The Phoenix Suns are fresh off of a disappointing 100-95 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in a game that they led 77-70 in the fourth quarter. It wasn’t the loss that was so bothersome — any single loss can be explained away — but it was the continuation of a certain trend that raises red flags.
That trend is their inability to control their emotions and channel them for the betterment of the team. Watch this video and tell me if it’s beneficial to the team (note the score — another close game):
Over the last two games, we’ve seen Marcus Morris go batshit crazy (industry term) on his head coach Jeff Hornacek and last night, we saw P.J. Tucker and Markieff Morris pick up technical fouls late in the fourth quarter in a close game. The Morris outburst didn’t cost the Suns the game, but the Tucker/Morris technicals completely changed how the Suns had to play. Instead of being a one-possession game, the Suns had to foul and hope the Spurs would miss free-throws. Good teams don’t put themselves in those spots.
GOOD ENERGY > BAD ENERGY
The problem is, that energy is exactly what makes the Suns who they are. They play off of emotion and asking them to scale it back would be akin to turning an 8-cylinder engine into a 4-banger while expecting it to continue producing at the same level. In other words, the Suns don’t want to eliminate what sets them apart.
As of last night, the Suns have an alarming FOUR players in the top-10 in the league in technical fouls:
- Markieff Morris, tied for 1st, 9 technicals
- Eric Bledsoe, tied for 4th, 7
- Marcus Morris, tied for 8th, 5
- P.J. Tucker, tied for 8th, 5
As a team, they lead the NBA with 46 technicals. So where do they draw the line? How do they get past the fact that their emotions get the best of them, seemingly at the worst possible time? Here’s two options:
DO NOTHING
The first option is to ignore the problem. Those who understand the psychological aspect and the momentum that a team garners when they get fired up would go this route. Look at Gerald Green for a perfect example of this. If you take away his ability to be emotional, you strip him of his greatest strength.
Why do you think teams play better at home? Do they love their home cooking and beds that much? Are the rims more kind? Of course not. It’s the energy they channel from the crowd. Momentum and that extra push from the crowd are real assets.
You don’t need to be a tactical master to see that when Eric Bledsoe has a crazy chasedown block then throws a sick alley-oop to Green that the crowd swells, the team’s confidence rises and the results improve. Take all of that away on the road, and you don’t get the same type of emotional boost.
The Suns are remarkably young. Young people are generally worse at controlling their emotions. They’re volatile, exciting and sometimes it hurts their team. It’s why having veteran leadership is so important. Doing nothing is an option, but it’s not the best one.
CONTINUE TO TEACH
The second — and better — option is to continue along the same path, allowing the players to be emotional, but really making sure that coach Hornacek is using these heartbreaks as teaching opportunities. Do these losses hurt? Yes. If too many of them build up will it keep the Suns out of the playoffs? Look at last season. It’s going to be a dogfight and the Suns need every win they can get.
However, that doesn’t mean they can’t learn from their mistakes. Marcus was very apologetic after his outburst. I’d bet that nobody on the court felt worse than P.J. and Markieff after picking up those technicals and costing the team a chance at a big win.
But that’s the thing about youth — it doesn’t last forever. This team has already grown by leaps and bounds since last season and they’re continuing to develop. That’s not just a physical thing — it carries over to the mental side of the game.
Look at the Spurs. Are they the most gifted athletically in the league? Not even close. But what they do — they don’t beat themselves. They don’t kill themselves by getting technical fouls, because they know it often costs them points (the Spurs have the second fewest T’s in the league with 11).
Does Coach Popovich pick up a strategic technical from time to time to rile up his troops? Sure. Coach Hornacek does the same thing. But that’s something that needs to be done when the energy and emotions aren’t flowing.
The Suns don’t have that problem.
MOVING FORWARD
Phoenix needs to circle this loss on the schedule. They should realize that while they may not have won the game and it was late-game execution on both ends that was ultimately their demise, that they should have had a chance. They should reflect upon this game as a missed opportunity, as a “I’ll never make that mistake again” moment.
It’s not the end of the world, as the Suns are still slotted in the eighth seed in the Western Conference at 22-17, but too many more of these and they’re going to end up like they did last year — on the outside looking in, wondering what they did wrong.