Done such in bunches. AZLouis is in the middle of moving, Xylus isn't posting near as often in the offseason and a few of the others aren't either.Look, it's too much work to have to point the one or two of you out by name every single time I talk about Suns fans. I say "most of you" as often as I can. If you don't like that, then I suggest you start trying to influence some sense into your fellow Suns fans, because you're the only one rowing, and it's a big ass boat.
What we have here is failure... to congratulate. Most of the fanatics posting in the name of the Suns are only here for one reason, and it isn't to be a valued member of this site. It's to rile and react to threads about their fandom.
To that point, no amount of sense will be talked into them. It's like trying to tell a lemming that by jumping off the cliff they will die. It's their nature to act the way they do.
I can stand in their way, flapping my arms to get their attention and talking all the sense in the world. They are going to just go right on around me doing their thing.
So, I "ignore" them. I've suggested such as an option in many posts.
I wasn't hatin' on you, nor trying to call attention to myself. Just wanted the rest of those reading that not all Suns fans are the and moan type. Unfortunately, right now, we're in the less-vocal minority.
It seems in order to prosper in this league you must have a multifaceted game which will allow you options to dictate tempo and style at any point in the contest. Choosing to make the running game the major sell directs practically all energy into one strategy, energy that could be better utilized through other outlets such as rebounding, blocking out, grinding, physical bodying up not to mention pacing efforts for 4th quarter efficiency and execution.
I think you're overreacting to the Kurt Thomas trade. The Suns didn't use Kurt much at all last year (which was a sad, sad decision, by the way) until his presence was absolutely necessary--against the Spurs. Against any other foe, the Suns have the tools to win, even against Dallas and Utah.
The Suns will take 1st place in the conference next year, barring a long-term Nash injury. Right now, if the Suns make no move to attain a solid big man, the only team I think has an advantage over us in the playoffs is San Antonio.
You may be correct, except I'm not just saying the Suns have gotten that much worse, I'm saying the Jazz should be better, and with sustained health - which is never a given - could be a 58+ win team. I'm saying the Rockets now have a plethora of offensive weapons, and the size to sustain dominance on the boards, especially if Wells can come in and dominate from his position.
While true that Thomas never had a great factor in the regular season, in the playoffs he's been invaluable. See Amare's rebounding numbers in the playoffs as compared to the regular season. Alongside Thomas, Amare's average jumped nearly three rebounds per game. That's no coincidence in my book. Thomas will always body up and box-out the opposing team's best rebounder when in, so Amare has a better shot at dominating the boards. The Suns just went from an average rebounding team, to below average, while Dallas, San Antonio, Utah and Houston have all either held firm, or gotten better.
I am worried. As I said, I see them winning the Pacific with no problem. That means I give them around 52-to-58 wins. So short-term, it's not going to matter too much. But in the playoffs they are now at a huge disadvantage unless they bring in a Brian Skinner or PJ Brown. Even then I'm not even sure it gets them back to where they were last season.
Right now, I'd guess...
1. Dallas 61 wins (+3/-2 wins)
2. Utah 59 wins (+2/-4 wins)
3. San Antonio 58 wins (+3/-2 wins)
4. Phoenix 57 wins (+2/-3 wins)
5. Houston 55 wins (+1/-3 wins)
6. Denver 52 wins (+2/-2 wins)
7. Golden State 48 wins (+2/-3 wins)
8. Los Angeles L. 47 wins (+3/-2 wins)
9. Los Angeles C. 45 wins (+3/-3 wins)
10. Memphis 42 wins (+3/-2 wins)
11. New Orleans 41 wins (+5/-1 wins)
12. Minnesota 40 wins (+2/-2 wins)
13. Sacramento 37 wins (+1/-2 wins)
14. Portland 35 wins (+2/-3 wins)
15. Seattle 32 wins (+2/-3 wins)
Last edited by JMarkJohns; 07-27-2007 at 09:45 AM.
jazz should be better
be intersting
fisher is gone and he was a leader
I tend to agree with that take. Grant Hill makes them stronger for the regular season, and maybe helps the Suns stretch a series against the Spurs to five or six games. I don't think he makes up for the loss of Thomas, who was much more effective on both ends against San Antonio than anyone on their coaching staff seems to recognize.
It might be unwise to discount Ivaroni's value to the staff, and they may flail even worse without him there in situations where they actually require coaching.
Right now I have the Suns fourth in the conference, behind the Spurs, Mavs and Rockettes, and a tad ahead of Utah. They can beat any of those teams in a 7-game series except for San Antonio.
I'm still waiting for that to happen too, otherwise the thomas for the trade exception was pointless and stupid
Has the news media been alerted?
The trade exception buys them out of the luxury tax. It's the same logic that resulted in Michael Finley being a Spur.
I love how once they're gone from the team, Suns players suddenly become effective, and their coaches suddenly become difference makers. As long as they're still with the team, though? No respect from Spur fan.
I even have Denver ahead of Phoenix
I know you don't actually know anything about basketball, but the Suns fans that do tend to agree with me. In fact, are you even a Suns fan? You don't ever come here to talk about basketball. All you seem to want to do is fight, and in a battle of wits, you are unarmed.
You have no idea how many times I wished Marc Iavaroni was the Suns coach... I do think this is another reason to expect a bit of a setback this year. Also, I'm not convinced Hill will have as big a role as most fans hope. Remember, D'Antoni openly discussed Rose as a rotation player when they were signing him, then never worked him into the rotation. Rose was never the injury-threat that Hill is.
I've got alot of issues and questions that need resolving or answering, and it'll take a while to figure it all out. I need to see that D'Antoni can coach, not just manage. I need to see that the Suns can defend and rebound without Thomas. I need to see that Hill and Tucker get enough PT to develop into quality rotation players. I need to see if Diaw will rebound from a poor year last year. I need to see who grabs ahold of the Suns backup PG spot, and even if someone does, I need to see that D'Antoni won't yield to the temptation to run his horse (Nash) into the ground for a few extra regular season wins.
Lots of issues... Lots of potential, but I'm not confident in D'Antoni at all, and know how much the Suns struggled with rebounding even with Thomas.
I have an RSS feed set to alert me when the Suns sign or trade for a quality big man to guard Duncan, or to sign role players for their bench so your starters don't average 46 mpg. So far, nothing is coming in.
Finley signed his current contract before the start of the current CBA, correct?
S0ns are a second-tier Western Conference team. No defense, no toughness, mediocre coach.
My opinion of next year's elite teams. These are squads that can consistently play both ends of the floor:
1. Spurs(NBA champions)
2. Mavs(60 win team, Spurs main rival)
3. Rockets(great off-season)
Second-tier:
4. Jazz(nice young squad...could be first tier if their D improves)
5. Nuggets(we haven't seen how well this team can play after being together for a whole season...also if KMart comes back healthy that adds more firepower to their excellent front court)
6. S0ns ('83 Nuggets...purely a gimmick team)
Possibly. My point is only that he was released to relieve his team luxury tax dollars. Does when he signed the contract make any difference?
Does that mean we have to face the Spurs again?
In both th 05 and 07 series with the Suns, by game 5 the Suns looked more tired than the Spurs. In 05 the Spurs not only ran with them but outran them. In 07 they wore them out. As long as Duncan is with the Spurs the Suns will have a uva a hard time dealing with that monster in the middle. One of the keys this year was that Tony played off what the Defenses gave him, he attacked when he ahd to and it was there, he spread the ball to his shooters when they were open and he ran the half-court offense to perfection, and that more than anything really excites me for this next season. This playoffs were all about Tim and Tony. In every sereis and especially the finals Tony dictated the tempo and style of play giving his team a huge advantage. I just don't see how going smaller will help the Suns against the Spurs.
I've seen this tired old opinion before - next
I don't understand what would make anyone think that the Rockets, Jazz, or Nuggets are going to have a more successful regular season than the Suns.
What have the Suns lost?
-Kurt Thomas, a player who they didn't play much in the regular season, anyway.
-James Jones, 6.4 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 18.1 mpg, no huge loss, though he was a skilled defender
What have the Suns gained?
-Grant Hill
-Amare and Barbosa continue to improve
What do the Suns still have?
-Nash, Amare, Marion
-Barbosa, Diaw, Bell
That's the same core that took them to 62 wins last season, and that included a shaky start with the reintroduction of Amare.
The Suns will win 64 next season.
Does that mean we have to face the Spurs again?
Perhaps. I'm not buying into Hill hype just yet. While I know what he could do, I'm not certain D'Antoni's smart or capable enough to put him in the best position to succeed. He failed with Barbosa until his brother got a hold of him. He hasn't done anything with Banks. He underused Thomas. He never used Rose.
Also, I do think teams will start to play Phoenix more physically, since it's obvious they are overly emotional and lack a calming presense. Even Nash got upset after Horry bodychecked him, getting up, screaming and running towards Horry.
You could be right. The well-oiled offensive regular-season machine may be in great shape next season. I just think a lack of frontcourt depth, PG depth and experience within the system at SF are a few too many issues for me to buy into this upcoming Suns team as a 60-win team.
I think Utah has loads of talent and if you expect the Suns to remain because certain players are improving, then what about the Jazz with Williams, Brewer, Millsap and even Kirilenko?
Denver will be in top 5 imo.
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