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Suns notebook: Stoudemire shows off healthy knee at scrimmage
Jerry Brown, Tribune
October 24, 2007 - 12:06AM
Amaré Stoudemire was back playing basketball with his teammates Tuesday night – running and jumping, then huffing and puffing during a 30-minute open scrimmage before more than 6,000 fans treated to a free, up-close look at US Airways Center.
“It went great. I felt healthy and strong. I just have to get in a little better shape now,” said Stoudemire, who playfully collapsed on a chair between two courtside fans to rest at one point. “It was great to get back out there and play some contact ball. The staff has done a good job making sure I maintained my strength. Another week or so and I’ll be ready to go.”
Stoudemire thrilled a crowd packed with kids by taking off for several dunks, showing that the right knee that underwent arthroscopic surgery exactly three weeks earlier was ready to go.
Stoudemire plans to play in both of the final two preseason games – here Thursday against Denver and Friday in Vancouver against Seattle – and coach Mike D’Antoni expect him to be ready to handle 25-30 minutes when the regular season opens next Thursday in Seattle.
“He was a little out of shape, but he’s got 10 days to work on that,” D’Antoni said. “He’s a phenomenal athlete. We’ll start him off slow but once he gets into a game, he’ll probably forget he’s tired anyway.”
BARBOSA INJURED
Just as Stoudemire returns to the lineup, guard Leandro Barbosa took his place in street clothes after suffering badly bruised ribs in Sunday’s win over Charlotte in Los Angeles.
Barbosa, who said he thought the ribs were broken (X-rays proved otherwise) and was still in a lot of pain Tuesday, will miss the final two exhibition games and concentrate on trying to get ready for the Sonics on opening night.
“It was right at the end of the game. Someone landed on me while I was on the floor,” said Barbosa, who is taking pain medication. “When I breathe or move right now, it’s pretty hard to do it. I know I’ll be out a week, but I think I have time to get ready (for the opener).”
NEXT FLOOR PLEASE
The Suns unveiled their new playing floor – the fifth since the team moved to US Airways Center in 1992 – at Tuesday’s practice and will officially christen it Thursday when they face Denver in the final home preseason game.
Suns vice president of facility management Alvan Adams said the new floor and scorer’s table (with matrix board advertising) has a price tag of about $100,000. The floor has bigger pieces with the connecting pins built into it – which should increase the speed of the put-down and tear-down process.
“It’s made by the same company that has made the All-Star floor the past few years,” Adams said. “It was time for a change, so we thought we’d go with something different.”
Fans will mostly notice a lighter tone of wood inside the 3-point lines and the new basket standards. The old floor will be handed down to and repainted for the Phoenix Mercury, while the Mercury’s old floor was cut down for a miniaturized court that is used at one of the arena’s courtside clubs.
CLOSE CALL
Suns general manager Steve Kerr and his family were among the close to 1 million residents in California forced to evacuate their homes because of the wildfires in Southern California.
Kerr said about 30 of his neighbors in the San Diego suburb of Rancho Santa Fe, including some close friends, have lost their homes in the fire. The fire reached about a mile from Kerr’s house, but the wind was blowing the opposite way.
“We turned on the TV yesterday and it was obvious that we had to evacuate,” Kerr said. “It’s like something out of a horror movie. We (smelled) the smoke all around our house and we knew we had to get out and get downtown.
Kerr and his family spent Monday night at a downtown San Diego condo owned by Suns owner Robert Sarver.
BONUS SHOTS
After leaving Sunday’s game in Los Angeles with back spasms, Grant Hill was okay Tuesday and took part in the full practice.
TNT was scheduled to televise a Lakers-Jazz preseason game from the San Diego Sports Arena Thursday night, but the devastating fires in the area have forced a change. Instead, TNT will televise the Nuggets-Suns game with the same 7 p.m. start time. Marv Albert, Mike Fratello and Reggie Miller make up the broadcast team.
