Kevin Johnson video and some other things....

[B][I]This Time, Suns Don't Slacken Pace Western Conference: After wasting 22-point lead in Game 2 loss at Portland, they take a 46-point lead and cruise at Phoenix, 123-89.; [Home Edition]
SAM McMANIS. Los Angeles Times (pre-1997 Fulltext). Los Angeles, Calif.: May 26, 1990. pg. 1[/I][/B]

It would not happen again, or so the Phoenix Suns hoped. Another 22-point lead against the Portland Trail Blazers, this time by the end of the first quarter here Friday night, would not be lost.

It turns out they didn't have to hold that lead.

No, it grew to 28 by halftime, then 30, then 40 before finally hitting a high mark of 46 points late in the third quarter of a 123-89 victory over the Trail Blazers in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals.

Two days ago, the concern was whether the Suns could recover after wasting a 22-point lead and losing Game 2 in Portland. Now, the question is whether the Trail Blazers will be the demoralized team.

Portland leads the series, two games to one, with Game 4 here Sunday. But the Suns may be in control.

"Everybody knew what happened the other night," Sun guard Jeff Hornacek said. "That was a good lesson for us never, never to let up. But that happens to teams in the playoffs. You lose leads."

[B]This blowout, which must have reminded Trail Blazer forward Buck Williams of his days as a New Jersey Net, was not a record. But only because Sun Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons cleared the bench in the fourth quarter.

Phoenix, which made 61% of its shots, fell short of a franchise playoff record for margin of victory. The Suns beat the Golden State Warriors by 37 points last season.

The Suns' starters made a combined 35 of 42 shots (83.3%). Tom Chambers had 24 points, guards Hornacek and Kevin Johnson had 17 each and power forward Kurt Rambis got 14 on six-for-six shooting. Center Mark West scored eight of his nine points in the first quarter.

"We wanted to play every single quarter like it was 0-0," Kevin Johnson said.

Fitzsimmons was asked if he had ever seen his starters make 83% of their shots in a game before.

"I probably have been involved in a game like that, but it had to be in junior college where nobody ever plays defense," Fitzsimmons said.[/B]

Fitzsimmons wanted it known he was not comparing the Trail Blazers to a junior college team or knocking Portland's defensive effort.

But the Trail Blazers knocked themselves.

"We just played horribly," said Clyde Drexler, who made only five of 14 shots. "We know we're a better team than that."

But, on the road in their last two playoff series, the Trail Blazers have resembled the Sacramento Kings in February, folding at the first hint of a deficit. In their last four road playoff games, the Trail Blazers have lost by an average of 20.4 points.

[B]"We didn't play well offensively-that was our biggest breakdown," said Trail Blazer guard Terry Porter, who made two of eight shots and had six points.

"Our offense made their offense look great because we missed so many shots we got their break going."

The Suns took a we-told-you-so attitude about not letting down after Game 2.

"You hear all kinds of things after our game up there," Hornacek said of Game 2.

"People said we were doubting ourselves. But, as players, you just go out and play the game. You don't worry about the last one."

Instead, the Suns made strategic adjustments. Fitzsimmons said the key was a multifaceted offense.

That was evident in the first four minutes, when the Suns took an 18-4 lead. West scored inside, Chambers made a jump shot, Kevin Johnson made free throws after driving, Rambis scored inside and Chambers scored twice off fast breaks.

"I thought we had them both games up there," said Chambers, who made 11 of 13 shots in only 26 minutes.[/B]

"But we allowed them to come back. Tonight, we did not allow that."

Just as Fitzsimmons scoffed at the notion his Suns would fold after the Game 2 loss, Portland Coach Rick Adelman vowed his team would not wilt, despite making 36.3% of their shots and playing only token defense.

"They dominated the game in every way," Adelman said. "But I don't care how many points you get beat by. The series is still 2-1, with us ahead."

Friday, that was the only statistic the Trail Blazers could embrace.

Western Conference Notes

Sun guard Eddie Johnson has renewed his vow of silence for the third consecutive playoff series. But Johnson has done so much explaining about why he is not talking with the media it might be easier for him to answer questions. "You guys are going to write whatever you're going to anyway, whether I talk or not," Johnson told reporters. "I have my job to do. I need to concentrate." . . . Before Friday night's game, Sun forward Tom Chambers had an 0-10 record in Western Conference finals. Chambers was a member of the 1986-87 Seattle SuperSonics that lost four consecutive games to the Lakers. He was with the Suns last season, when they lost four in a row to the Lakers. And the Suns lost the first two games of this series.

[Illustration]
PHOTO: The Phoenix Suns' Mark West scores over the Portland Trail Blazers' Kevin Duckworth Friday night. Suns defeated Trail Blazers, 123-89. / Associated Press

[QUOTE=IceMan2]You got to at least respect what gmat says. he provides sources and makes everything he says credible. most of the time posters here just make things up as they go. also so the way he says everything really makes you listen as well. but yeah, at least he has sources backing up what he says, that makes what he says legit and credible[/QUOTE]

Thanks.

[B][I]He Overcomes Initial Futility; [Home Edition]
MIKE DOWNEY. Los Angeles Times (pre-1997 Fulltext). Los Angeles, Calif.: May 13, 1990. pg. 1[/I][/B]

Well, I don't think there's any way Phoenix can blow this series now, is there?

Who in his right mind wouldn't side with the Suns after what they did to the Lakers here Saturday?

I think these guys are a lock to win the NBA championship, and probably many more to come.

Having heard an earful from aggravated Arizonans-before, during and after the 117-103 Laker loss-I would have to agree with them that the 1989-90 Phoenix Suns are the most magnificent basketball team ever assembled, not only in the history of the NBA, but since the dawn of mankind.

They couldn't possibly choke now.

Wow, what a ball team this is! I could hardly believe how good Phoenix looked, although my seat in Veterans Memorial Coliseum was up pretty high, and I had trouble seeing the game through all those championship banners hanging from the ceiling.

What I did see was impressive. These Suns can play, and I will take issue with any California airhead who says they cannot.

For starters, there is Tom Chambers, who lit up the Lakers for 34 points. Or "T.C.," as the Suns' radio guy calls him.

(He also calls Kevin Johnson "K.J." and Eddie Johnson "E.J.," which makes me wonder if he also calls the President of the United States "G.B." and makes me happy that he doesn't regularly broadcast the games of Vlade Divac or Byron Scott.)

Chambers turned the Lakers every which way but loose. He made left-handed lay-ups and running left hooks. He swished right-handed three-pointers and rattled home twisting back-door dunks. He faked out J.W. and M.T. and E. (M.) J. and A.C.G. and every other Laker he encountered.

"I was stronger inside today than I had been in a long time," Chambers said.

Sure was. In Game 2, the Suns used underarm deodorants that were stronger and more effective than T.C. He got four baskets all night, and pulled down one more rebound than a dead man.

In Game 3, however, Chambers was one gun of a Sun who started out hot and got hotter. He also played the whole game with a smile on his face, even on the free-throw line. I guess if Michael Jordan can stick his tongue out, Tom Chambers can bare his teeth.

"We needed a win and I hadn't been playing well," Chambers said. "Kevin (Johnson) and I are All-Stars, and the last two games you couldn't have picked us out of a crowd in a million years."

Now, now, T.C. Don't be too tough on yourself. People here don't like it when anyone is critical of the Phoenix Suns, even a Phoenix Sun.

"Tom's a great player," Laker Coach Pat Riley said. "He was hitting his jumpers and he was making his drives."

As opposed to Jeff Hornacek, who was making his jumpers and hitting his drives.

Hornacek scored 29 points. In Games 1 and 2, he scored a total of 30. He was so ordinary in those two contests, that the announcer wouldn't even use his initials. I think the Lakers should try returning to a dependable old tactic against Hornacek in Game 4-like guarding him.

For a half, the Lakers were OK. "Very efficient," to use Riley's description.

They even pulled out the old Michael Cooper Catches Rebound, Falls Down and Shoots Horizontal trick, which never fails when you're trying to snap out of a one-for-19 shooting slump.

[B]By the end, however, it was Phoenix that was pulling tricks out of its bag. Kevin Johnson even did the old Harlem Globetrotter free-throw bit, pretending to shoot the ball, then hanging onto it while those gullible Lakers lunged into the lane.

Did it seem to everybody back in California watching television that the Suns scored every trip down the floor? Seemed that way here, too. If I had known that the Suns never missed their shots when they played at home, I'd have picked them to win the NBA even sooner.

Between them, Mark West, Kurt Rambis, Dan Majerle, Eddie Johnson and Kenny Battle missed a total of four shots. Three of those guys don't even start. That's how great this unbelievably fabulous, undeniably wonderful, probably unbeatable Phoenix Sun team is.

Know how many points Phoenix's starters scored Saturday? 101.

The entire Laker squad scored 103. And that counted Cooper's goofy hoop.

"We epitomized what team basketball is all about," Kevin Johnson said.

That's Phoenix for you. It epitomizes team basketball. When Americans think of team basketball, then by God, they think of the Phoenix Suns.[/B]

Aw, shucks, Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons said. "We haven't accomplished anything yet. You have to brace for the Lakers every day, every hour and every minute. We haven't done anything yet."

No. Really? Go on. Be serious.

[QUOTE=Glove_20]1. Yeah and whats wrong with talking it to the hoop to get a high FG%. That still makes you a better scorer...I'd rather have a player that takes it to the hoop and puts the same amount of points on a higher FG% than low FG% with same points becaue of jump shot...

Bottom line, takiing it to the hoop, and getting a better FG%, is better and more effective than what Greer has done on the scoring end, and the numbers prove it.



2. I think you haven't mentioned it yet, or acknowledged it, but Kevin Johnson also is an excellent shooter. Not only did you have to stop him from penetrating and creating offense, you also had to watch out for his mid-range jumper.

Here are some quotes GMAT posted....

[B][I]"The fact that he can shoot and drive presents a problem, You can't play him just one way. You can't say, `I'll play him back and make him shoot the jumper,' because that's what he likes to do. You've got to get up on him and play him as tough as possible."[/I][/B]

-Byron Scott



[I][B]Many players and coaches believe Kevin Johnson is the quickest player in the league, especially off the dribble. His uncanny ability to penetrate puts constant pressure on opposing defenses, and Johnson has also become an excellent outside shooter.[/B][/I]

-Sports Article (NY Times) in 1989

[B][I]
Many players and coaches believe Kevin Johnson is the quickest player in the league, especially off the dribble. His uncanny ability to penetrate puts constant pressure on opposing defenses, and [U]Johnson has also become an excellent outside shooter[/U][/I][/B]

-Same article (NY Times) in 1989





Bottom line, not only was he really quick, he could also shoot that mid-range jumper.

He was a better scorer than Hal Greer.[/QUOTE]

More on K.J.'s jump-shooting ...

[B][I]Johnson Too Much for Clippers; Pro basketball: Guard has 33 points and 15 assists as Phoenix avoids season sweep with 103-92 victory.; [Home Edition]
Los Angeles Times (pre-1997 Fulltext). Los Angeles, Calif.: Mar 25, 1996. pg. 4[/I][/B]

The Clippers find it easier to beat the Phoenix Suns when Kevin Johnson isn't around.

Johnson ran past, around and through the Clippers for 33 points and 15 assists, scoring 15 in a big first quarter that carried the Suns to a 103-92 victory over the Clippers on Sunday.

The victory allowed the Suns to avoid the indignity of being swept in the season series by the Clippers.

In two of the first three matchups, the oft-injured Johnson sat out. And in the Suns' season-opening, 112-106 loss to the Clippers, Johnson did all he could with a season-high 39 points.
[B]
"Some players are really quick, but can't shoot. Some guys can shoot real well, but can't get around you," Clipper guard Terry Dehere said. "But KJ has the total package and he showed it tonight."[/B]

Charles Barkley added 21 points and 14 rebounds as the Suns reached the .500 mark for the 10th time (34-34) this season. Dehere had 17 points and Rodney Rogers 16 for the Clippers, who shaved a 20-point Sun lead to 95-87 on Loy Vaught's jump shot with 2:32 to play.

But Johnson made a 17-foot jump shot 22 seconds later and followed with two free throws to put the game out of reach.

"We're really trying to get over this hump before the playoffs come around, so we're pressing a little bit. But I think that's good," said Johnson, who is averaging 21 points and 10.2 assists in March. "We're playing with a little more sense of urgency."

Michael Finley had 11 points and John Williams and A.C. Green had 10 each for the Suns, who took the lead for good with a 17-0 run late in the first quarter.

Vaught had 14 points and eight rebounds for the Clippers, who never recovered after missing 11 of their first 12 shots.

The Clippers trailed by only one point, 10-9, when Malik Sealy made a 14-footer with 5:08 to play in the first quarter, but Johnson scored five points and dished out three assists over the next 3:44, with two free throws by Barkley capping the run for a 29-12 lead.

Credit: From Associated Press

[url]http://www.basketballreference.com/teams/boxscore.htm?yr=1995&b=19960324&tm=PHO[/url]

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855]Thing with this is every player from 35 and down has some flaw that keeps them that low. Something someone good with words who knows not to come off too crazy or aggressive could point out. For examples...Dave Cowens, bob Mcadoo, Pistol Pete, and Nique. Those are guys people might argue for in this range.

Cowens was arguably not the best player on his own team even as MVP. Hondo had insane numbers and got the love at the time from Boston. And Jojo White got him for a finals MVP too. Added to that he only had 5 healthy all star seasons.

Mcadoo had a brief prime and was a role player(important one but still) by the time he won anything important.

Pistol Pete never won anything period.

Nique would be called just a scorer who never led a team as close to a title as KJ and never beat a team as good as the showtime lakers KJ beat.


All of that is true. The guys outside the elite are there for a reason. They were great....but didnt do anything to seperate themselves like the true all time elites did.

Because of it they dont have much one can use to dismiss a guy like KJ who was well rounded, with great numbers, and won a good bit(for a non all time elite).

But to put him that high you have to go against a lot of the usual standards people rank players by. Have to dismiss MVPs....titles...guys who had crazy high peaks but got hurt...innovators...all nba teams...reputation.

KJ did juuuuuuuust enough to earn mention in that long list that comes after 30 but before 100 but to put him closer to 30 than 100 takes a lot of work and a strong desire to put him as high as possible with no concern for the greatness or respect owed to a lot of legends.

Its easier to say "KJ is top 30-40" than to explain "If hes top 30-40 how come Tim Hardaway/Mark Price/Chris Mullin arent when they were considered on the same level in their primes?"

Its the biggest problem with ranking modern(even kinda modern) players so high. There are always guys we remember who were considered just as good....but dont get that credit now.

[B]KJ is one of my favorite players of the 80s/90s but in all honesty....him at his peak vs Spre at his...Sprewell was probably considered the better player. I wouldnt say so. But in the 90s and late 80s KJ didnt seperate himself in the eye of the public from plenty of guys who nobody would dream of ranking this high.[/B][/QUOTE]

I don't know that people really thought that greatly of Sprewell, who was more infamous than famous. He received plenty of notoriety because he choked his coach and then landed in the New York market, but at best, he was a poor man's Mitch Richmond with a severe attitude problem. Sprewell was an inefficient player with a career .425 field goal percentage and a career assists-to-turnovers ratio of just 1.50:1.00.

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855]Top 40 all time is a bit much. You gotta throw him over guys like Dave cowens who led 68 win team, 2 title teams, and won MVPs. It can be argued but only because when you get to 35-40 a lot of the players were never super elite. Hes in a really really really wide range of guys on the same basic level(everyone from like 40-70 are still legends and hall of famers). his biggest supporters will put him closer to 40 and others closer to 70. but its still the same basic level of player.

Isnt just a numbering issue. Top 5 is more ahead of top 30 than top 30 is ahead of top 60.[/QUOTE]
Are we talking on this list or on a real list...cuz we have KB8 on the list at like 20 already....Even Stockton I think is way too high on ISH's list...don't make me talk about Cousy..

[QUOTE=Chalkmaze]Thanks, you just made my point for me. KJ had much better overall talent to help him in the earlier years than Stockton had, eventually by around 95-96, the Jazz finally started to have a talented overall team, and John had a better supporting cast. That was why I wanted to see the rest of the stats which Glove was so sneaky to hide.[/QUOTE]
Didn't I already tell you that the Suns got Barkley in 1993. And were around equal in wins when both KJ and Stockton were in their peaks.


So I used their Peak numbers, and they were equal in wins around then. They were not even close to equal later in the 90s

ISH list has Elvin Hayes in the mid 30s I think. I mean real life.

Good job GMAT.

I just watched Game 2 of the 1993 NBA Finals on NBA TV. Kevin Johnson had a total of 4 points and 2 assist. But that wasn't the only stinker, a game before that he put up an amazing 11 and 5. The great Frank Johnson took played for KJ a lot down the stretch.


B.J. Armstrong had more then him in game 1 (16) and game 2 (8).

[QUOTE=L.Kizzle]I just watched Game 2 of the 1993 NBA Finals on NBA TV. Kevin Johnson had a total of 4 points and 2 assist. But that wasn't the only stinker, a game before that he put up an amazing 11 and 5. The great Frank Johnson took played for KJ a lot down the stretch.


B.J. Armstrong had more then him in game 1 (16) and game 2 (8).[/QUOTE]

He was facing injury problems and just got off a tough matchup with Gary Payton and the Sonics in a 7 game series. But yeah, he had some injuries...


The rest of the series he finished:

45.6% 22.0ppg 7.8apg

Not bad...

[QUOTE=L.Kizzle]I just watched Game 2 of the 1993 NBA Finals on NBA TV. Kevin Johnson had a total of 4 points and 2 assist. But that wasn't the only stinker, a game before that he put up an amazing 11 and 5. The great Frank Johnson took played for KJ a lot down the stretch.


B.J. Armstrong had more then him in game 1 (16) and game 2 (8).[/QUOTE]

Actually, in Game Two, K.J. scored 4 points with a team-high 6 assists, and in Game One he scored 11 points with 2 assists. But as "Glove" noted, for the remainder of the series (four more games), K.J. averaged [B]22.0 points (never fewer than 19), 7.8 assists, 4.0 rebounds, a .459 field goal percentage, and a .909 free throw percentage[/B].

[url]http://webuns.chez-alice.fr/finals/1993.htm[/url]

Johnson struggled early to adjust to a Chicago defense designed to suffocate him first and foremost, but eventually he came around and his defense momentously changed the series. I'll explain the story by copying an old post from another board momentarily.

But do you think that stars have never suffered poor games in the NBA Finals?
In Game One of the 2000 NBA Finals, Reggie Miller shot 1-16 (.063) from the field.

[url]http://big.chez-alice.fr/webuns/finals/2000.htm[/url]

By the way, Gary Payton didn't fare much better than K.J. in the first two games of his own Finals experience versus Chicago. In Games One and Two of the 1996 NBA Finals, Payton averaged 13.0 points and 4.5 assists on 12-32 shooting from the field (.375), 1-7 on threes (.143), and 1-4 from the free throw line (.250).

[url]http://webuns.chez-alice.fr/finals/1996.htm[/url]

Or examine John Stockton's periodic struggles versus the Bulls in the NBA Finals. In the '97 Finals, Stockton had his moments in Games and Four, when he averaged 17.0 points, 12.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.0 steals, shooting .524 from the field. But after the Jazz tied the series 2-2 and the championship hung in the balance, Stockton averaged just 13.0 points and 5.0 assists over Games Five and Six, and he averaged just 13.5 points and 6.0 assists over the series' final two contests in Chicago.

[url]http://webuns.chez-alice.fr/finals/1997.htm[/url]

In the '98 Finals, Stockton started brilliantly with 24 points, 8 assists, and 2 steals in Game One, shooting 9-12 (.750) from the field and 6-7 (.857) from the free throw line. But over the series' final five games, Stockton averaged just 6.8 points, shooting .405 from the field and .500 from the free throw line as the Jazz went 1-4 over that stretch.

[url]http://webuns.chez-alice.fr/finals/1998.htm[/url]

In his NBA Finals career in Games Five and Six, Stockton averaged a combined 10.5 points and 6.8 assists, cracking the 5-assist mark once in four tries, and shooting .472 from the field and .750 (6-8) from the foul line. In his NBA Finals career in Games Five and Six, K.J. averaged 22.0 points and 9.0 assists, shooting .471 from the field and 1.000 (12-12) from the free throw line.

How about Patrick Ewing, who shot .363 in the 1994 Finals (remember, as a seven-foot center)?

[url]http://webuns.chez-alice.fr/finals/1994.htm[/url]

And, hell, in Games Three, Four, and Five of the 1981 NBA Finals, Larry Bird combined to shoot .289 from the field (11-38) as Cedric Maxwell garnered Finals MVP honors for the Celtics.

[url]http://webuns.chez-alice.fr/finals/1981.htm[/url]

Here's my old post discussing K.J. and the 1993 NBA Finals.

***

[Bill] Simmons is exaggerating and twisting matters. K.J. did struggle badly in the first two games of the NBA Finals at home versus the Bulls, averaging 7.5 points and 4.0 assists per game (while also averaging 4.5 turnovers and shooting a combined 6-21, or .286, from the field). Thanks in part to K.J.'s play, the Suns dropped both contests. However, Barkley also scuffled in Game One, shooting just 9-25 from the field (K.J. shot 4-13, although a couple of the misses came on attempted layups that Richard Dumas turned into putback slams, as you can see in the following footage).

[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtjHXwHDcLk[/url]

Ten years later, here's what Barkley told the[I] Arizona Republic [/I]about Game One.

[B]Realistically we lost the Finals in Games 1 and 2 (at home). None of us, myself included, had ever been through anything like that. Game 1 we were like a deer in the headlights. [/B]

[url]http://www.nba.com/suns/history/azcentral_barkley_030622.html[/url]

So to pin that loss on K.J. would just be to use him as a scapegoat. Actually, after Game One, Phoenix assistant coach Scotty Robertson noted that the Suns hadn't done enough to help Johnson (such as employing backcourt picks to free him up from B.J. Armstrong's defensive pressure). Here's a relevant newspaper excerpt:

[B][I]PRO BASKETBALL; The New Guard: Bulls' Armstrong Makes His Point BROWN, CLIFTON. New York Times. (Late Edition (East Coast)). New York, N.Y.: Jun 11, 1993. pg. B.7[/I][/B]

[B]But when Game 1 ended, the Bulls had beaten the Suns, 100-92, and Armstrong (16 points, 5 assists) had outplayed Johnson (11 points, 2 assists). Armstrong's baseline-to-baseline defense had harassed Johnson into one of his worst playoff games (4-for-13 shooting, 5 turnovers).

As both teams prepared for Game 2, Friday night in Phoenix, Armstrong had already forced the Suns to make adjustments.

"B. J. played a tremendous game," said Suns Assistant Coach Scotty Robertson. "And I've been told that B. J. was terrific against Mark Price in the Cleveland series -- had him frustrated.

"I've been here for five years, and the way everybody says you beat Phoenix is to take the ball out of Kevin Johnson's hands. That's not unusual -- we've seen it, he's seen it. But two things happened. B. J. did a better job, and we didn't give Kevin enough help. We can't allow B. J. to dog Kevin in the back court like that without helping him." [/B]

Five years ago, I re-watched much of Game Two on ESPN Classic. K.J. recorded 4 quick assists in the first quarter off penetration and then headed to the bench after picking up a couple fouls. From there, Barkley took over (42 points), and K.J. spent most of the game in foul trouble. Head coach Paul Westphal actually turned to "Fourth Quarter" Frank Johnson for part of the fourth period, and then K.J. checked back in and picked up his sixth foul, ending his game. His 6 assists and 3 steals led the team, but he only scored 4 points while recording 6 fouls and 4 turnovers in 32 minutes. In a sense, K.J. did "melt down" during the first two games of the 1993 NBA Finals.

Over the final four contests, however, he averaged 22.0 points (never scoring fewer than 19), 7.8 assists, and 4.0 rebounds, shooting .459 from the field and .909 from the free throw line. In other words, he played like an All-Star on offense and his defense momentously changed the series. For Game Three, Westphal switched K.J., instead of Dan Majerle, onto Michael Jordan. K.J. curtailed most of Jordan's driving game and gave him less space for his face-up jumpers, hence keeping him outside the lane and forcing him into tougher shots. The result was that Jordan missed 18 of his last 27 field goal attempts in Game Three as Phoenix pulled out a historic triple-overtime victory. Leading the way had been K.J., for not only had he harassed Jordan (Air scored 44 points but needed 43 field goal attempts to do so), but Johnson scored 25 of his own points, delivered 9 assists, and grabbed 7 rebounds. You can see a few of his plays here:

[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkbK3wAvvb0&mode=related&search=[/url]

Most impressively of all, K.J. set an NBA Finals record with 62 minutes played, while guarding Jordan virtually the whole time and running the point. He didn't come out of the game until about 20 seconds remained in the third overtime and the Suns had the crucial road victory safely in the bag.

K.J. continued to perform ably from there, averaging 21.0 points and 7.3 assists over the final three contests and again guarding Jordan in Games Five (which the Suns won) and Six (which they infamously lost on the John Paxson three-pointer, 99-98). With K.J. covering Jordan, the team's defense held up and the Suns kept the Bulls under 100 points in both contests. Late in Game Six with K.J. about to shoot a couple free throws, Marv Albert stated, "Kevin Johnson coming up strong, once again."

[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vB8kG1ZY3vs&mode=related&search=[/url]

So, yes, K.J. struggled early against the Bulls' championship-tested defensive schemes, but eventually he adjusted and came through commendably over the last four contests, making huge contributions on both ends of the floor. Here are the box scores for the series, and remember that Barkley also disappointed in Game One by shooting 36% from the field (as the power forward) in 25 attempts, another fact that Simmons ignores. Barkley also shot 39% from the field in Game Six in 18 attempts, and obviously, you'd like your MVP power forward to be at 40% or higher. That's not to say that Sir Charles was at fault (he played terrifically overall), but to simply heap all the praise on him and cite K.J. as the reason for the Finals loss is fallacious.

[url]http://webuns.chez-alice.fr/finals/1993.htm[/url]

What people have to remember is that the Bulls originally designed their defense to stop K.J., not Barkley. When K.J. would cross-over early in that series, it seemed like a wall of red gel would shift across the floor to try and suffocate him. As much as some folks care to believe that the '93 Suns were simply Barkley's team and that everyone else was an ancillary presence, before the start of the Finals, Phil Jackson thought differently. Jackson said that Chicago needed to shut off the Suns' engine, and that that was K.J. Indeed, the "Zen Master" claimed that the Bulls needed to replace that "Corvette engine" with a "Volkswagen engine." Here's another newspaper excerpt noting how Chicago would target K.J. most of all, especially because in March 1993, he'd posted the highest single-game assists total of any Bull opponent that year.
[B][I]
BASKETBALL; Bulls' Ethic in the Finals: Work Those Suns Weary MORAN, MALCOLM. New York Times. (Late Edition (East Coast)). New York, N.Y.: Jun 8, 1993. pg. B.11[/I][/B]

[B]He understands how they think. He knows how to make them uncomfortable. Now that B. J. Armstrong's role with the Chicago Bulls has expanded to include a starting spot and specific defensive assignments, he can draw upon his previous basketball life as an outstanding offensive player at the high school and college level.

Armstrong's 3-point shooting percentage of .453 led the National Basketball Association this season. But it is his role within Chicago's defensive structure, and his ability to share in the attempted containment of Phoenix guard Kevin Johnson, that could become a central factor in the championship series against the Suns, which begins Wednesday night in Phoenix.

"That's where they overwhelm us," said Phil Jackson, the Chicago coach, when asked about the point-guard position, and Johnson's impact.

"It's mainly his will," Jackson said. "He has great will. Stubbornness, almost, in that he's going to penetrate the defense. It can get him in trouble. It can make him great. We have to find the first and prevent the latter."

... Johnson May Be the Key

For all of Charles Barkley's overwhelming power and outrageous boldness, Johnson's creative playmaking role makes him a focal point. His 16 assists against the Bulls on March 30, with Armstrong, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippin [sic] and John Paxson taking turns against him, were the most against Chicago this season and an important part of a 113-109 Phoenix victory.

... Armstrong said the task of dealing with Johnson was far from a one-on-one matchup, but he understands his importance.

"After this series, I just want him to know that I'm going to be there," Armstrong said. "I don't know how many points he's going to score. I don't know how many assists he's going to get. You can't stop a guy. You just make him work for every single thing he gets. Every crossover dribble. Every rebound. Every steal.

"I know I'm not going to stop him. He gets the ball too much. Stopping a guy is impossible. But limiting how many times he can touch the ball, making him dribble 90 feet instead of just walking it up and picking him up at halfcourt, those are things that add up in a seven-game series." [/B]

Sure enough, the Bulls let Barkley go off for 42 in Game Two and yet still emerged with the victory. The guy that they'd wanted to dog was K.J., and early in the series, they did so expertly, especially since Johnson was foul-ridden in Game Two and was inclined to let Sir Charles dominate, anyway.

Simmons, however, seems to believe that K.J. played poorly for virtually the entire series, which is simply incorrect. In a column last spring, he actually wrote that K.J. didn't show up until Game Five of the '93 Finals. I don't know where he'd been during Game Three, but evidently it wasn't in front of a television set. That triple-overtime affair was arguably as epic and thrilling a contest as any in the history of the NBA Finals, and K.J.'s star burned brightly with his resilient, record-setting, marathon effort. Apparently, Simmons possesses no memory of the game or K.J.'s continuing effectiveness thereafter in the series.

That's why I detest Simmons, because he's a Hollywood entertainment writer who uses his soapbox on this web site to masquerade as a sports journalist. He should stick to comedy and stop trying to be a basketball analyst/historian, especially if he's going to botch or twist his facts. I actually wrote to him about this gaffe last year, but who knows if he read my e-mail. If you guys really want to set him straight on the true story, e-mail him with some of the truth, accompanied by the links that I've provided here. If he's flooded, the veracity may finally penetrate his thick skull.

[url]http://boards.espn.go.com/boards/mb/mb?sport=nba&id=pho&tid=911190&lid=10[/url]

[QUOTE=XxNeXuSxX]Good job GMAT.[/QUOTE]

Thanks. Hopefully some of the articles were intriguing historical reads for NBA fans, if nothing else.

[QUOTE=L.Kizzle][B]Glove, you say at KJ's peak he was better the Stock, Kidd, Nash, ect. But what seperates his peak from players like Fat Lever, Tim Hardaway or somebody like that?


Those guys had some pretty good 2-3 season stretches.[/B][/QUOTE]

[B]Fat Lever, 1987-1989 (three seasons):[/B] [I]19.2 points, 7.9 assists, .467 field goal percentage (16.8 FGA), .784 free throw percentage (4.1 FTA), 8.7 rebounds, 2.6 steals, 2.2 turnovers, 3.66:1.00 assists-to-turnovers, 37.7 minutes, 78.3 games.

The Denver Nuggets averaged 45.0 wins per regular season, reaching three Western Conference First Rounds and one Western Conference Semifinals.[/I]

[B]Kevin Johnson, 1989-1991 (three seasons): [/B][I]21.7 points, 11.3 assists, .507 field goal percentage (14.8 FGA), .854 free throw percentage (7.7 FTA), 3.8 rebounds, 1.7 steals, 3.7 turnovers, 3.07:1.00 assists-to-turnovers, 37.6 minutes, 77.3 games.

The Phoenix Suns averaged 54.7 wins per regular season, reaching three Western Conference First Rounds, two Western Conference Semifinals, and two Western Conference Finals. [/I]

[B]Tim Hardaway, 1991-1993 (three seasons): [/B][I]22.7 points, 10.0 assists, .463 field goal percentage (18.8 FGA), .771 free throw percentage (5.0 FTA), 4.0 rebounds, 2.2 steals, 3.3 turnovers, 3.04:1.00 assists-to-turnovers, 40.0 minutes, 76.3 games.

The Golden State Warriors averaged 44.3 wins per season, reaching two Western Conference First Rounds and one Western Conference Semifinals.[/I]

All three players enjoyed terrific three-year stretches, but K.J.'s was clearly the most effective and hence resulted in vastly greater (or more consistent) regular season and postseason success. On average, his teams won about ten more games per regular season and were a serious contender for the NBA Finals, twice reaching the Western Conference Finals. Hardaway's Warriors, conversely, didn't even reach the playoffs every year during his peak stretch, even though he was running with other scintillating scorers such as Mitch Richmond (for awhile) and Chris Mullin (remember "Run TMC"). In fact, in Hardaway's five full seasons in Golden State, the Warriors actually missed the playoffs in three of those years (60% of the time) and only won one playoff series (the 1991 Western Conference First Round versus San Antonio). In Hardaway's entire 13-year NBA career, his teams won a grand total of four playoff series, and one of those was primarily due to a brawl that wiped out virtually half the Knicks' roster in 1997.

Hardaway scored on the same prolific level as K.J., but he was much more inefficient from both the field and the free throw line. He required several more field goal attempts to score his points, he was more inconsistent as a shooter, and he didn't attack the basket as well or draw as many fouls. Hardaway also wasn't quite the playmaker that K.J. happened to be, although he was prolific. Still, K.J. averaged over an assist more per game during those three-year stretches, twice reaching 11.0 and once 12.0. Hardaway, conversely, never reached 11.0 assists per contest.

Lever obviously didn't measure up to K.J. and Hardaway as a scorer or a playmaker, and he, too, didn't compare to K.J. when it came to field goal and free throw percentage. He teamed with Hall of Famer Alex English in Denver (who scored more points in the decade of the 1980s than anyone else), along with other fine scorers such as Walter Davis and Michael Adams, but he couldn't consistently elevate his teams like K.J. because he wasn't the same caliber of scorer, shooter, or playmaker.

Lever and K.J. actually squared off in the 1989 Western Conference First Round, with Lever averaging 11.0 points, 9.5 assists, a .375 field goal percentage (12.0 FGA), a 1.000 free throw percentage (2-2, 1.0 FTA), 6.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals, and a 3.17:1.00 assists-to-turnovers. K.J., meanwhile, averaged 30.7 points, 13.0 assists, a .480 field goal percentage (16.7 FGA), a .935 free throw percentage (43-46, 15.3 FTA), 2.7 rebounds, 2.3 steals, 3.7 turnovers, and a 3.55:1.00 assists-to-turnovers ratio. Given those numbers, it shouldn't be surprising that the Suns swept the series, 3-0, averaging 122 points per game and scoring at least 130 in each of the last two. Denver, meanwhile, averaged 113.

Lever was a phenomenal rebounder, so a better comparison for him would be Jason Kidd. Kidd was the more prolific playmaker, but Lever at his peak was a superior scorer and field goal shooter.

When it comes to combining the three more important statistics for an elite playmaker, points, assists, and field goal percentage, three players stand out in NBA history: Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, and Kevin Johnson.

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855][url]http://www.sendspace.com/file/i0ttke[/url]

[url]http://youtube.com/watch?v=zqfRC9GEyYE[/url]

Not the highest quality at all points(and youtube doesnt help) but lets see you get 3 minutes of prime mostly pre Barkley Kevin Johnson footage. Its mostly from old NBA action tapes, a few home videos, and other sources. Left out the Bulls 93 title video footage. Wanted more of his pre injury days.

Now....

Hes one of the few to lead a team past a Magic Johnson led team when Magic was actually playing. Moses Malone, Bird, Jordan, Hakeem, and Kevin Johnson. Magic was hurt when they played the Pistons and got swept. Hamstring issue. Him and Magic are the only 20+ point 10+ assists 50% shooting players ever and both of them did it twice. Some choose to consider Tom Chambers the leader of those suns but its no different than Nash and Amare. Anyone giving Nash credit for the Suns should probably give KJ credit for his. Both had crazy talent to do what they did but not all talented teams come together so well..

Think these suns are great scorers? KJ was leading some of the best offensive teams anyone could hope to see. Hed led a 119ppg team one season. The brief "This day in history" clip in the video is from a game the Suns scored 173 points in regulation. One season they had 130 in 3 of the first 4 games of the season. Later that year they had 3 130+ point games in a 3 week stretch and dropped 138 points 3 days after the last of those. They topped 120 in 3 of the last 4 games of that season with a game of 141. They only went under 100 points in 3 games one season. Gave the warriors 154. They had 3 straight playoff games with over 130 points. KJ probably led the greatest offense of the last quarter century outside the early 80s Nuggets and Showtime(who never actually scored 119 a game as the Suns did).

When Nash went off in the 05 playoffs he had people saying it proved he was MVP. He put up 24 and 11 that playoff run. Kevin Johnson had long playoff runs(10 games or more 3 of them to the WCF) getting:

24/12
24/12(not a mistake he did it in 2 seasons)
27 and 10
25/9(shot 57% that run too)

And really he could have put up more assists but the Suns had an oldschool style of fastbreak. They didnt just run with the ball they broke out like wide recievers and had guys throwing full court outlet passes. In the video I showed clips from a Suns/heat game where Kevin did a lot of what im talking about. Get the rebound and toss it 80 feet for the layup or to a teammate who then gets the assist by hitting the open man. He might have averaged more assists if he kept the ball himself more on the break.

In the halfcourt he had a good bit of scoring responsibility. He didnt lead them in ppg but id say he was their best one on one scorer. [B]Bit of a TJ ford and Wade hybrid. Always willing to pass but he could get to the basket at will.[/B]

And his defense. He wasnt an elite defender but he was great on the ball when he had to be. Even guarded Michael Jordan pretty well at times even though the bigger(and all D team level defender) Majerle was on the team. List of current points you could throw on Jordan is not long.

Im not saying hes top 30-50 all time as a few do but he sure as hell wasnt worse than Steve Nash.

[IMG]http://www.nba.com/media/suns/kevin_johnson_190.jpg[/IMG]

Praise KJ.[/QUOTE]

Actually, when watching T.J. Ford this spring, I also thought that I saw a little K.J. in him, and then Wade does have that explosive quality, balanced by the mid-range jumper (although K.J.'s was better in my view).

Good call on Ford in particular.

Link's not working

[B]KJ was probably the best scoring pg in the 90s. He was a great passer also but he would force the scoring to much a bit when he could have been better as a 1st pass then score pg. He wasn't very durable and missed alot of games with the Suns in the Barkley years. In the 93 finals he played pretty bad but in the next two following play-off runs he played really well while Barkley was batteling injuries. If Reggie Miller, Jack Sikma, Rodman are in the HOF then he should also be in it.[/B]

One of the best 2nd options that MJ faced, along with peak 96' Kemp, McHale, Penny, and the all-time assists and steals leader (Stockton).. And guys like Daughtery or Dumars.

[QUOTE=3ball]One of the best 2nd options that [B]MJ [/B]faced, along with peak 96' Kemp, McHale, Penny, and the all-time assists and steals leader (Stockton).. And guys like Daughtery or Dumars.[/QUOTE]
u such a clown

[QUOTE=el_locoteee]The best PG in Suns History, sorry Nash unless you win a title for them, you are #2.[/QUOTE]

Nash couldn