Making a Case For Marcus

In this first leg of the season I've heard a lot of negative rumblings about Marcus Banks' play. Many Suns fans feel like the Banks pickup was a poor move and that we should have drafted one of the talented rookies that came out of the most recent draft class. Although many of the rookies that we could have picked up are making a case of their own recently, expecially at the Suns' expense, I stand by the Coach and organization's decision.

First off, it seems like the decision not to draft a PG has been biting us in the ass lately. First Marcus Williams just goes off on us after we plowed through the Nets' big three. Then Portland's Sergio Rodriguez, who we drafted and traded to the Blazers, tried to show us what uptempo ball was really about when he got the chance to play. But, the fact is these young players had the green light of the Autobahn after their respective teammates got blown out. They didn't have to run an offense, they didn't have to play within the team's gameplan, they were out there in garbage time of a blowout loss when the Suns players were already done playing. How could you not get 30 points in this situation?

Mike D'Antoni has publicly stated that he is not in the business of developing rookies, he's in the business of winning championships. He would much rather have a player with actual NBA experience. Well as it turns out, Marcus' league experience was playing for bad teams with very different styles from the Suns. Marcus is still a very young player, but not virgin young. He will need some time to understand the Suns gameplan so well that it is instinctual. He doesn't yet have the highest basketball I.Q., but like Leandro, he will learn how to function in this offense. Nobody is asking Banks to be Steve Nash but he probably feels a ton of pressure to do so. Banks just needs to go out there and play the game he KNOWS how to play and leave the playmaking to Steve, Boris, and now, Barbosa. Yet, there is one thing that cannot be taken from Marcus that cannot be taught: genetics.

Marcus Banks' athleticism and upside (nice buzzwords huh?) are the caliber of a lottery draft pick. He has an incredible combination of strength and speed for a point guard. With the right direction from Suns staff I believe we will get to see the most from Marcus in the future. He has shown some flashes of brilliance but he has also been, like his minutes, inconsistant. It seems to me that Coach Mike wants to get his core of starters rolling and getting wins before he works with the rest of the rotation players. Marcus may need some time to just watch and learn the Suns style before he is consistantly productive. In my opinion, Marcus is a HUGE upgrade to the backup point guard position and I feel that in the future he is going to be a stud.

Marcus' Attributes:

• Lightning quick, can blow past his defender at will, finishes well at the rim with contact.
• Great defender, very strong, can defend players much bigger than him, quick hands, plays passing lanes well, comes up with steals and initiates fast breaks.
• Good shooting mechanics, not a great shooter but his form is there, once he finds his rhythm and confidence in this system he can be a great shooter.
• Adequate passer, doesn't make highlight reel passes but makes the easy ones, once he develops better court chemistry with his teammates his playmaking will improve.
• Very explosive and athletic.
• Great character, he has accepted a lesser role than he could have had for the opportunity to play with a great team. In the future I can see him having a major role on this team.