Nash is Key to Road Improvement

The Suns' defensive flaws and rebounding troubles showed the most on the road last season. They sputtered in crunch time, if they had not already been crunched from the opening tip.

The Suns, who begin a four-game Eastern swing tonight in Philadelphia, addressed their woeful 11-30 road record in the off-season. They signed Steve Nash.

"I've got really smart since I've got Steve Nash with the ball," coach Mike D'Antoni said. "That'll help. He'll be the guy closing out games. I'd expect we've gotten a lot better at it, and we haven't even done it yet."

Phoenix is going to have to be a .500 team on the road to meet its goal of 50 wins, unless it puts up the gaudy home records of the early 1990s.

This trip will include Philadelphia tonight and New Jersey, minus Jason Kidd, on Saturday. Phoenix will have two days off in Chicago before playing the lowly Bulls on Tuesday and closing the trip at Cleveland on Wednesday.

"That's what is fun in this league - trying to win on the road," Nash said. "It's a great feeling. You just have to be tough and go for it and not be afraid. You've got to be balanced with playing smart and playing to win."

Me first

Anyone who thought it was odd that Amaré Stoudemire was taken out of the game first on Wednesday probably did not see that he asked for it after getting worn out in the first 5:20.

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For the fans

Yuta Tabuse was overwhelmed by the crowd's response to his historic moment Wednesday, when he became the NBA's first Japanese player. To get the fans even more excited, he said he intentionally went hard into a pick set by Boris Diaw, who is a foot taller than he is.

"I was waiting, waiting all night," Tabuse said. "I was ready. When coach called my name, that was the best moment."

Free Throws

D'Antoni said he had not settled on a starting lineup for tonight, but "I think about it every second," adding that the intensity was way up at Thursday morning's practice.