Depressing Suns Article

[Spur-Addict]

This thread le should read, "Depressing Suns".

[Findog]

Or "Setting Suns." Get it? See what I did there? Get it? See what I did there?

[lefty]

First time I saw Sarver's face, I didn't like him.

I didn't know why, I guess it was gut feeling.

No I know why; what he did to Porter was classless; him

[Spur-Addict]

Or "Setting Suns." Get it? See what I did there? Get it? See what I did there?

oOoOooooOOo...... AhhhHHhhhh....

[androck]

I don't think the Suns were ever going to win a championship under D'antoni. When they had Steve Nash at his peak, Amare pre-microfracture, Joe Johnson, and Shawn Marion, that was one of the most talented teams in NBA history. How many teams have four legit max-contract players on their roster at the same time during the height of their careers? I can't think of any since the Lakers in the 80s. Even the Celtics with Garnett, Pierce, Allen, and Rondo aren't at that level. Steve Nash was an All-Star talent with the Mavs but became a Hall of Famer under D'antoni's system. Amare is an All-Star scoring talent with major defensive deficiencies that could have been a Hall of Famer if he spent his entire career under D'antoni where his defense could be swept under the rug. After that run in 2005 with Joe Johnson fracturing his orbital socket, things started to fall apart. Joe Johnson wanted to go to a team where he could be The Man and that was never going to happen on the Suns. Marion was resentful of being the third-option on offense and wanted out.

The Suns suffered from the "Too Many Chiefs, Not Enough Indians" syndrome that kept the Lakers from winning the Finals in 2004 and directly contradicts the formulas that have been so successful for the Spurs and Pistons as well as the recent Celtics and the Avery Johnson Mavs. I can't see any scenario in which the Suns under D'antoni would have been able to beat the Spurs, the pre-Jason Kidd-trade Mavs, or the post-Pau Gasol-trade Lakers in 7 games and I think they would have struggled with the Chris Paul Hornets and a healthy Jazz or Rockets team. The definition of insanity is repeating the same actions and expecting different results and that is exactly what the Suns were doing from 2004-2008. They had to take a risk and make some changes.

The problem began when Steve Kerr came in. D'antoni was not willing to change his system (and frankly, why should he? He has created a very entertaining brand of basketball that fields a compe ive team and puts fans in the seats) but Kerr felt (and I agree) that D'antoni's method was not going to win a championship. If Sarver's goal were simply to continue being a playoff team and selling lots of tickets, he should have stuck with D'antoni. If he wanted to win a championship, hiring a new coach was the right thing to do but he also should have anticipated that a massive change in personnel was going to be required. It is impossible to build a defensive powerhouse around Nash and Amare but Shaq would be a good piece to add to the puzzle; the problem was that they traded the wrong player for him. Marion was the best defender on the team and would have made a much better complementary player to Shaq due to his exceptional versatility on both ends of the court. The Suns should have traded Amare.

Phoenix has consistently had one of the highest payrolls in the NBA and Sarver tried to do as much as he could to reduce his out-of-pocket expenses in recent years so he spent the last few years selling his draft picks for cash. Kerr frequently gets blamed for that but honestly, it's Sarver who is forcing his hand. The Suns ransomed their future to pay for the present, the Shaq gamble and change of philosophy have failed, and now they are a shadow of their former selves and I think there is almost nothing they can do to improve their situation in the near future since they have almost no draft picks coming up and no young players with upside on their roster outside of Amare. On top of all that, Sarver made his fortune in the real estate and financial markets so the economic downturn is hitting him harder than most other NBA owners and he's even less willing to spend than he was in the past. Did the Suns need to make changes and get rid of D'antoni if they wanted to win a championship? Yes. Did they make the right decisions towards those goals in the short-term? No.

[Stabbin' Cabin]

wow that is depressing...

Spurs really did a heck of a job

You sneaky sons of es.

[pauls931]

You sneaky sons of es.

LMAO, then Kerr will send amare to the bulls for a pack of gum to fulfill his obligations there....

[Dex]

There was no specific move/decision that started the debacle. It was a combination of many moves/decisions, most of which before Kerr had decision making power.

And last year, after the Shaq trade, it was still a run-n-gun team, the PPG actually went up post all star break.

The one move, if any, that started the tail spin, was KT + 2 first round picks for nothing.

Letting Thomas leave never made sense to me either. After that started the search for another bigman to defend Duncan...when you already had one in the back pocket. I could see how that lead to the current state of affairs.

Losing Joe Johnson was just a swift kick in the pants.

Then again, the Spurs let the same thing happen with Stephen Jackson.

[mystargtr34]

The Suns biggest mistake was their first one - not resigning Joe Johnson the first chance they got. Everything from there seemed to go down hill.

Selling off Rajon Rondo + Rudy Fernandez.

Trading Kurt Thomas + 2 picks for nothing.

Would of been a heck of a team.

[milkyway21]

the Phoenix Suns team has become a joke since the trade of Jo Johnson.

thank you for booing Duncan anyway. It just shows how loser your team really are

I was disgusted by it, and for being such a "perfect" 2009 All-Star weekend host, sorry to say I cannot sympathize with you.

besides the Spurs I won't mind seeing any team in the WC winning a le, let it be the Nuggets or Portland, EXCEPT the Phoenix Suns

this team and spork killer are a perfect combination.

[Xylus]

the Phoenix Suns team has become a joke since the trade of Jo Johnson.

thank you for booing Duncan anyway. It just shows how loser your team really are

I was disgusted by it, and for being such a "perfect" 2009 All-Star weekend host, sorry to say I cannot sympathize with you.

besides the Spurs I won't mind seeing any team in the WC winning a le, let it be the Nuggets or Portland, EXCEPT the Phoenix Suns

this team and spork killer are a perfect combination.

I hope you die in your sleep.

Because basketball is serious business and no one s with my team!

[pauls931]

the Phoenix Suns team has become a joke since the trade of Jo Johnson.

thank you for booing Duncan anyway. It just shows how loser your team really are

I was disgusted by it, and for being such a "perfect" 2009 All-Star weekend host, sorry to say I cannot sympathize with you.

besides the Spurs I won't mind seeing any team in the WC winning a le, let it be the Nuggets or Portland, EXCEPT the Phoenix Suns

this team and spork killer are a perfect combination.

I think you need a big cup of STFU and be thankful that the Suns provided some entertaining series for you on your way to several les.

[Armando]

The Spurs did a of a job on the Suns

[JMarkJohns]

The Suns biggest mistake was their first one - not resigning Joe Johnson the first chance they got. Everything from there seemed to go down hill.

Selling off Rajon Rondo + Rudy Fernandez.

Trading Kurt Thomas + 2 picks for nothing.

Would of been a heck of a team.

Technically, had the Suns kept all their "traded for nothing" picks, they still wouldn't have both Rondo and Fernandez, as the pick used to draft Fernandez was obtained by first trading the draft rights to Rondo.

So, realistically, it's an either or... However, had they kept every other pick, they may have been able to draft Fernandez later in that same draft, or they may not have needed him at all.