Suns Lock Barbosa

The Phoenix Suns decided to forgo the handcuffs and straight jacket today as they persuaded Leandro Barbosa to stay in the valley for five years and $32 million. Leandro is so long and he's getting so good at protecting the ball and finishing too. Lets see if his defense can improve, but as a compliment to Raja Bell, he fits great. Great news, but what about Diaw? Management hasn't yet been able to come to a deal with Boris. He's probably on the French Riveria anyways. Barbosa is going to really step up his game in the next few years because I think he will have had enough time to develop and play consistantly at this level. It seemed to me that in the beginning the language barrier hampered his progress and only until he became acclimated to life in the NBA was he able to really make strides. He has had flashes of extremely impressive play this past season and stepped up his game through the playoffs, check this choice bootleg:



The video was just a teaser as the true analysis of the Brazilian Blur's game came in the form of comments below the mix. Such rich and insightful observations as

Rongotai (2 months ago)
Starbosa baby !!

rdm2 (3 weeks ago)
Clocking in at 2:28, this mix would be 5 mins for any other player, cause Barbosa is so amazingly fast on his feet that he literally shortens the video time by 3 minutes!

Priceless. But the best character analysis about the man came from another post which confirms my theory about certain people having the unique ability to carry an infinite number of nicknames.

AMS323113 (2 weeks ago)
Hell yeaaa Bravosa Bravosa! Hail the Barbosa

Not only is Barbosa good, he's extremely likeable which is great to have in a player who will be on your roster for a long period. From a fans perspective, the worst thing about following a franchise is how often the roster changes. It's hard to really get behind a team when you are meeting them for the first time each Fall. When a team carries the same players for an extensive period you really develop a bond with them and thats a huge part of the game. I am so glad the Suns are opting for this path rather than taking the path more followed in a rotating roster. At least for this season. 'Cause if any of the team fails, we got to get rid of them.

When is management going to come to terms with Boris? I know he has been busy as captain of Les Bleus so it may not get settled until after the World Championships.Oh and by the way, the US stomped Puerto Rico in a World Championship friendly scrimmage, expect more of this in the coming months.