ALVAREZ6
02-01-2005, 06:09 PM
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/0201sunsnb0201.html
Players say 'why not?' to NBA title talk
Paul Coro
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 1, 2005 12:00 AM
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Amaré Stoudemire seems to have the power of a soothsayer when he foretells where Steve Nash's passes are headed.
Suns fans can only hope he truly has such power, given the 2002 statement he made to Phoenix's other powerful basketball tandem - Jerry and Bryan Colangelo.
"I told them when they drafted me to give me three or four years and we'll win a championship," Stoudemire said. advertisement
The claim seems more appropriate with Phoenix among the elite at 36-10. Two wins from their first six-game road sweep ever, the Suns are openly talking about a championship in earnest for the first time.
There had been title allusions cast in long-term goals. Ever since Nash returned from injury and the Jim Jackson trade fast-forwarded the plan, the Suns' confidence about winning a title this season has grown.
"We're too good of a team to think we can't be a contender and can't win," Nash said of championship aspirations.
The coaching mantra is that the jump from a losing team to a 50-win team is tough, but the bump from 50 to 60 wins is even tougher. Yet, the Suns are on pace to leap from 29 wins to 64 wins, which would be one victory off the greatest turnaround in NBA history by San Antonio seven years ago.
Nash's off-season acquisition was made with the idea of assembling the Suns' first championship team. The notion then was that the Suns had a five-year window to make their move and add the necessary pieces along the way.
"It (a title) wasn't a goal," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said of the preseason, when he aimed for 50 wins. "Making the playoffs was the goal. We talk about it (a title) in ways of what we have to do to be a championship team. We've got a ways to go. Whether or not we've got the stuff to do it, that's way in the future."
D'Antoni did put up signs in every Suns locker before the season with words over the backdrop of a championship ring. It read: "The Ring . . . Commitment to the game . . . Commitment to winning . . . Commitment to teammates . . . You're in or you're out."
"You can't ever sell yourself short," said Stoudemire, averaging 31.5 points on 69 percent shooting in six games since Nash's return. "If we can do it this year, we have to go after it."
If the Suns don't, the six-man core returns next season, as long as they match any offer that restricted free agent Joe Johnson receives.
Nash is almost a consensus MVP pick. But when it comes to title talk, the Suns get a lot of "buts" and "ifs" about their experience, style and depth.
"I think we're taking a lot of the 'buts' and 'ifs' out of it," D'Antoni said.
Free throws
The Suns control D'Antoni's chances of coaching in the All-Star Game. The Suns will have the West's best record on the cutoff date Sunday if they win at Memphis today, at Minnesota on Wednesday and against New York at home Saturday.
• During this trip, Phoenix is averaging 126.3 points on 53 percent shooting and 47 percent accuracy from three-point range.
Players say 'why not?' to NBA title talk
Paul Coro
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 1, 2005 12:00 AM
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Amaré Stoudemire seems to have the power of a soothsayer when he foretells where Steve Nash's passes are headed.
Suns fans can only hope he truly has such power, given the 2002 statement he made to Phoenix's other powerful basketball tandem - Jerry and Bryan Colangelo.
"I told them when they drafted me to give me three or four years and we'll win a championship," Stoudemire said. advertisement
The claim seems more appropriate with Phoenix among the elite at 36-10. Two wins from their first six-game road sweep ever, the Suns are openly talking about a championship in earnest for the first time.
There had been title allusions cast in long-term goals. Ever since Nash returned from injury and the Jim Jackson trade fast-forwarded the plan, the Suns' confidence about winning a title this season has grown.
"We're too good of a team to think we can't be a contender and can't win," Nash said of championship aspirations.
The coaching mantra is that the jump from a losing team to a 50-win team is tough, but the bump from 50 to 60 wins is even tougher. Yet, the Suns are on pace to leap from 29 wins to 64 wins, which would be one victory off the greatest turnaround in NBA history by San Antonio seven years ago.
Nash's off-season acquisition was made with the idea of assembling the Suns' first championship team. The notion then was that the Suns had a five-year window to make their move and add the necessary pieces along the way.
"It (a title) wasn't a goal," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said of the preseason, when he aimed for 50 wins. "Making the playoffs was the goal. We talk about it (a title) in ways of what we have to do to be a championship team. We've got a ways to go. Whether or not we've got the stuff to do it, that's way in the future."
D'Antoni did put up signs in every Suns locker before the season with words over the backdrop of a championship ring. It read: "The Ring . . . Commitment to the game . . . Commitment to winning . . . Commitment to teammates . . . You're in or you're out."
"You can't ever sell yourself short," said Stoudemire, averaging 31.5 points on 69 percent shooting in six games since Nash's return. "If we can do it this year, we have to go after it."
If the Suns don't, the six-man core returns next season, as long as they match any offer that restricted free agent Joe Johnson receives.
Nash is almost a consensus MVP pick. But when it comes to title talk, the Suns get a lot of "buts" and "ifs" about their experience, style and depth.
"I think we're taking a lot of the 'buts' and 'ifs' out of it," D'Antoni said.
Free throws
The Suns control D'Antoni's chances of coaching in the All-Star Game. The Suns will have the West's best record on the cutoff date Sunday if they win at Memphis today, at Minnesota on Wednesday and against New York at home Saturday.
• During this trip, Phoenix is averaging 126.3 points on 53 percent shooting and 47 percent accuracy from three-point range.