The Suns have only lost two of their first 10 games, but the defeats have a lot in common: Both came on the road. Both came in the second of back-to-back games. Both snapped four-game Phoenix winning streaks. Both came on nights when the Suns shot poorly and Steve Nash was ordinary. Both came against very good basketball teams who score inside and pride themselves on contesting shots.
Oh, and both were blowouts that were decided long before the fourth quarter arrived.
Like their first loss in Orlando, it wasn't hard to put a finger on the reasons behind Thursday's 121-102 loss to the Lakers. Even without Pau Gasol, Los Angeles ruled the paint with 78 points -- using both Kobe Bryant against Jason Richardson and Andrew Bynum against Amar'e Stoudemire to exploit mismatches.
The Lakers rotated defensively and cut down on the open shots that are the lifeblood of Phoenix's high-octane offense. On the other end, Los Angeles made the Suns play defense by sucking all five players inside the three-point line to help prevent any breakouts to the other way.
With older players like Nash and Grant Hill so important to their success, back-to-backs will be an issue all year -- just as they were when Shaquille O'Neal was still patrolling the middle. Phoenix was playing its seventh game in 10 days while the Lakers had three days off to prepare, which also gave Bynum time for an injured ankle to heal.
But even with a full complement of rest, the Suns would have a tough time closing the size and talent gap with the defending world champions. Their style and makeup will win a lot of regular season games, but teams like the Magic and Lakers, who are more flexible defensively, will make things tough on them. And the Suns have no answer for the Bynums and Dwight Howards inside.
The Suns now get two much-needed days off before only their fourth home game of the season Sunday against Toronto -- the first time since the season began they have had back-to-back days off. The Raptors are another team with a strong inside scorer in Chris Bosh, but one that doesn't share the defensive commitment of the Lakers and Magic.
LAKERS 121, SUNS 102: Kobe Bryant had 29 points and Andrew Bynum added 26 points and 15 rebounds as the Lakers show little regard for Phoenix's 8-1 start and thumped the tired Suns on national television.
The Suns needed a 31-point fourth quarter points in garbage time to reach triple digits for a 10th straight game to start the season, but never seriously threatened after the Lakers put up 59 points in the first half. Jared Dudley led the Suns with 14 points, but most of the starters struggled through horrible games.
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