Suns...

[Darthkiller]

Terry Porter = worst coach in the nba. srsly what is t his guy doing, didnt call time out at all, playing shaq for 35 minutes, only played barbosa 27 minute evne though he has been hot (team leading 32 points). no timeout called during the 4th run.

[peskypesky]

Terry Porter = worst coach in the nba. srsly what is t his guy doing, didnt call time out at all, playing shaq for 35 minutes, only played barbosa 27 minute evne though he has been hot (team leading 32 points). no timeout called during the 4th run.

don't know if he's the worst, but he's definitely a contender. :lol

[ducks]

is it his fault nash sucks and is not an allstar anymore
or and nash nice 7 turnovers tonight

[Ghazi]

Suns and Mavs are in similar positions, and I feel it has more to do with the league getting better than the front office screw ups.

2-3 years ago players like Paul, Roy, Bryant, Garnett, Deron, etc etc were dispersed amongst bad/mediocre teams. Now better players have better rosters, and thats the difference between going 4-0 or 3-1 against those teams instead of 2-2 or 1-3. Well, those losses here and there add up to 10-15... which is why the Mavs and Suns will probably win 45-50 this year instead of the 55-60 they were accustomed to 2-3 years go.

[ElNono]

Actually, it's their defense. They've been giving up 110+ the last few games, and that puts a lot of pressure on your offense. I never thought I would say this, but they actually defend worse than when D'Antoni was the coach.

[lurker]

PHOENIX (Ticker) -- The Suns are not playing well lately, and no one seems to know why.

So, the team's brass put their heads together after Saturday's embarrassing 122-111 home loss to the Chicago Bulls.

Owner Robert Sarver, general manager Steve Kerr, head coach Terry Porter and team leaders Steve Nash and Grant Hill met in a closed-door meeting after the Suns clinched their first losing month since April 2004.

Phoenix has lost its last two games and is allowing an average of 103.4 points per game - good for 26th in the NBA in scoring defense.

Suns center Shaquille O'Neal was blunt about his team's play on the defensive end.
"If you want to make it to the big dance, you've got to make stops - period," O'Neal told the Arizona Republic. "It doesn't matter if we run or slow it down. We've got to (expletive) stop somebody.

"We've got to man up. M - A - N-(expletive)-(expletive)-dash-up. Excuse time is over."

While he was a bit calmer than O'Neal, Kerr did not reveal what was said in the meeting.

"We are obviously struggling right now and we talk about everything," the general manager said. "How our team is constructed and what we can do better as a team and different combinations that we can play.

"We weren't suppose to lose this game and we have lost seven out of 10. We have lost some confidence, some energy some mojo, what ever you want to call it and we have to get it back. That is why we have a coaching staff, management you have to figure it out. It just doesn't happen you have to talk, so we talked."

So, what's the solution if things don't work out?

"We have to figure that out if the pieces don't fit then that is on me," Kerr said. "I am willing to take that blame if that is the case. We have to determine that."

Kerr finagled with numerous pieces in Phoenix, which made the Western Conference finals twice in former coach Mike D'Antoni's five-year tenure.

D'Antoni and Kerr butted heads on the direction of the team after last season's first-round playoff exit, allowing the coach to take his run-and-gun system to the New York Knicks.


Prior to D'Antoni's departure, Kerr broke up the triumvirate of Shawn Marion, Amare Stoudemire and Nash, when he dealt Marion to the Miami Heat

for O'Neal.

The deal signaled a turn in the team's philosophy and allowed it to hire defensive-minded coach Porter, who favors a slow-paced, halfcourt attack on the other end of the floor.

Ironically, it was D'Antoni's system that many thought could never deliver a championship. Now, this revamped Suns team seems even further away than their predecessors.

"The sum is not as good as the parts right now," Nash said. "We have to find a way to make each better. We haven't done much to let people think they don't have a chance to beat us. Until, we get our spirit and confidence and start playing better people aren't going to be intimated by us. With the names in the locker room, we have a target on our back. We have to play a lot better if we are going to have people fearing us.

"We don't have a great spirit, we are not very positive and I think right now the sum is not as good as the parts. Instead of fighting, it seems like we really don't believe in what we are doing."I wonder how long it will take Kerr to realize that Porter is the piece that doesn't fit. Porter isn't even from the same puzzle.

[BlackSwordsMan]

another shitty ex-spur coach?

[DUNCANownsKOBE2]

They were a 6 seed that lost in the 1st round last year, stop acting like Terry Porter took a contender and turned them into this. Chances are, if D'antoni was coach, they wouldn't be a whole lot better.

[FreeMason]

Porter took over a Mexican restaurant and is blasted for not cooking the best steak.

[Ballin Boy]

I would take him over michael curry. Can we trade coaches before the deadline?

[YellowFever]

...."We have to figure that out if the pieces don't fit then that is on me," Kerr said. "I am willing to take that blame if that is the case. We have to determine that." ...

He is a worse GM than I thought it he hasn't figured that out yet.

No 'if's', 'ands' or 'but' about it Stevie...it IS your fault

[pawe]

Blow the team up already!

[Biggems]

...."We have to figure that out if the pieces don't fit then that is on me," Kerr said. "I am willing to take that blame if that is the case. We have to determine that." ...

He is a worse GM than I thought it he hasn't figured that out yet.

No 'if's', 'ands' or 'but' about it Stevie...it IS your fault

I wish the Lakers would have sent Mitch packing 2 years ago, and Bynum too....

[Jmoney]

1. The Mav's trade was a horrible horrible idea. Kidd brought nothing to the team they needed and they lost the future of the franchise.

2. The Sun's system while fun to watch as we saw EVERY year could not get to the top in the playoffs why because in the end Amare and Nash do not play defense well on a CONSTANT BASIS. I'll grant the block Amare had on Duncan as a very nice defensive play other than that all offense no defense.

3. If the Sun's wanted to retool they should of kept Marion gotten rid of Amare and started shopping Nash and starting Barbosa. This would of given them better defense *slighty worse offense* The reality is the Suns just screwed themselves they are stuck with an aging Nash and Shaq. They won't have enough to do any real dmg to complete teams like the Lakers/Hornets/Nuggets/Spurs and even Rockets if they could ever stay healthy and not choke in playoffs.

4. I'm convinced there was collusion on the part of both GM's responsible for the Garnett/Gasol trades. These 2 trades gift wrapped changed everything in the last year in terms of who's on top and who really stinks. The worst part is these were THE 2 teams that have won between them more NBA championships than any other. They were the huge benefactors from trade's that they got from GM's who had relations with those teams in the past. You can't tell me the former GM Jerry West did not use his relations with the Grizzlies trying to keep Kobe in LA to help make that trade happen.

[Austin_Toros]

and people wonder why the suns are under performing!

[Chieflion]

and people wonder why the suns are under performing!

Look, you expect them to be anything higher than five?

Pacific Division: (1st seed Lakers) (8th seed Suns)
Northwest Division: (3rd seed Nuggets) (5th seed Blazers) (9th Jazz)
Southwest Division: (2nd seed Spurs) (4th seed Hornets) (6th seed Rockets) (7th seed Mavericks)

Well, anything higher than 5 is impossible for Suns so expect them to end up in the 6th to 8th seed even if Mike D'antoni is the one coaching. Oh, the Pacific division is the weakest division overall in the West. Coach is not the problem, it is the players who are declining and their starting lineup is older than the Spurs.

[Red Hawk #21]

Fire Porter!

[dirk4mvp]

1. The Mav's trade was a horrible horrible idea. Kidd brought nothing to the team they needed and they lost the future of the franchise.




lmao If Devin Harris was the future of the Mavericks, their future wasn't very bright anyway.

[ElNono]

lmao If Devin Harris was the future of the Mavericks, their future wasn't very bright anyway.

You mean the All Star Devin Harris? Please stop dogging on Devin. He's got nothing to do with the Mavs suckitude.

[DrHouse]

Send Shaq to LAL, we'll give you Odom/Radmanovich.

Move Amare back to C and go run-n-gun for the rest of the season. Then blow it all up.

[ElNono]

Move Amare back to C and go run-n-gun for the rest of the season. Then blow it all up.

We'll even do the honors of eliminating them in the first round...

[Red Hawk #21]

Send Shaq to LAL, we'll give you Odom/Radmanovich.

Move Amare back to C and go run-n-gun for the rest of the season. Then blow it all up.

Why in the world would they do that? :wakeup

[DUNCANownsKOBE2]

LMAO @ LA fans thinking someone is gonna trade for Radman. Odom does little to nothing for their cap room this season because they are so above the salary cap already that his expiring doesn't make a difference, it hurts their cap situation overall because Radmanosuck will be clogging up the cap space for whatever overrated free agents Kerr will settle for in 2010.