Suns basketball is back. Phoenix will face Utah at 5 p.m. PST in the first of three scrimmages in Orlando, the next step in the Suns’ ramp up for their eight seeding games that begin July 31.
Since I’m not inside the bubble, let’s have a responsible, socially distanced, virtual party while watching on television. Bring your comments and questions. Jokes are welcome, too.
My only request: keep the conversation civil. No profanity or vulgar language. No personal attacks. No trolling. If I deem something inappropriate or harmful, I’ll remove it and/or ban you from making further comments.
Thanks for joining, everybody! Not sure if I'll do this for the next two scrimmages, but definitely for the seeding games. Really appreciate your support!
First-half thoughts I just posted to Twitter: Booker (10 pts) looked like Booker. Bridges (9 pts, 4 rebs) was aggressive. Couple nice moments for newcomer Cam Payne. Jerome looked hesitant a starting PG, but hit a sweet pull-up just before the buzzer. Biggest negative: 2-of-12 from 3.
Some nuggets from Monty Williams' pregame availability:
* Ricky Rubio and Kelly Oubre Jr. will NOT play in tonight's scrimmage. Rookie Ty Jerome will start at point guard. Here's what Williams said he wants to see from Jerome tonight:
"Just want to see him improve. Manage the game. I think Pop (Spurs coach Gregg Popovich) said it best in talking about his young players on his team -- you want to see them take the information, and take the good stuff that they've done in practice, and have some carry-over in the game. I think that goes for all our young guys."
* When asked what he noticed while watching yesterday's scrimmages, Williams pointed to "a lot of zone" defense in the Washington/Denver game (the Wizards' are the Suns' first opponent in the seeding games). He added the no-fans atmosphere was "a bit different," highlighting the vast spacing under the basket. And some coaches went with platoon subs, while others used more traditional sub patterns.
K. Ray's continuous advertising of Cold Beers and Cheeseburgers reminds me I need to figure out what to do for dinner after this! One would think I'd be better at this quarantining thing by now.
Anybody been watching Lakers-Mavs? They're pumping in artificial crowd noise. Wonder if that's just the Lakers' broadcast or if that'll be consistent across games moving forward. I'd rather hear the actual natural sounds (aka the trash talk)
Very interested in this, as well. He could be the backup point guard, especially if Carter plays more off the ball. I mentioned on Twitter, but I've been impressed with how candid and introspective Payne has been in media availabilities about his rocky journey and opportunity to get back in the league.
Was wondering - what is this room they are playing in normally used for? Is it a large conference room/ballroom of some sort? Or is it an actual mini-arena?
That's a good question, because I'm not sure which court they're actually playing on tonight. There is an actual arena. AAU tournaments are played on campus, so they're used to having multiple courts set up.
His performance indicates why Monty said nobody has taken hold of the backup PG job yet. The hope is, eventually, Jerome's basketball IQ and outside shooting can make up for his athletic limitations (especially defensively), but that has not been the case tonight or consistently during his rookie season.
He is so limited athletically that I just don't see him ever being a factor in NBA. I thought his struggles early in season could be partially explained hy injuries, but that is no longer an excuse. I think the only reason he will be on team next season is due to guaranteed contract and no trade value.
Understood about modern game. I was channeling Bob Kemp with my comment on Ayton. I just think he can be so dominant inside and isn't yet. His fallaway jumpers drive me batty. Trying 3s seems like it could take him away from what makes him potentially dominant.
Did you watch the zoom session nuggets broadcast? I really enjoyed that for a little while. Be fun to have that option for the Tim’s and Lindsey smith doing cut ins
I'll certainly cut all these on-site and remote broadcasts some slack. This is so strange, and I'm sure even with intense preparation they're figuring things out on the fly.
Seen a lot from Bridges so far: Strong and-1 finish, leading the break, nice pass to Ayton for the jumper.
Thanks for joining, everybody! Not sure if I'll do this for the next two scrimmages, but definitely for the seeding games. Really appreciate your support!
Thanks for having us Gina! I appreciate all the Suns updates!
First-half thoughts I just posted to Twitter: Booker (10 pts) looked like Booker. Bridges (9 pts, 4 rebs) was aggressive. Couple nice moments for newcomer Cam Payne. Jerome looked hesitant a starting PG, but hit a sweet pull-up just before the buzzer. Biggest negative: 2-of-12 from 3.
Some nuggets from Monty Williams' pregame availability:
* Ricky Rubio and Kelly Oubre Jr. will NOT play in tonight's scrimmage. Rookie Ty Jerome will start at point guard. Here's what Williams said he wants to see from Jerome tonight:
"Just want to see him improve. Manage the game. I think Pop (Spurs coach Gregg Popovich) said it best in talking about his young players on his team -- you want to see them take the information, and take the good stuff that they've done in practice, and have some carry-over in the game. I think that goes for all our young guys."
* When asked what he noticed while watching yesterday's scrimmages, Williams pointed to "a lot of zone" defense in the Washington/Denver game (the Wizards' are the Suns' first opponent in the seeding games). He added the no-fans atmosphere was "a bit different," highlighting the vast spacing under the basket. And some coaches went with platoon subs, while others used more traditional sub patterns.
In case you missed this morning's piece, here are some lineup questions and possibilities I'll be tracking tonight: https://valleytales.substack.com/p/3-rotation-elements-to-watch-during
Book looks like Book.
K. Ray's continuous advertising of Cold Beers and Cheeseburgers reminds me I need to figure out what to do for dinner after this! One would think I'd be better at this quarantining thing by now.
There's always Grubhub :)
And now we've got the new chef, ha!
Having lived a couple of times in Salt Lake, all I can ask is what exactly is "Utah honey?"
A double-digit lead that has evaporated...stop me if you've seen this before.
A Suns player fouling a 3-point shooter...stop me if you've seen this before.
As Led Zeppelin sang, "The Song Remains The Same" :)
They need an hour long film session showing nothing but times they've blown games doing things like this.
Limping to the end of the 3Q. I should not be so stressed about a scrimmage!!
Suns are 2-of-10 from 3 so far. Only real negative one can say about the first half.
That and-1 drive by Dario got a head nod from Oubre.
Another interesting lineup: Payne-Carter-Johnson-Dario-Kaminsky.
Anybody been watching Lakers-Mavs? They're pumping in artificial crowd noise. Wonder if that's just the Lakers' broadcast or if that'll be consistent across games moving forward. I'd rather hear the actual natural sounds (aka the trash talk)
I’d rather it just be the actual sounds from the game, but after Carmelo Anthony staying true to form, I’m not surprised the NBA might want some noise
Melo is exactly why I DON'T want noise :-)
Excited to see Cam Johnson and how his shot looks after bulking up a bit
Here we go. He's the first sub, for Dario.
Tough first shot but the clock was running down!
Nice ... hope to do this virtual watch party for more games!
It's only one game, but Cam Payne has been really solid on both offense and defense.
Payne will be backup pg!
He's definitely been the best ball handler tonight.
If Rubio is still out against Boston then Payne should definitely start over Jerome. Give him a chance to see what he's got with the big boys.
He definitely has some good moves!
and good vision
I'll believe it when he repeats this performance a few times. All of the backup G's have had a few good games.
Big 3 for Cam!
Good to see Saric attacks the rim when he’s 3s is not falling
Omigosh I think K Ray and EJ are getting paid each time they talk about the new arena 🙄🙄. Too many times already for me
Another promo, ha!
Good thing it's not a drinking game 🤣
We'd either be drunk or in a certain porcelain palace!
Ayton birthday gift to himself!!
3!!!
Ha! Was it actually a gift from Monty, since it came out of a timeout?
Probably! It was just what he asked for though
Every time I see Ayton shoot a fall-away jumper, I want to throw my shoe at the screen.
Let's keep an eye out for Mitchell to see if he will even pass to Gobert
Stay safe, everyone! Nite!
W
Good first half for the suns
Payne looks good.
That off-the-dribble move a bit ago was nifty.
He looked confident
Loving these Mikal Bridges looks on offense!!
He's been very aggressive.
Go Suns! So glad to see them back! Can't wait to see the development of DA, Mikal, and Cam!
Interested to see how Cameron Payne looks tonight, but I’m happy to see Ty Jerome have some faith from the coaching staff
Very interested in this, as well. He could be the backup point guard, especially if Carter plays more off the ball. I mentioned on Twitter, but I've been impressed with how candid and introspective Payne has been in media availabilities about his rocky journey and opportunity to get back in the league.
Payne looks very comfortable out there. Wasn't afraid to pop a three
Now that I remember I thnk the suns were looking at Payne in that draft year
ngl the new arena makeover looks sick
All things considered, not a bad first outing if they hang on to a decent win. Looking forward to your report, Gina.
Thanks for joining!
Was wondering - what is this room they are playing in normally used for? Is it a large conference room/ballroom of some sort? Or is it an actual mini-arena?
That's a good question, because I'm not sure which court they're actually playing on tonight. There is an actual arena. AAU tournaments are played on campus, so they're used to having multiple courts set up.
Interesting. This one tonight just does not appear to be an arena to me. Maybe it is just an optical illusion.
Nice finish to the quarter at least by Payne
I like the camera angles they're using. It's not as angled as it normally is and gives it a different feel.
Making the most of fewer cameras?
Ty Jerome still looks completely overmatched in all aspects of his game.
His performance indicates why Monty said nobody has taken hold of the backup PG job yet. The hope is, eventually, Jerome's basketball IQ and outside shooting can make up for his athletic limitations (especially defensively), but that has not been the case tonight or consistently during his rookie season.
He is so limited athletically that I just don't see him ever being a factor in NBA. I thought his struggles early in season could be partially explained hy injuries, but that is no longer an excuse. I think the only reason he will be on team next season is due to guaranteed contract and no trade value.
I would much rather Ayton focus on dominating inside than shooting any 3s.
It's a skill he should develop as a modern big man, and has worked on. But Monty stressed your point the other day.
Understood about modern game. I was channeling Bob Kemp with my comment on Ayton. I just think he can be so dominant inside and isn't yet. His fallaway jumpers drive me batty. Trying 3s seems like it could take him away from what makes him potentially dominant.
It is SO nice to have basketball back again! It's interesting to see the different line-ups and how they interact. I want to see DA toss a 3!
Ask and you shall receive, ha!
Did he make the 3?
Wildcat power! It's all in the mind!
EJ in good form with his comments!
That looked like a bad splits for Booker - hope he isn't hurt.
Glad he seems to be OK. Because, yeah, the splits hurt.
Is the suns playing good d or Jazz is just not shooting well?
The cop-out answer: little of both?
Cam needs to work on shots that fit his skill set a bit better
Frank’s back!
It's great to see Cam out there again, it's been so long since he's played. Maybe we will get Frank too. Injuries healing over the break
There he is. Interesting lineup there right now: Carter-Payne-Bridges-Cam-Kaminsky.
THICC CAM
I really hope we can make Glue Alcindor happen as a Bridges nickname
Suns gonna get it done tonight?!
Did you watch the zoom session nuggets broadcast? I really enjoyed that for a little while. Be fun to have that option for the Tim’s and Lindsey smith doing cut ins
I did! I thought it was a creative approach. And I know all those folks from my time in Denver, so it was fun to see them all in that setting.
Watched Pelicans Nets game last night and they used canned crowd noise too. It wasn't too loud and I didn't notice it after awhile.
I wonder if each "arena" has employed a group to handle that. Maybe it will improve with experience.
I'll certainly cut all these on-site and remote broadcasts some slack. This is so strange, and I'm sure even with intense preparation they're figuring things out on the fly.
Can’t wait to see the Valley Boyz back in action! Let’s get this W!
Let's Go Suns!!