The Phoenix Suns’ gift to their fans came a day late of Christmas Day as they edged the Memphis Grizzlies at home Tuesday, 99-97, thanks to a buzzer-beating dunk from Suns center Tyson Chandler.
With the game tied 97-97 and just 0.6 seconds remaining on the clock, Suns forward Dragan Bender threw an inbound lob pass at Chandler, who caught the leather for the game-winning jam. While Bender and Chandler executed the play to perfection, it wouldn’t have been possible without the tip Triano gave his players in a prior timeout.
Speaking with reporters following the game, Triano revealed that he’s kept that play in his back pocket for 15 years before finally seeing an opportunity to use it on Tuesday. It’s not actually the play per se that he’s kept secret for a long time, but an obscure rule that he let the Suns exploit in the end game.
Suns interim coach Jay Triano on the game-winner: "I've had that [play] for about 15 years … I've tried to keep it a secret, but it's not a secret anymore." https://t.co/zC2ljOx5n8
— Yahoo Sports NBA (@YahooSportsNBA) December 27, 2017
“You cannot goaltend a ball that isn’t gonna count, so I told our guy [Bender] to shoot the ball in the basket, and all Tyson has to do is touch it on the way down, or grab the rim and have it hit your knuckle and go in.”
I bet now many coaches know of the rule either, but now that the “secret” is out, expect teams to design plays with that rule in mind in the future.
Also, maybe the Suns management should just sign Jay Triano to a full-time contract.
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