NBA: "D’Antoni Ball Z" Pt. 1

Mike D’antoni deserves his flowers for being an innovator, an offensive genius, a trailblazer, a pioneer… Too much? Maybe, but honestly no other coach can claim stake in how modern NBA offenses are ran today more than D'antoni. Throwing out the phrase “single handedly” might be giving D'antoni too much credit but the evidence is too jarring to ignore. Before we attempt to give D'antoni his well deserved praise we have to cover actual news that after four successful, yet unfulfilling seasons with Houston, D’antoni resigned on his own terms, while Daryl Morey’s job is still safe according to owner Tilman Fertitta. That's a real head scratcher.

From the outside looking in it seems as though the ordeal came down to the “it's not you, it's me” routine made popular by Seinfeld’s George Costanza with D’antoni taking on the role of Costanza saying, “if it's anybody it’s me." Houston has very little appealing assets to trade with James Harden most likely being untouchable, PJ Tucker, while serviceable in spurts, is much older than you'd like him to be. Robert Covington was a godsend, Eric Gordon is often injured and or struggles with consistency so that leaves Austin Rivers and Russell Westbrook.Rivers has a player option of $2.37 which he’ll most likely opt out of and test the market. Knowing how Morey has operated in the past, Rivers is probably gone.

Westbrook's massive contract and inefficiency makes him a hard sell but he is a star and stars run the league. Someone will pay for Westbrook or Houston can choose to run it back with much of the core still intact.D’antoni has a system that requires players with specific skills to run but it's up to the general manager to go out and look for those players. Although D'antoni has the highest winning percentage in Rockets history, Houston never reached the Finals to compete for a championship. With an offense and defense catered specifically to James Harden’s strengths and weaknesses, but with no hardware to show for it, I’d imagine that would make any coach want to chunk the deuces.

Now back to the main point of this article.

In no way did Mike D’antoni invent his famed up-tempo style of basketball which utilizes spread-out, abundant high screen and rolls with a heavy reliance on free throws, layups and three pointers; but he did plant the seeds for how teams operate several years after much success with the Steve Nash-led Phoenix Suns. In D'antoni's first full season with Phoenix, his ball club held a 62-20 record, Nash won his first MVP award, Amar’e Stoudemire and Shawn Marion were selected as All-Stars, and D'antoni won his first Coach of the Year award. No one realized what was actually happening but in hindsight, that was the theoretical shift in how the NBA game would be played in the near future.

In 2004, the average amount of 3-pointers made and attempted was an astonishing, albeit lowly 5.6 made versus 15.8 attempts per game. Today? If your team is only taking 16 threes a game you might as well put up the “for sale” sign right now because there's no way that team would be competitive. But during that time, what Phoenix was doing was essentially revolutionizing the game. The Suns made 9.5 3-pointers per game which was 1.6 more 3-pointers made than the second best Toronto Raptors at 7.9 3-pointers made per game. To put that number of 1.6 in perspective the difference between the Suns and the Raptors was the difference between the Raptors and the eleventh best Kings, who only connected on 6.3 3-pointers per game.

That's not to say teams didn't shoot threes way back then. As an in denial Pistons fan, I remember screaming at Rasheed Wallace for taking threes at the top of the key when I felt he should’ve been closer to the basket taking mid-range jumpers. In my mind Wallace was settling when really 3-pointers are shots you want. Who knew? D'antoni knew! A year prior to the Suns dominance, the Thunder (formerly known as the Supersonics) were in a similar predicament as the Suns were in shooting - what seemed like a ton of threes - while the rest of the league took long range shots when their other options were well defended. But the difference between Phoenix and Seattle - I mean Oklahoma City - was pace and offensive rating.

D'antoni's offense was dubbed “seven seconds or less” during the Suns' heyday for their willingness to run before defenses could set. Nash would lead the break before receiving a high step up screen (screens are much much higher today) at the top of key from Amar’e before hitting Stoudemire for the roll, either pulling up for a mid range jumper or finding any number of shooters in Raja Bell, Boris Diaw, Jason Richardson, Joe Johnson, Tim Thomas or Marion from beyond the arc. Shoot threes and shoot often. More possessions means more chances to score. That's really just the simplified version of what happened but the Suns utilized player and ball movement and space in search of the most efficient shot and it worked.

For it’s time, it was revolutionary but now it's simply the standard.

Prior to 2004 teams played slow, isolation heavy basketball on the wing or with centers and forwards facing up to the basket. The Pistons and Spurs were among the league’s elite but were also two of the slowest teams in terms of pace. Offenses relied heavily on positions and mid range jumpers were considered exceptional. To speed up tempo in Phoenix, D’antoni abandoned the traditional two big style with the center clogging up the paint for an athletic versatile big in Stoudemire, who could block shots and dive to the rim and moved 6’7 Marion to the four spot who became the prototypical “3&D” player. Johnson even logged major minutes at small forward thought the '05 season.

The Suns played small before small ball was a coined phrase.

Next time on “D'antoni Ball Z," we’ll look at how D’antoni helped inadvertently mold the Warriors into championship contenders and a look back at how the Rockets faired over his four-year tenure and why the team failed.

Photo Credit: Draft Kings.