, it’s going to be tough to take him out. He will not want to come out. Well, he said he already had the quote quote sit down, hey veteran, you’re 30 plus years old meeting with you. And he looked at him like, well, I feel like I’m 23, not 33, so I’m going to play and keep playing. Suns up by 10. Here’s Strawberry. and it carries out of bounds. One other footnote to what took place at that press conference today. The commissioner David Stern said that the league still did not know for sure whether former referee Tim Donahe impacted the outcome of games that he placed bets on, saying the answers to all pertinent Donnie questions will not be known until the government declares the case as closed. Smith now with 10 points and that can’t happen until Donn He is sentenced in federal court in January. Stern said that the league was interested in speaking to Donna. He expected to have that opportunity to do so in the coming weeks or months and the league had received no additional information indicating that any other referees did bet on NBA games or distributed information uh related to games. Foul on Marks. Reminder, national coverage of the NBA continues on Friday on ESPN. It’s a preseason double header. The Cavaliers take on the Celtics, followed by the Kings and the Lakers from Las Vegas. Coverage starting 7:00 Eastern time. And next Saturday, NBA Tiff 07 continues on NBA TV. The Blazers and the Rockets coverage starts 8:30 p.m. Eastern time. [Applause] Iverson only six of 10 at the line. 80 Denver run in just 50 seconds of play. So the Suns now lead by seven. Here’s Banks and the box out by Nahar. This is what coach Mike Danton has been worried about when Steve Nash and these other guys go to the bench. Does he have enough trust in Ashan Marks? Marcus B. [Music] Jr. Smith able to put it down and Der within five. That wasn’t just a little bit over the rim. That was elbow almost to the shoulder above the rim. Well, do you see the athleticism and why sometimes George Carl is scratching his head is because when J.R. Smith can do things like this, it makes you scratch your head and wonder why. All right, back in Phoenix, we continue with Reggie and Mike dissecting the league. And this is the sleeper category. I know everyone probably just fell off their couch right now because I picked the Knicks, but I just figured if if Curry and Zack Randolph can learn how to work with one another and everything that’s surrounded the Knicks over the the past three or four months, maybe uh they can find a way to win. I like what Larry Castroak has done with the Bucks. And finally, the Grizzlies got a coach in there. I I apologize there, coach, but I picked as my sleepers. The Grizzlies. Oh, I’m sorry. But wait, wait, wait a second. Did you say finally they got a coach in there? Meanwhile, Chucky Atkins is shaken up and George Carl over to take a look. Atkins coming into tonight with a strained groin muscle. We’ll be right back. [Applause] Moment ago, Chucky Atkins went down right here and you’ll see when he gets up, it appeared that he reinjured that strained groin who’d come in as a question mark here tonight. Sometimes you take that one step, push off a little bit too hard, and that it’s the angle as well, and you see him walking off in extreme pain. This a a Denver team that is hurting in the in the back court. Anthony Carter out with a broken hand. [Applause] It’s a three-point attempt by Banks on the back tap headed by Piaowski. Just checked in. He tried to go glass. 9691 Suns with the lead. Here’s Clay with a strong move. Rebound. Cla kept the line alive by Nahar and lost it. Tucker on it rookie from Wisconsin. Orlando Tucker to Sha Mars. [Applause] Now that’s a lot like Kurt Thomas pick and pop. That’s one thing that they kind of liken to Kurt Thomas, his ability to screen and roll or really screen and pop and knock down that 15 to 18 footer. and Kurt Thomas a major loss and the reason financial purposes. The Suns trading Thomas plus two first round picks to Seattle. Pass behind Piaowski. They get a conditional second round pick. Thomas the Sun’s best post defender is Tucker getting inside and then tips it home. How about Tucker? Eight points. Orlando Tucker, as Mike Danton was telling us, comes from that inside system at Wisconsin. Now he has to go outside, but his points have come from the interior. Extra effort getting on the offensive boards and he’s very comfortable in the lane. You can see that. There’s Tucker again. Well, they’re playing through him right now. They’re posting it up and making sure he’s the go-to guy down low. Did he cheat in college because he was there for 5 years? Is that not fair that you get five years in college? You’re not supposed to. Do you know the circumstances? Kind of like on your academic schedule. I believe is that a shopper? I believe the NBA on TNT brought to you by Red Lobster. Come see what’s fresh today at Red Lobster. By orbits.com. Just orbits and go by autotrader.com. The ultimate automotive marketplace and by Adidas. Run with the brotherhood. Text team to Adidas. Impossible is nothing. Welcome back to Phoenix. As we wind down the preseason schedule, not a good time to be talking injuries, but as the replay show, Chucky Atkins has definitely reinjured his right groin. They’ve been bothering him throughout the preeason. A setback not only for Atkins, but obviously for the Nuggets. He is back in the locker room being treated right now. As for the Phoenix Suns, we saw Brian Skinner also go to the locker room. He had been bothered by his tender knee, but this time a sprained right ankle suffering a few minutes ago. Obviously, he’s done for the night as well. Barb. All right. Thank you, Craig. Von Wer has come on for the first time for the Nuggets. Three-year man out of Florida State. played very well at the NBA summer league in and Las Vegas. Originally a second round pick of the Los Angeles Lakers. This is Smith. The Aar Blazer gets the pick from Jones. Wafer coming up on six and a half to play in the fourth. Smith the Warren keeps it alive. They get the new clock. Waver can score the ball. Mark, he’s a natural scorer and a terrific three-point shooter. He’ll come out, hit three or four in a row immediately when he enters games. Foul committed by Marks. Don Wafer, lit it up for 42 points in one of those summer league games. Averaged 24 per game. Spent some time in the in the D-League. Spent most of last year, in fact, with Colorado in the NBA Development League. And it’s one of the players that coach Carl is trying to take a long look who can be that shooting guard, especially now because I believe they’re going to start the season with Allen Iverson at the point guard position. He’s going to try to find someone who has that inside track to be shooting guard. Look, Allen Iverson is going to play close to 40 minutes tonight. Even though George Carl may not want him to play that much, he’s 38 to 40 each night out. 20 to 25 of those minutes are going to come from the two guard position. how much he has to go to the point determine how much success. [Applause] Strawberry with nine points and the Suns now lead 104 to 93. AJ Strawberry the rookie out of Maryland that will count and a foul. And that’s one of the things that Mike Danton shakes his head on when it comes to Shawn Marks. He is not the defender Kurt Thomas is right here. Simple blowby right there. And you know there between uh Skinner and Shawn Marx, they’re going to try to they’re going to have to come up with a solution that Kurt Thomas and that void that’s going to be felt right there in the middle. And it appears that it will be a combination of Marks and and Skinner. It could just be Mark now that twisted his ankle. You don’t know how long he’s going to be on the shelf. Here is Marks. Rebounded by Clay. [Music] Nice move by Skinner on the crossover. I should say by Smith on a beautiful crossover. So Smith with 14 points. One of those little inside out dribbles. Started to make his move. Brought it back to the right. The open lane and the strong finish. Suns up by seven and the ball will go back to Denver. Watch him start to cross here and go right back to the right hand. So he begins the crossover dribble. A little inside out hitch move on it. Finishes strong with the right. Hanix able to turn things around by with a 3915 edge in the third quarter. Wafer with his first field goal. Denver only four of 18 from the field in the third. Well, the Nuggets have instant offense out there with J.R. Smith and Von Wafer. So, Sun’s going to have to play some defense here. Here’s Quazer. He was looking for a call. Jones and Jones is fouled. It’s great when you see a lot of young guys get on the floor at the end of the game and they chase the ball around as soon as that thing comes off the rim. They’re all racing to get there first to see if they can get that shot attempt up. Foul up by Aowski. Well, Reggie as usual just throws out information as he did regarding the rookie Orlando Tucker just moments ago. We mentioned that he spent 5 years at Wisconsin and our research staff checked it out. He had received a medical red shirt. Oh, okay. As a uh I knew it was something. Yeah. As a junior, he had missed all but four games due to a foot injury. So, thus five years with the Badgers. Well, coach, you talk about young players. There are jobs to be had out here rather if it’s on the active roster. Sometimes teams are looking at you to be on the practice squad and there’s always scouts in the building looking at you and looking at your performance. So there’s always a reason to play and to play hard. Someone’s always watching and plays a call for the offensive foul. Could not put the brakes on. made contact with Bowski. [Applause] Just under four to go in this fourth quarter. Regular season opens next Tuesday night right here on TN. Denver will have its season opener Wednesday, October 31st. They’re home for Seattle. However, they play five of the first seven on the road. That’s four on Strawberry. And the Suns open up the regular season in Seattle on Thursday night, November 1st, right here on TNT, followed by home games against the Lakers and the Cavaliers. Mike Danton’s Phoenix Suns starting on the road two at home and then at Charlotte at Atlanta [Applause] run here by the Nuggets and they’re within two. So here you are a two-point game. You have Steve Nash on the bench now. Can Marcus Banks lead this team right now into the execution? Get him into the offense? Can they get him some easy scores? Can he get him some easy looks? Foul on Jones. That’s his third. And Tucker to the line. Orlando Tucker with 10 points in 14 minutes of play. Kind of seeming to leave out one guy for Phoenix that may have a little bit of an impact. Somebody named Barbosa who uh hasn’t been around tonight. Well, he’s got the bruised ribs that he suffered in the game against Charlotte in Los Angeles and it’s definitely a player last year sixman of the year and he brings that excitement off the bench. We know that coach Mike Danton is going to go seven deep with Boris Dia and Leandro Barbosa. That’s why he’s trying to expand his rotation to eight or nine guys. And Mike Danton made it clear yesterday that he would sit out tonight and in the preseason finale tomorrow night. The officials confer with each other and that is deflected out of bounds as George Carl takes a timeout. That’s the Brazilian blur. Leandro Barbosa 302 left in the fourth. Well, back in Phoenix, both clubs have now gone to their benches. However, for a a preseason game, we’ve seen some pretty good basketball here. Well, I was really excited to see Amari Starttomire and see if he was really going to be able to get that explosion. Four, five, 10 points. Looked like he’s ready for, you know, opening night. How about Kenya Martin? Not very nice. Have to be happy with his progress coming back after last year playing in only two games, right? How about your sleepers? We heard from from Reggie and uh usually you like to hedge, stay on the fence, probably pick six or seven. I try to keep it to a much smaller group. Just just four. The Orlando Magic, they decided to make a coaching change, brought Stan Van Gundy in there. They went out and got Rashard Lewis. How about Howard at the center position. This team is going to have a lot of big wins this season. The Grizzlies, I think, will be much improved after last season. And then the Hornets, Chris Paul is back. They had too many injuries last year. The Atlanta Hawks only one loss in the preseason. Any honorable mention there? I haven’t. Yes, a couple. Foul on Marks Jones to the line. Well, coach, do you put any relevance into a team with one loss that was really struggling last year in the last few years like Atlanta has done? Are you trying to say that they’re going to get out the gates quick in the East? Because we know how preseason games go. I know, but you also have to teach people how to win, Reggie. And part of it is building that confidence, the idea that down the stretch we can hang on, win games, hook different guys in at the end of the game, see if they can hold on. And that’s what they were able to do. And remember, Atlanta got off to a quick start last season as well. Then they got hit with some big injuries. Staff members are asking me on the headset, why would the Orlando Magic be sleepers if they made the playoffs last season? Marks is able to hit and the Suns now lead 108 103. A cracks down. Boy, they don’t miss anything, do they? Blazer from downtown and it’s now a two-point game. I happen to have an answer for you, by the way. That’s because the Eastern Conference was so bad last year that somebody had to make the eighth position. Yes. And it happened to be Orlando. That’s the reason why. So they are sleep. That’s your story and you’re sticking to it, right? Sticking to excellent. Excellent. And please tell the staff that when we want them to start putting stuff in, we’ll let them know. Okay. Down to two minutes to play in this fourth quarter and Denver in possession within two. They at one point led by as many as 14. Phoenix has led by as many as 15. Here’s Smith and the game is tied. Well, this really looks like a pickup game at UCLA right now with Shawn Marx being the tallest player at 69 610. Pays for three. Eric Payowski over the years, one of the league’s better three-point shooters. Here’s Wafer and he’s fouled. [Applause] Byowski shooting 40% from downtown over the course of his 14-year career. You have the ability to take the ball, create off the dribble, and then when you play above the rim, you got a pretty good chance of finishing. And Carmelo Anthony trying to pull his team back to lead and uh get a win here. And Wafer having his troubles at the line. He is now one of five at the foul line. Well, for a score that’s a little bit surprising because you would figure that he would get fouled enough that he would have some kind of consistency going to the free throw line. Suns won 11 Nuggets 109. Marvy mentioned that Eric Picowski a 40% three-point shooter. You got to kind of like his attitude. 14. He just fires the three. Doesn’t hesitate. Strawber with a strong move. He’s played well. 11 points for the rookie out of Maryland. Waifer for three. Yes. No hesitation after having his difficulties at the line. So the Suns now lead by one. A minute 15 remaining in the fourth. And he’s stolen. Tucker on the recovery trying to draw the foul of Here comes Smith. Smith tries to go all the way. He is fouled, hacked by Banks. Well, obviously J.R. Smith is the most experienced player on the court. Started a lot of games last year for the Nuggets and right now he’s just trying to assert himself in the closing minutes of this game. Solid foul shoot 81% at the line last season. Phoenix over the foul limit. Denver with 14 fouls. The game is tied. was a little disappointed that time in Marcus Banks. Here comes Smith at you. You have to step up, square him off, not allow dribble penetration. He came out of his stance, did not dig in and take the challenge. And that’s what they need out of him if he’s going to play significant minutes for him. Final minute of the fourth quarter. Bowski was in three-point territory looking for the shot. Are you kidding me? They’re going to Shawn Marks on a clear out. Five on the shot clock. Here’s March. Forced it, kept alive. Tucker and it’s a shot clock violation. You can see in the face of the Phoenix players, somebody saying and and the coach as well. Who’s going to take this shot? What are we doing here right now? Well, this is what you talked about Marcus Banks. If he wants to assert himself and be the point guard, he has to make a play and put someone in a good position right here. Vic over the foul of it. And a glass touch by Pyowski. 15 on the 24 for the Nuggets. And Jones will throw it in. The game is tied at 113. Love over time. If it was regular season, there’d be timeouts right now. Instead, the coach is going to let the players figure it out. Here is the offensive foul. So the ball back to the Suns. So you were disappointed before that Marcus Banks didn’t move his feet. He commits the foul on J.R. Smith. What did he do that time? Slides get the charge. So instead of using a timeout, Mike Danton gave him the call from the sideline. They know what he wants. Thanks. Handling against Via to 5 seconds. The Suns have taken the lead. DJ Strawber with a three with three and 310 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. Denver calls for time. No hesitation. It was supposed to be a high pick and roll in the middle of the floor with Banks and Shawn Marks. Instead, the pick and roll was taken away. He looked to his left, saw the spot up shooter right there when there’s no angle to the basket. Not an ounce of hesitation. Catch, shoot. How about the arc on the ball? And that’s a little bit of a defensive mistake right there by Von Wafer. You want to hedge and get back to the shooter right there. He think that DJ Strawberry had enough confidence in his jump shot to knock down the three for the Nuggets. Their final timeout will step away. Suns by three. The Nuggets just used their final timeout. The Suns 116, the Nuggets 113. 3 and 3/10 seconds remaining on the floor. Wafer Smith, the two best three-point shooters on the floor. Shawn Marks on the inbounds as Jones looks to throw in. He has Smith and he is fouled by Strawberry. That won’t count. Phoenix over the foul limit. So the the play from Mike Danton not allow a three-pointer. I’m not sure that George Carl was looking for What are you trying to say? Overtime game here. He’s trying to get to Redmond, Oregon. Is that what you’re saying? Exactly. Well, you got to make the first one here and then miss the second one. Try to get the rebound and tip in. Well, Jr. Smith now three of five at the line, but an 81% free throw shooter last season. So, under normal conditions, I will think you try to miss this shot. Try miss, tip it back deep to get that three-point shot. On the other hand, Phoenix will foul right away if they should have to come up with the ball. And they do come up with the ball and that will wrap it. Foul was called and they just wave it off. And apparently they will. So the Phoenix Suns have defeated the Denver Nuggets. That foul coming after the final horn. 116 to 113 on the gamewinner. Three-point jumper by the rookie DJ Strawberry. the son of Daryl Strawberry. DJ finished with 14 points. Grant Hill 17 points. Steve Nash 14 and 10. And for Denver, Alan Iverson at 24, Carmemelllo Anthony with 22, J.R. Smith with 17. Let’s go to Craig with Amari Starttomire. Well, Mari, obviously DJ Strawberry, the hero making that shot. everybody on the sidelines saying, “Hey, get this game over. You guys have to fly to Vancouver tonight.” Talk a little bit about the game itself and how well you thought you played. Well, I think tonight we came out a lot of intensity defensively. The first half wasn’t quite our half, but the second half, you know, Mike gave us some great speech there at halftime, we came out a lot of intensity in the second half and played great defense down there. What kind of speech at halftime? Well, just how we need to step it up defensively. We’re doing a we’re doing a pretty good job on screen and rose. Just had to step it up more far as a vocal standpoint defensively. We did that. You had arthroscopic surgery October 2nd, just three weeks ago. How do you feel you felt out here? Did you have your explosion back? Yeah. Oh, yeah. I felt great. You know, the training staff, Aaron Nelson, and those guys been uh been doing a great job with with the rehabilitation part of it. So, I’ve been feeling great. You’ve been looking great in practice as well. Coach Danton telling us that you got a new weapon, a three-point shot. Now, Reggie Miller, one of the greatest three-point shooters of all time, saying, “Well, if there shooting threes, it’s to the other team’s advantage. But can you use that to an effective weapon? Oh, no doubt about it. You know, you just got to pick your pick your parts whenever you can get it up, you shoot it. But, you know, most of the time I’m in there helping out the interior guys, rebounding, and just having that that back line of defense. But, uh, whenever I’m open there on the arc, you know, I let it fly. All right. You’re flying tonight to Vancouver. No doubt. Good start, Craig. Thank you, Marvin. All right, Craig. Maris startmire strong performance. 17 minutes, four of five from the field, 10 points, and six rebounds. The Suns go to 5-2 in preseason. Nuggets at four up and three down. Thanks to our producer Scooter Vertino, director Renardo Lowe, and our statistician Brian Taylor. Once again, the final score, the Nuggets 116. The Suns, I should say, the Suns 116. The Nuggets 113. NBA tipoff 07 begins Tuesday right here on TNT with double header action in game one. the Blazers and the Spurs, followed by the Rockets and the Lakers. Coverage starting at 7:00 Eastern time with NBA Tip Off presented by autotrader.com. So for Craig Sager, Reggie Miller, Mike Patello, and our entire crew, I’m Mark Valbert saying good night from Phoenix, Arizona.
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