Time to figure it out
So the buzz word about Suns fans is we're whiners. We're obsessed with almosts. It's been 40 years with tons of talent and no title. A fan who can stay committed even through a fraction of that time (Danny Manning's knee, Mario Elie's corner 3, McDyess goes back to Denver, Kidd for Marbury, Joe Johnson's face, Raja's calf, Robert Horry) becomes a sharp observer of their team. Despite the team's 23-10 record, the team doesn't look right.
The Suns got a healthy dose of crappy teams after the loss to the Lakers and Amare Stoudemire backed up some strong words about defense and his own play with some excellent numbers against some decent big men. The result was four straight Suns wins and a temporary hold on the number one seed in the West.
@ Clippers: 30 pts, 15 reb, 4 blk
vs Clippers: 28 pts, 10 reb, 3 blk- clutch baskets clinch win
@ Sacramento: 31 pts, 17 reb, blk
vs Seattle: 34 pts, 11 reb, 3 blk
Then Saturday versus New Orleans, the team plays poorly in the fourth and ends up losing a game they had control of. Stoudemire wasn't in the flow offensively and despite a decent night (17 pts, 8 reb, 5 blk) wasn't a factor and got exposed in the pick n roll. The team was missing Raja Bell so the guard rotation was a little different but the team looked disjointed in the second half. Shawn Marion was a nonfactor as well. Strange but the team can't seem to close against good opponents.
There's a piece in the AZ Republic about chemistry issues on the team. Sure there have been plenty of teams that have lulls and struggle but when it happens on a team expected to contend, it's troublesome. Especially in the wake of the report earlier this week that the team will make no roster moves this season.
Toss in the fact Amare missed practice Sunday and showed some frustration in his postgame comments for the 2nd straight time after a loss- I think we all know there's a backlash coming. The numbers don't lie though, when the Suns feed the beast, they win. When Amare gets touches on offense, he plays harder on defense and posts huge games. I used to think he was a potential cancer but now I just want the guy to dominate because the team is obviously flawed and his big games give them the best chance to win.
Looking at how the good Sacramento teams faded away and how Dallas panicked and let Nash go, they never could find a counter for Shaq or Tim Duncan. That doesn't mean a guy to shut those players down (doesn't happen- even Russell never really shutdown Wilt) but a guy to match the essential interior production. In this offense with so many good shooters and a great point guard- Stoudemire should be leading the league in scoring.
It seems strange but this team has all the conventional basketball talent necessary to contend but seems reluctant to win with things like depth, defense and feeding the post consistently. As the team repeatedly gets exposed, the second guessing starts. Every time Boris Diaw gives up a layup passing out for a three... Tall guys watching as the teams gives up yet another offensive rebound... Marcus Banks, Alando Tucker and DJ Strawberry not even sniffing the floor unless it's a blowout...
Is the so-called "brain trust" butting heads? Robert Sarver has handcuffed Steve Kerr because of the luxury tax but Kerr won three of his five titles on teams with arguably the best role players in the modern era. However the role players the Suns are overpaying, D'Antoni doesn't play.
So what is wrong with this team? The front office, coaching staff and players all seem to have a different agenda. The league has taken notice and teams are pouncing on their weaknesses. It's the fans who have to sit back and watch and hope these Suns aren't flaming out.
Labels: Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix Suns
posted by Hersey @ 9:49 PM
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Something *is* terribly wrong, and it's all the worse because the exact state of the Suns' chemistry and personal agendas is enigmatic. I can never guess exactly who should be traded. Obviously not Nash, Stoudemire or Bell. It's difficult to trade Marion now because the rebounding is already so weak. Barbosa is too irreplaceable. That leaves Boris Diaw.
Diaw makes himself an easy target because he seems like he doesn't enjoy playing basketball. How many 6'9" guys refuse to attack the rim? He might be the easiest guy to guard in the league and when you look at his body language- it's like he doesn't care. $9 million for the 7th man. Wow.
Yeah, I'm with you on your whole premise. I recognize (and remember) all those "moments" you cited--there seems to be something not quite right about this team, they're good, but they're not the title threat they seemed to be the last couple of years--the Amare-less 05-06 team was much tougher.
The irony is that the team really should be much better than all of those, and, at times, what we see on the court backs that up. Amare is healthy, Nash is still dominant, Barbosa is improved, Skinner is playing and giving good solid minutes, Hill has been tremendous, Marion continues to be one of the best all-around talents in the L, etc-the Suns are leading the league in blocks, of all things!
Could be just jealousy at the fact that Suns fans are looking up at Boston and Detroit, to be honest I can't quite put my finger on it. At some level it won't really matter until the play-offs start, and then they'll either have the juice they need or they won't--I suppose until then we can enjoy the 60-win pace and hope for a long winning streak or 2 in the meanwhile.
Is anyone wondering why Boris Diaw hasn't been traded? I'll tell you one reason: Base-year compensation contract. I've been fooling around with the ESPN Trade Machine, and he's very difficult to trade because of BYC.
These ideas worked out, though.
1)The Suns get at least one big man, possibly two, by trading Shawn Marion to the Denver Nougats for Marcus Camby and either Steven Hunter, or Linas Kleiza and, strictly for salary matching, Chucky Atkins.
2)Diaw, Marcus Banks (sorry, Banks) and Eric Piatkowski to the Nuggets for Camby.
--Josh
Clarification: Camby and Hunter, or Camby, Kleiza and Atkins.
Denver ain't giving up Camby and I doubt he wants to leave. The trouble with trying to get bigger is there are so few skilled or even serviceable big men in the league. This is a bad example but the Lakers traded Caron Butler for Kwame Brown. Think about that for sec.
The main reason Boris hasn't been traded is other teams have scouts and League Pass. They can see what a dud Boris has become. Taking on his crappy contract and giving up a big who actually plays big is unlikely... unless we want a few Knicks.
I liked what I saw last night as the team actually played physical and had a lot of fire. Marcus Banks once again shows he should be getting minutes.
I just thought of this. You know who I wish Boris played like- Anthony Mason. He was the same size, had great handle and was a tough MF. I think the Suns coaches need to pull out some old Knicks DVDs to school Boris on how to play and cut his hair.
[sigh] I thought Camby might be too good to leave Denver. I've only known that it was unusual to trade a small for a big since about 2003, when commentators expressed surprise that Brevin Knight, who was briefly a Sun, got traded to the Wizards for center Jahidi White. I never knew why White couldn't stick here--I swear I once heard Al McCoy say "[Shaquille] O'Neal blocked by Jahidi White!"
And although this is a Suns blog, does anyone mind my mentioning the Celtics?--they're on my mind even more than usual (Celtics mystique has fascinated me for years) because, with them being the most dominant team since the 95-96 Chicago Fools, I strongly expect them to reach the Finals against the Suns or Spurs.
The only reason the Celtics are so good is Kevin Garnett, and if he weren't there, the Suns could definitely beat them in any game. I don't respect Ray Allen, because he doesn't play defense. He lit the Suns up all the time in Seattle, but the Sun he guarded could potentially light him up simultaneously. In a Suns-Celtics game this season, when Leandro Barbosa replaces Raja Bell, Allen would probably cover someone else because he couldn't stop Barbosa's drives. Shawn Marion plays good enough defense to probably contain Paul Pierce. I think beating the Celtics probably would be no harder than beating the Spurs, especially in the Finals--the Celtics are totally outmatched by the Suns (or the Spurs, or the Pistons) in playoff experience. --Josh
What a great game against Indiana!--I was more impressed by it than by probably any win this season, including the San Antonio victory. Hill was out, Nash got sick, and the recap says Marion and Barbosa were also sick. And they won the game anyway!
3 starters going down at once in the middle of the season could be a good thing. At least it forces D'Antoni to play some more of his bench.
Amare's defense continues to be inconsistent at best and probably more like atrocious. He got worked by Okur last night. Are you kidding me? And did you see him contest the shot by Deron Williams and then turn and watch the shot while Williams went right around him for the put back? If Amare's not going to block out, the Suns have no shot. It's a fundamental part of the game. When I hear Amare's working on blocking out (instead of his 3 point shot) I'll get excited. Until then, this team has not shot at a championship.
Yeah I think its time for phoenix to work now on Amare on defense. he has to be more consistent for his Suns to be more succesful
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LOOK ALL OF YOU DUMB ASSES WHO LIKE THE SUNS ARE WAISTING YOUR TIME. I DONT CARE HOW GOOD THEY DO IN THE REG SEASON, THEY SUCK BALLS IN THE POST. AND YES I AM A LAKER FAN, A FAN OF A TEAM WTH 9 CHAMPIONSHIPS UNLIKE YOU HOMOS IN AIRZONA. NASH IS A NEEDS TO MAN UP AND CUT THAT GAY ASS HAIR OF HIS AND THE COACH NEEDS TO SHUT THE HECK UP. LAKERS HAVE KICKED THE SUNS ASS TWICE THIS SEASON AND IT'S ABOUT TO BE 3 TONIGHT. BOTTOM LINE SUNS SUCK ..LAKERS ALL DAY
This was hilarious: a Fakers fan disgruntled over last night's loss childishly and crudely taunting his superiors (who are both on the court and in the seats at US Airways Center), and with double posts in violation of netiquette, no less. --Josh
Can someone tell Mr."lakers al day"
to go back to grammar school. Words like "all" "wasting" and "Arizona" were butchered in non-clever way. Valley fans may not be as loud as others, but we are certainly more intelligent in the nuances of the game and the English language than our bandwagon bretheren in "Lost" Angeles, California.
The guy's ignorant of Lakers history, too. The Lakers have soiled (I mean, won) 11 NBA championships, not 9. Phil Jackson is the man with nine championships. (All of which he parasited off teams so superstar-laden that they could have won at least one title led by a T-Ball coach!) --Josh
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Ehh I wouldn't make a big deal about the "chemistry issues." The Suns have been under a microscope for the past few years. The same locker room exploits are a non story to other title contending teams for whatever reasons. Everything Suns related is grossly blown out of proportion.
The thing is, it takes talent, effort, coaching, skill... and luck to win championships. The Suns have had the first four the past few years but have been on the wrong end of the stick on luck. An eye socket, a calf, an unfair suspension have really effected teh Suns in the postseason more than the other things.
This team is well equipped to go far in the post season, even to win it all. Regular season performances largely don't matter much. Look at how much they've won in teh regular season the past few years and look how well thats translated in the playoffs.
So long as they suck it up in the postseason, i'm not very concerned. I'm not afraid of a Pau Lakers, Amare can eat Pau alive. I'm certainly not afraid of NOOCH. I'm actually relieved at how bad the Spurs and Dallas has played. If anything, they should be more concerned than this Suns team.
We just need to hope this team stays healthy, plays hard and that the Stern machine doesn't try to f*ck us again.
If anything, I'm kinda glad the team can play well without Shawn at his best. The Matrix has been great but his game is very one-dimensional.
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