Phoenix Suns: How Their Defense Improved And The Offense Died
The Marcus Morris Effect
Knight’s ankle problems have opened an avenue for Marcus Morris to a starting spot and more responsibility on both ends of the floor. If you’re looking for the reason why the Suns went from a high scoring offense and porous defense to a bottom-feeder offense and stingy defense, look no further than the Mook effect.
By moving Marcus Morris into the lineup and switching P.J. Tucker to the other guard spot, the Suns have a size and strength advantage, something that’s been rare this season. With the Morrii, Tucker and Alex Len all available for rebounding, the Suns have gone from the league’s 19th ranked rebounding unit to its second best since All-Star Weekend.
By cleaning up the defensive boards, the Suns are limiting opponents’ second chance points. Before the break, the Suns gave up 15.3 second chance points per game, the worst mark in the league. Since then, the Suns are only giving up 12.2 second chance points per game, the ninth best mark in the NBA. Mook’s additional seven boards per game (in March) certainly helps there.
On flip side, #Suns have addressed two HUGE weaknesses (defense/rebounding) for over a month now. And now offense righting itself.
— Matt Petersen (@TheMattPetersen) March 25, 2015
It goes beyond rebounding, however. With Tucker defending guards and Mook holding his own on the wing, the Suns haven’t allowed as much penetration and when they have, Len, Markieff Morris or Brandan Wright have stepped up to make the shot more challenging.
Before the break, the Suns surrendered 46.6 points in the paint per game, the second most in the association. Now Phoenix has limited that number to 42.5 points in the paint per game, putting them in the NBA’s upper half. They’re not elite, but they’re no longer one of the NBA’s worst teams when it comes to giving up easy points in the lane.
The tougher wing defense and keeping teams out of the lane is reflected in their opponents’ scoring and field goal percentage:
- OPP PPG: 104.7 PPG (28th) –> 100.8 PPG (18th)
- OPP FG%: 45.5% (20th) –> 44.0% (10th)
The Suns’ defense isn’t elite by any means. But they’re controlling the boards and they’re no longer hemorrhaging points on a nightly basis. Phoenix’s defensive rating has improved from 104.1 points per 100 possessions to 101.0 and the biggest culprit has been moving Mook into the starting lineup with Knight sidelined.
Unfortunately, more minutes for Morris hasn’t exactly translated into offensive success. Though his scoring numbers are up (12.3 PPG in March), his field goal percentage has dropped all the way to 39.4 percent from the field and 26.1 percent from downtown since Mar. 1.
With Mook taking nearly four more field goal attempts per game than he was when he was coming off the bench, those extra looks haven’t translated to efficiency. Nobody in Phoenix is shooting the ball particularly well these days, but if it weren’t for this team’s improvements on the defensive end, Morris’ up-and-down shooting would have caught more people’s attention.
The bad news is that for all of Phoenix’s improvements on the defensive end, the tradeoff hasn’t been kind to their ability to win games. Phoenix’s point differential went from +1.2 before the break to -3.1 afterward. Marcus Morris is by no means the primary factor in that drop-off, and his inclusion in the starting lineup has shown fans their first look at what a respectable defense looks like.
But with Mook and the rest of the team struggling to put the ball in the basket, it’s hard to advocate for this new starting lineup lasting any longer than it needs to — even with the Suns already out of the playoff hunt.
All statistics are from NBA.com
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