I was too tired after attending the Portland game to post here. But at the game in the 4th he drew and obvious foul-baiting foul I told my brother “if he makes both FTs then that is his best play this entire game. Then he goes 1-for-2. And then TO and then another 1-for-2 FTs. Just disappointing in every way.

I said it when he was first acquired (almost a year to the day): if he can guide the team effectively and leave the offense to others, then I will appreciate him. But he never did and still doesn’t. He keeps trying ill-advised passes, almost as if making a highlight reel is his only goal.

Agree that James is being over used and, at 35, will flame out in due course if things don’t change. I’d definitely trot out Bones and JMiller — to both spell James and insert some shooting (both of those guys have pretty strong offensive games).

It’s games like these that make you yearn for the elite shooting of PG and KL (and even Luke Kennard, truth be told). Without real NBA offensive threats, we’re not gonna be able to compete. It’s still early and I’m not writing off TyLue as an incompetent coach just yet but I want him to show us that he’s capable of learning and adapting.

Harden should never play more than 25 minutes per game. At this stage, he cannot handle more than that. With his ego, Harden won’t go for it but it’s time his minutes are drastically reduced. I don’t have any confidence in his shot.

KPJ was better, especially in the 1st half.

I’m hoping that a contender has a point guard go down sometime during the year and we can dump Harden.

TMann was a bit better but it is enough.

It’s early and I like a lot of guys on the team. But short of some breakout player things aren’t going to get better.

I’ve largely made my peace w/ the fact that Ty is gonna continue to play him, but I really wish he’d separate him from Harden and Norm. All three of these dudes have overlapping skills and weaknesses – Harden and KPJ are both ball dominant, and Norm and KPJ are both not ever gonna pass up a shot opportunity, and all three are anywhere from average (Norm) to bad (Harden) defenders. If KPJ is gonna isoball, then what’s the point in even having either Harden or Norm out there with him? If Harden passes KPJ the ball his jumper isn’t working right now, and if Norm is out there w/ KPJ, KPJ ain’t passing the ball to him. Might as well toss out a lineup like KPJ, Dunn, Mann, Nico, and Kai or something because we all know KPJ is gonna dribble a bunch then take the shot – we need the other guys out there to defend/hustle and look for offensive boards.

…or, we could just try out Bones and/or Miller and increased ball movement instead, and see how that works.

But there is one simple fix that would avoid or limit droughts: hunting 3 point shots from the corner and the high elbow.

The rash of turnovers in Q4 from Harden and Norm were partly a product of fatigue, but mainly from tunnel vision. They’re trying really hard to get to the basket when the sideline and corner are right there. Phoenix moves that ball intentionally to the corner, to the high elbow area behind the 3 pt line, rotate and back again.

We have capable 3 pt shooters in Mann, DJJ, Dunn, Batum, Coffey. They each get stuck in the corner or at the high elbow on a number of possessions. The ball never seems to find them. We’re the 8th worst scoring offense in the league. Making 3 more 3s per game would put us in the top 10. Move the ball. Preserve Harden’s legs. This isn’t that hard.

The Kevin Porter Jr experiment. continues to produce some flashes and a lot of nothing. It’s so reminiscent of John Wall’s tenure. Sure, he had a few good scoring games but he was never really good. We’d probably be 4-1 or 3-2 if he just didn’t play.

I did like Harden and Zu having bounce back games, and Mann was solid. Hasn’t found his 3 pt shot yet but when he’s been on the floor, he’s helped produce good shots in the 2 games vs Phx and Portland. I maintain, as I have the last 2-3 seasons, that putting the ball in Mann’s hands more & telling him to shoot more (and telling his teammates to look for him if he’s sitting in the corner) are key to unlocking this team’s potential.