Suns notebook: D'Antoni to stick with his current rotation

Fans at US Airways Center imploring Suns coach Mike D'Antoni to expand his rotation to include guard D.J. Strawberry and big man Brian Skinner can save their breath - the coach won't be going beyond his starters, Leandro Barbosa, Boris Diaw and newcomer Gordan Giricek.

Fourth quarter is music to Utahs ears as Phoenix goes flat

SLIDESHOW: View photos from the game

When asked when he planned to extend his bench at Friday's shootaround, D'Antoni was clearly irked.

"So I don't want to play Steve (Nash), I want to play D.J.?," D'Antoni said. "I'm getting ticked (at the questions) because our starters play less minutes than anybody in the league. And if we play our starters less than their starters, you usually don't win.

"If (New Orleans guard) Chris Paul is on the floor and he's playing 40 minutes a game, I've got to have the MVP (Nash) out there or we don't win. The object is to win, it's not to play everybody and have a good time and have everybody go home friends. The object is to win."

D'Antoni also isn't interested in shortening the minutes of Barbosa or Diaw, who have been inconsistent much of the season, anymore than the starters.

"People have issues with Leandro and Boris?" he asked. "L.B. was the Sixth Man of the Year last year. If you're a starter and a main contributor on this team, you're going to play 30-35 minutes. But I guess you're supposed to play them 25 minutes and let the 12th man play? It's not going to work."

BELL FINDS THE RANGE

Raja Bell defies any critics to point out the shots he's supposedly been passing up while the Suns have been struggling.

"I'll watch the tape with anyone and be interested to see where I passed up shots," Bell said. "There might be one or two when I'm just not feeling it at the time ... but I'm looking for them, believe me."

Bell saw a few more on Friday night, hitting five of his nine 3-point attempts and scoring 19 points - his highest total in almost a month. It didn't keep the Suns from falling to Utah, but it might pay off down the road.

The Suns are 8-0 when Bell scores at least 20 points. And while one more point wouldn't have toppled the Jazz, Phoenix needs production from the outside to keep defenses honest. Bell said he's still adjusting to the offense with Shaquille O'Neal and without Shawn Marion, and the lack of spacing means less time to shoot.

"(The shots) aren't going to be as wide open, so I'm trying to get used to setting quicker, getting it up quicker," Bell said. "Before, I might have another (3-point shooter) in the corner to pass to. Now, I might have to shoot those. But the whole offense is a work in progress.

"I'm going to shoot when I'm open. Some people might think I err on the side of caution but one thing I'd like people to say about me when I'm done is that I wasn't a guy who forced stuff or took bad shots."

WILLIAMS SHINES

The Suns had no answers for Utah guard Deron Williams, who produced 25 points on 11-of-18 shooting and dished out 15 assists to get scorers Mehmet Okur (25 points, four 3-pointers) and Carlos Boozer (23 points) going. The big three for the Jazz produced 73 of the 126 points.

Williams outplayed Nash, who was also strong with 17 points and 15 assists, passing Derek Harper for 17th on the all-time assist list with 6,588.

"He outplayed me the last matchup we had (Dec. 12 in Phoenix) and I remember things like that," Williams said. "I definitely have fun playing against Steve. He's the best point guard in the league for a couple of years, along with Jason Kidd as guys I respect. I hope to have a career like he's had. Two MVPs? What more can you say about him?"

BONUS SHOTS

The Suns have now lost three straight games at home for the first time in more than a year - they lost three straight to Utah, Atlanta and Chicago from Feb. 3-11 of last year. ... The Suns were delayed in becoming the ninth team in NBA history to reach 1,800 wins. Phoenix will be the fourth-fastest team to reach that number, behind the Lakers, Spurs and Celtics. ... O'Neal's 18 rebounds Wednesday in Denver was the most he's had in a game since grabbing 21 on Nov. 12, 2004 his sixth game as a member of the Miami Heat. ... Utah has now beaten the Suns six times in the past eight meetings, and three of the past four in Phoenix.

Suns spots

Did you see that? The Suns have now lost six of nine games with Shaquille O'Neal in the lineup, even after he produced a Phoenix-high 20 points to go with seven rebounds and two blocks.

Player of the game: Deron Williams controlled the game all night, produced 25 points and 15 assists and got the Jazz either a basket or the shot they needed at all the critical points.

Unsung hero: Kyle Korver had 14 of Utah's 41 fourth-quarter points, hitting all three of his field goals and all seven free throws which were too much for the Suns to overcome.

Thumbs up: Amaré Stoudemire was unstoppable on offense with 37 points on 12-of-6 shooting with eight rebounds. But he also had six of Phoenix's 18 turnovers and was often the player exposed defensively by the Jazz.

Thumbs down: Can it be anything else? The Suns can't stop anyone right now. Not a soul. Utah hit some big shots in its 41-point fourth quarter, but there were plenty of bad switches, horrible pick-and-role efforts and just plain silly mistakes to help fill the boxscore as well.