RealGM

I think over the last 2 months or so another reason that we are probably as good a team as anyone, except Cleveland, is that J-Rich seems to have found his role on this team really and plays more consistenly and actually is a playmaker on offense.

He has found a good balance of 3s and attacking/posting up.

+1 to OP

+1 to J-Rich

I agree too. Of the games I've seen recently, there is a noticeable difference in his game. He seems to fit in much better on the floor with the team, and although he still makes some decisions that make you want to smack your face into a brick wall, they are no where near as frequent as before.

J-Rich definitely deserves some credit for his contribution to the teams current success.

agreed. He's far less (Please Use More Appropriate Word) and more productive in the second half of the season

J-Rich has been this teams 2nd or 3rd best play every single game in the last couple months. Before he had nights were he was detrimental to the team.

If this 20 point 6 rebound guy is your 3rd best player then you know you're good. If he can keep it up and play within the system like he has he'll have a big playoff run.

Yes J-Rich has found his niche on the team. I actually enjoy watching him now. Please let Lopez be okay come playoff time, our team will be so dangerous.

***Cough*** (Keep him) ***cough***

8-0 when he scores 26+ pts

talk about been murdered on this board before. He's playing great ball, along side Nash and Amar'e he's played a huge role since the allstar break. we're gonna need him.

I agree. He has become more of a scorer rather than a shooter, which is what we need.

Jason isn't standing around watching from behind the 3 point line anymore. That is the big difference.

Yeah for sure, he is much more consistent. He has been consistent almost every game, good stuff. Without him we would of lost quite a few more games.

Yup I was one of his biggest haters but he is really finding his place with the team and knows when to shoot and when to post up. Before he would just chuck it but now he is realizing how important shot selection is and that the suns aren't just running and gunning they are looking for quick efficient shots off pick n roll situations and post ups when they have the size advantage or mismatch or isos with mismatches its all about tearing the defense apart with smart play not brute force.

lilfishi22 wrote:I agree. He has become more of a scorer rather than a shooter, which is what we need.

Nicely put - I think McHale pointed out last night that he's become very adept at moving without the ball and expecting Nash to hit him, which is a learned skill. Most players have a rough time adjusting because they get the ball when they don't expect it. Lopex bobbled many, many 'gimme' passes until recently.
JR has also stepped up his D, which does not hurt.

I like the guy's game, and I like him personally form what I've heard in interviews. He's done some very dumb stuff on and off the court, but I'm the last guy to throw stones ..... I still shudder, physically, when I recall some of my more regrettable moments.

It'd be so much easier to jump in on the love-fest if his contract were like ... half what it is.

He's finally becoming that 3rd star player the Suns have needed. If he continues to play as he has the past couple months into the playoffs and Lopez comes back healthy, I don't think any team is going to look forward to meeting the Suns in the playoffs. The only thing that's bothered me is that he still ends up leaving his assignment wide open for 3s on occasion. This might be attributed to poor help defense on certain occasions, but I'd still like to see him stay in the face of the other team's known 3 point threats more efficiently.

Those injuries had to have been bothering him more than he was letting on. He was shooting terribly in Dec and Jan. He's back to shooting above 40% from 3's, like he was in Nov.

Seems like as J-Rich goes, the Suns go. We were 14-3 when he was playing well early and we're 17-4 since he started playing well again. 31-7 over that stretch. We were 17-19 when he was playing badly. Damn, if we'd only gone like 20-16, we'd be in 2nd place with HCA all the way to the WCF.

way to go just after I gave him props put up a 0 point stinker like that.

Yeah man, 0pts from him, 2pts from Hill, 3pts from Frye, just an all-around terrible game.

And 7 points from EC.