Game 36: Memphis Grizzlies (14-22) @ Phoenix Suns (14-21), Sun, Jan 5, 6pm MST

[Keith_myath]

Suns don't have a 'best defender'. You'd need to play defense to be eligible for that title.

The potential to be good defenders are:
- Bridges because he bodies his opponents. Isn't a good defender yet because he often makes over compensations or dumb physicality plays.
C.Johnson because he hustles and uses his length to pressure. Isn't there yet because he is still developing his NBA defensive IQ.

After that, there isn't much else showing. Some can have patches of hustling (e.g. Kelly and Saric), but they don't do it for long enough or show enough urgency when the chips are down.

Anyone who thinks Booker is a good defender can **** right off, and when they get there, they can **** off again. Booker is one of the laziest defenders I've seen since I've watched basketball. It's embarrassing. Only lazier defender is James Harden because you can't flail your body on defense and pick up cheap offensive fouls.

[bwgood77]

Suns don't have a 'best defender'. You'd need to play defense to be eligible for that title.

The potential to be good defenders are:
- Bridges because he bodies his opponents. Isn't a good defender yet because he often makes over compensations or dumb physicality plays.
C.Johnson because he hustles and uses his length to pressure. Isn't there yet because he is still developing his NBA defensive IQ.

After that, there isn't much else showing. Some can have patches of hustling (e.g. Kelly and Saric), but they don't do it for long enough or show enough urgency when the chips are down.

Anyone who thinks Booker is a good defender can **** right off, and when they get there, they can **** off again. Booker is one of the laziest defenders I've seen since I've watched basketball. It's embarrassing. Only lazier defender is James Harden because you can't flail your body on defense and pick up cheap offensive fouls.

Bridges is pretty solid, particularly for a 2nd year player. He takes the toughest assignment and still has the best DFG% other than a couple with small sample sizes. He is really good at staying in front of players, keeping his arms out or up, making shots tough or altering them, usually can do it without fouling, and can pick up steals without really having to gamble.

[hollywood6964]

It's just unbelievable how awful Booker's defense is...even as well as he's been playing on offense, metrics shows him as an overall net negative impact player, and you can't make the mistake of bad teammates anymore. I know many don't care about his defense, but it's a killer.

viewtopic.php?f=27&t=1919925&start=1000#p80768061

You joining Team Trade Booker, my friend? I hop on and off that train with every Suns loss/win. I don't deny Booker's a special offensive player, but I'm skeptical about the team's future with him. I have a hard time seeing how he improves from here, and I wonder whether it would be smart to deal him while his value is at his peak - which I imagine is right now.

No, I'm not advocating trading him, and I think there is no way that happens, but I agree that I don't know with him as the focal point if we will ever win unless we surround him with defenders that don't care about touching the ball and can spread the floor..like PJ Tucker types, but it still would never be a championship caliber team. He doesn't lift his teammates' level of play like Doncic does. Harden is so good he doesn't have to as much, but the guys around him also just accept their roles and spread the floor or finish (Capela).

This is more like Beal trying to lead a team of good role players to the playoffs, or maybe Lillard, but without McCollum.

Bradley Beal is a much better player. He can actually isolate and is a good defender when he wants to be. The wizards are just not interested in defending this year.

Booker's defense is so bad everyone needs to rotate because he never can stay with his man. It's funny, when I play, and I'm being lazy on d, and get taken a few times, I start to get embarrassed n turn up the defense as much as possible. I don't want guys just bucketing me. It seems like he just doesn't care, and then is in denial and blames it on sometime else not helping, etc. And him and giving up wide open 3s is like a fine art. It doesn't surprise me that he's a net negative player. I never look up the advance stats, I can just see it playing out nighty.

Rubio needs to run the offense, period. That's when we were having success earlier in the year. When he went down for that stretch, all the iso book crap started again. It not only **** on the offense, it also disengages guys on defense as well. It needs to stop.

[RiRuHoops]

Suns don't have a 'best defender'. You'd need to play defense to be eligible for that title.

The potential to be good defenders are:
- Bridges because he bodies his opponents. Isn't a good defender yet because he often makes over compensations or dumb physicality plays.
C.Johnson because he hustles and uses his length to pressure. Isn't there yet because he is still developing his NBA defensive IQ.

After that, there isn't much else showing. Some can have patches of hustling (e.g. Kelly and Saric), but they don't do it for long enough or show enough urgency when the chips are down.

Anyone who thinks Booker is a good defender can **** right off, and when they get there, they can **** off again. Booker is one of the laziest defenders I've seen since I've watched basketball. It's embarrassing. Only lazier defender is James Harden because you can't flail your body on defense and pick up cheap offensive fouls.

Bridges is pretty solid, particularly for a 2nd year player. He takes the toughest assignment and still has the best DFG% other than a couple with small sample sizes. He is really good at staying in front of players, keeping his arms out or up, making shots tough or altering them, usually can do it without fouling, and can pick up steals without really having to gamble.

Bridges is easily our best defender. And it shows in his ON/OF numbers of defense: opponents ORTG and eFG%. In fact our best ON/OFF players for defense are Bridges, Ayton, Carter & Rubio. I'd be very interested to see how a lineup with those 4 and maybe Oubre ( added for offense) would fare on the floor for extended stretches. I also don't get why Monty played Tyler over Carter vs Memphis when we were slaughtered on defense.

[bwgood77]

You joining Team Trade Booker, my friend? I hop on and off that train with every Suns loss/win. I don't deny Booker's a special offensive player, but I'm skeptical about the team's future with him. I have a hard time seeing how he improves from here, and I wonder whether it would be smart to deal him while his value is at his peak - which I imagine is right now.

No, I'm not advocating trading him, and I think there is no way that happens, but I agree that I don't know with him as the focal point if we will ever win unless we surround him with defenders that don't care about touching the ball and can spread the floor..like PJ Tucker types, but it still would never be a championship caliber team. He doesn't lift his teammates' level of play like Doncic does. Harden is so good he doesn't have to as much, but the guys around him also just accept their roles and spread the floor or finish (Capela).

This is more like Beal trying to lead a team of good role players to the playoffs, or maybe Lillard, but without McCollum.

Bradley Beal is a much better player. He can actually isolate and is a good defender when he wants to be. The wizards are just not interested in defending this year.

Booker's defense is so bad everyone needs to rotate because he never can stay with his man. It's funny, when I play, and I'm being lazy on d, and get taken a few times, I start to get embarrassed n turn up the defense as much as possible. I don't want guys just bucketing me. It seems like he just doesn't care, and then is in denial and blames it on sometime else not helping, etc. And him and giving up wide open 3s is like a fine art. It doesn't surprise me that he's a net negative player. I never look up the advance stats, I can just see it playing out nighty.

Rubio needs to run the offense, period. That's when we were having success earlier in the year. When he went down for that stretch, all the iso book crap started again. It not only **** on the offense, it also disengages guys on defense as well. It needs to stop.

Beal isn't really better this year on offense, and probably not on defense, but he has played a lot better defense (and offense) before.

[hollywood6964]

No, I'm not advocating trading him, and I think there is no way that happens, but I agree that I don't know with him as the focal point if we will ever win unless we surround him with defenders that don't care about touching the ball and can spread the floor..like PJ Tucker types, but it still would never be a championship caliber team. He doesn't lift his teammates' level of play like Doncic does. Harden is so good he doesn't have to as much, but the guys around him also just accept their roles and spread the floor or finish (Capela).

This is more like Beal trying to lead a team of good role players to the playoffs, or maybe Lillard, but without McCollum.

Bradley Beal is a much better player. He can actually isolate and is a good defender when he wants to be. The wizards are just not interested in defending this year.

Booker's defense is so bad everyone needs to rotate because he never can stay with his man. It's funny, when I play, and I'm being lazy on d, and get taken a few times, I start to get embarrassed n turn up the defense as much as possible. I don't want guys just bucketing me. It seems like he just doesn't care, and then is in denial and blames it on sometime else not helping, etc. And him and giving up wide open 3s is like a fine art. It doesn't surprise me that he's a net negative player. I never look up the advance stats, I can just see it playing out nighty.

Rubio needs to run the offense, period. That's when we were having success earlier in the year. When he went down for that stretch, all the iso book crap started again. It not only **** on the offense, it also disengages guys on defense as well. It needs to stop.

Beal isn't really better this year on offense, and probably not on defense, but he has played a lot better defense (and offense) before.

Completely disagree. Remember when there was no Rubio? Bookers %'s took a free fall in a short amount of time. Point is Beal plays with trash, and the few decent players have been injured all year. He has to do everything himself as far as scoring. He has to isolate constantly as there is really no set up guy. If book isolated constantly, it would be an utter disaster. so while bookers #'s are better than Beal thus far this year, fundementally he is not as good of a player as Beal, it's not close.

[Maze]

Bradley Beal is a much better player. He can actually isolate and is a good defender when he wants to be. The wizards are just not interested in defending this year.

Booker's defense is so bad everyone needs to rotate because he never can stay with his man. It's funny, when I play, and I'm being lazy on d, and get taken a few times, I start to get embarrassed n turn up the defense as much as possible. I don't want guys just bucketing me. It seems like he just doesn't care, and then is in denial and blames it on sometime else not helping, etc. And him and giving up wide open 3s is like a fine art. It doesn't surprise me that he's a net negative player. I never look up the advance stats, I can just see it playing out nighty.

Rubio needs to run the offense, period. That's when we were having success earlier in the year. When he went down for that stretch, all the iso book crap started again. It not only **** on the offense, it also disengages guys on defense as well. It needs to stop.

Beal isn't really better this year on offense, and probably not on defense, but he has played a lot better defense (and offense) before.

Completely disagree. Remember when there was no Rubio? Bookers %'s took a free fall in a short amount of time. Point is Beal plays with trash, and the few decent players have been injured all year. He has to do everything himself as far as scoring. He has to isolate constantly as there is really no set up guy. If book isolated constantly, it would be an utter disaster. so while bookers #'s are better than Beal thus far this year, fundementally he is not as good of a player as Beal, it's not close.

Booker averaged 27 7 and 7 constantly isolated, playing with even worst trash, and no set up man last season.At the end of the day, I think him and Beal are pretty much equals.

[hollywood6964]

Beal isn't really better this year on offense, and probably not on defense, but he has played a lot better defense (and offense) before.

Completely disagree. Remember when there was no Rubio? Bookers %'s took a free fall in a short amount of time. Point is Beal plays with trash, and the few decent players have been injured all year. He has to do everything himself as far as scoring. He has to isolate constantly as there is really no set up guy. If book isolated constantly, it would be an utter disaster. so while bookers #'s are better than Beal thus far this year, fundementally he is not as good of a player as Beal, it's not close.

Booker averaged 27 7 and 7 constantly isolated, playing with even worst trash, and no set up man last season.At the end of the day, I think him and Beal are pretty much equals.

They were screens and quick hit plays, not true iso. When he did in 4th quarters, it was a disaster.