Let me start by saying “I currently stand corrected” – If you could see me, I am sitting front of a big plate of Crow ready to eat… but not quite yet. I consistently rip into Jason Richardson for being “The Black Hole” of the Suns offense. Pre ASTB (All-Star Break) J Rich was where Ball movement went to die. Richardson was a streaky shooter, rebounder, defender and driver. Since the All-Star break, the Suns have been a different squad. It’s a good thing too, because the Pre-ASTB Suns were going to barely make the playoffs. We were not DEFENDING at all.  If the Suns come out of the All-Star Break with Jason Richardson 2.0 rather than 1.0… that could be as good as trading for a defender. One thing that is undeniable about J Rich is he is super athletic.  He can sky for a rebound, and play on-the-ball defense… the question is, does he want to? Can he do this consistently? Last night J Rich finished with 13 rebounds. He hasn’t had less than 5 rebounds in a game since February 5^th. So to say the least, he is trying… lately.

Two questions arise from his play: 1. What’s he doing differently? 2. How long will it last?

First, What is he doing differently?

A)     He is passing the ball earlier in the shot clock and taking his out of rhythm shots late in possesions rather than in the beginning of a possesion.

B)      He is incorrectly helping on defense less. Too many times teams get open looks by manipulating Jason Richardson double teams… lately, he is staying down and helping only when he is supposed to. This is reducing opposing teams 3-point efficiency.

C)      He is running more. A guy with his athleticism should be running the court all game long to separate himself from defenders in transition offense AND DEFENSE!

The key for J RICH seems to be that he needs to use his powers for good rather than for evil. By good I mean, he needs to ask himself “Is this decision what is best for the TEAM and not for himself. If he continues to use his quickness to get out in transition and help push the tempo, when Leandro comes back, it’s going to be scary.

So J Rich… There you go. You are doing these things correctly, if you continue to do these night in and night out, I think the Suns can climb to the top  4 in the West like I have been predicting all season.

Although, you will need help from one guy, Amar’e!!

Once Again STAT was dominant. He had 30 points, 9 rebounds and made CRUCIAL offensive put backs while the Suns tried to climb back into the game.  Amar’e has been a different person averaging 24.6 points, 11.3. rebounds and  1.1 blocks in the month of February. Keep it up, and the Suns are going to really start to spread teams out and destroy them.

Goran gets the start!

In the absence of MVSTEVE, Goran “Puff the Magic” Dragic got a real opportunity to show how much he has really improved. At work I set the over under for the night on turnovers at Four. He ended up with six. A few of them were dropped passes, and it’s natural to be jittery on the road in a start against a playoff contender.  Bright Side: Goran scored 16 points and had 10 assists. He looked like he was confident in his ability to score. His defense was solid. Rival second year star Russell Westbrook had 21 points, 10 assists and 1 rebound. Goran had 16,10, and 4. Not bad for a second-round pick who we got by trading D-League scoring threat Malik Hairston.

I have been all along, the question now is, Are you Gorange?

I will be taking Hubbell to tonight’s game in celebration of his turning a million years old. Go Suns! Beat Philly!

(Thank god Amar’e doesn’t play for Philly now, I was dreading this game)