Wow -- I look at at team like the Suns, who just run and flow and man that Steve Nash -- is the ball safer anywhere more so in the NBA than in his hands? This team -- the top offense in the league, with the Matrix just running power forwards out the gym........ and now Amare comes back and drops 20 and 9 his first night? Damn
Nash is a prototypical point guard and more. He can drive, shoot, pass, make good decisions, he's got leadership, he's got quickness and height. Now the suns really turned their franchise around after a lousy season by getting an impact free agent like him, picking the right guys to build their core around (who turn out to be all-stars later on, well the Matrix already was an all-star), and they got rid of all that deadweight contracts that Marbury and Hardaway left on the team. They also capitalized on other guys' draft picks like Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw and they turned out to be awesome as a secondary ball handler, scorer and playmaker. You know, the role we wish Dunleavy was? Since the Suns had forwards that could finish inside, above the rim or below it, they play bigger than they are, inside the paint, in traffic and can also just avoid it by pushing it constantly using a combo of athleticism and passing, cutting, shooting, ballhandling. That's why we can't be the Suns, because those guys actually move their feet and look to push and can actually make the most of posessions. They shoot free throws too and have other guys besides Nash that can pass, score, handle. It's not a one guy show. Plus starters are actually quick and have the stamina to play like this. If Amare stays healthy he'll be like having another weapon to go inside with (as well as some shots outside). Stoudamire looks even better because he can play two positions well, having played center and he's becoming better on defense and developing his own moves to create his own shot. The backcourt fuels the inside play on that team because initially the Suns built that team around the rookie of the year and one-time all-star Shawn Marion. Not Penny Hardaway and Starbury. Nash, Joe Johnson, came around at the right time as free agents and when they couldn't get JJ to stay, they found a good replacement for him and got some better size in the offseason. What did Mullin/Higgins do in comparrison to GM Colangelo and coach Mike D'Antoni's idea of a center-less lineup? They stood pat after they got Baron Davis, and they really chose to go with a center-less lineup. Murphy ain't no Stoudamire. That was a dumb move to stand pat even if they had contracts already tied up in other role players. They not only got the wrong role players in the offseason before the Baron trade, but they made no follow up moves and had less all-stars to work with that the Suns already had already collected in their drafts. Plus, the Suns made the playoffs before with the Matrix, Starbury, Penny the season before so they have proven the capability to win with a decent combo guard point guard, shooting guard, and small forward. Then the coaching style... did this matter? Coach Skiles was definitely one of those hard-assed coaches who knows the value of a good point guard that follows plays. When Starbury wasn't getting it done for him they replaced him with Frank Johnson. The either lose or don't go very far in the playoffs. Then finally Mike D'Antoni came along and said let's try something different, something radical, let's get smaller since guys like the Matrix and Amare play bigger/stronger than their size indicates. He basically got the right players he asked for and the GM didn't f--- it up for him with bloat. That's the main difference. Murphy and Amare, Dunleavy and the Matrix ain't the same thing. We can't roll with that small lineup because we have forwards that play smaller than their size indicates. Also besides Baron Davis, who handles the ball and passes to make others better? It's not Jrich. He's a good scorer, but he's not going to hand out 4 or more assists a night on a regular basis. It's not really his job when he's the team's most efficient scorer in the amount of shots he takes. You want guys to set him up and feed off of him when he's doubled or has defenses solely focussed on stopping him. It's difficult to feed off of Jrich when playmaking and shot-creating is not really his game. He does pass though, but you really want Jrich going inside without the ball or going inside bouncing the ball very few times, posting up or working the pull-up/step back midrange jumper, and then eventually warm up enough so he can get behind the three point arc to keep things honest outside as well as inside.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting custodianrules2:</div><div class="quote_post">Nash is a prototypical point guard and more. He can drive, shoot, pass, make good decisions, he's got leadership, he's got quickness and height. Now the suns really turned their franchise around after a lousy season by getting an impact free agent like him, picking the right guys to build their core around (who turn out to be all-stars later on, well the Matrix already was an all-star), and they got rid of all that deadweight contracts that Marbury and Hardaway left on the team. They also capitalized on other guys' draft picks like Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw and they turned out to be awesome as a secondary ball handler, scorer and playmaker. You know, the role we wish Dunleavy was?</div> I really like Nash, too. Also, Marion playing the free safety role on defense helps that team a lot. While the Suns are known for their high octane offense, they really have an excellent defense. I was ready to pick the Mavs over the Suns, but with Amare it may be a different story. You gotta really look hard at a guy like Joe Johnson. I think the Suns really wanted to keep him, but his price went sky high in the market. They thought they could find someone to replace him since he was a smaller player and not their main small player Nash. They really got lucky they were dealing with a dumb team like Atlanta. That owner who was balking at making this deal really got the last laugh . <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">If Amare stays healthy he'll be like having another weapon to go inside with (as well as some shots outside). Stoudamire looks even better because he can play two positions well, having played center and he's becoming better on defense and developing his own moves to create his own shot. The backcourt fuels the inside play on that team because initially the Suns built that team around the rookie of the year and one-time all-star Shawn Marion. Not Penny Hardaway and Starbury. Nash, Joe Johnson, came around at the right time as free agents and when they couldn't get JJ to stay, they found a good replacement for him and got some better size in the offseason.</div> Amare is such a load to handle. He just gets to the line like it's his. If the Warriors had drafted Stoudemire instead, then they would be the Suns with Baron, JRich and Murphy. He would make this team a whole lot better. I doubt we would've picked Ike either. We probably would've got Granger. Hey turn a different corner... n00b VP Mullin made another mistake just standing pat cause he got Baron. He should've realized the good teams don't stand pat. They make moves to get better even if its little ones. That's why I was disappointed that he didn't make even a small move before the deadline.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting jason voorhees:</div><div class="quote_post"> n00b VP Mullin made another mistake just standing pat cause he got Baron. He should've realized the good teams don't stand pat. They make moves to get better even if its little ones. That's why I was disappointed that he didn't make even a small move before the deadline.</div> Exactly. BTW we had no chance at Amare since he refused to work out for us. He had some red flags similar to Kwame Brown as well. Believe me, when we picked Dunleavy at third I was so unhappy because we didn't get much upside (or debatable upside because some argued he had good basketball genes, being an nba player/coach's son, NCAA tournament hero, and all around game in college). It was a "no-brainer" pick in a shallow depth of a draft and we got one of those typical finesse, slow, weak type guys whose game does not translate to the NBA as well as it does in college. He's made improvements as well as receded in some areas, but he's obviously been a disappointment because he's fallen short of expectations after being drafted high and also being given big money without having done anything consistently all three years. Mullin was so worried about stability, the mental makeup and basketball knowledge of this team and this season, that he didn't anticipate that Dunleavy might not be turning the corner after all or be the leader by example in a team offense. Teams do not stand pat when its obvious there's glaring holes. And if those glaring holes are Fisher/Foyle, why the hell did he sign those guys to ridiculous amounts at ridiculous contract lengths? Stability over flexibility? Also, another guy I'm worried about is Baron Davis. I love the guy's flash and courtsense, but he's got a lot of weaknesses as well especially following plays. Baron was a good short term move for a desperate franchise, but is he a coach's headache or a long term type of guy? He couldn't even get along or stay focussed with Byron Scott, the more vocal coach, and he's at least shown he can take an underdog team to .500 with a point guard who listens. Maybe the incident with coaching Jason Kidd, made Scott look bad, but all I know is we need a point guard that is going to play high % ball and will listen to the game plan. I think changing a coach for Baron Davis would just be an excuse not to play team ball because he obviously hurts the team when he tries to break away and not listen to the sideline. When Baron is absent from the rotation, I think the Warriors tend to focus more on team execution rather than "make it up as you go along" one-pass , low % chucking, overdribbling streetball. True superstars don't get traded. I think he's fast becoming a psuedo-superstar if he won't run the basketball team like a point guard should, like an NFL quarterback running a football team should. But then again, he's not healthy... like usual. He hasn't blown up yet, he's still young, so I consider him still a "keeper" for now.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting AnimeFANatic:</div><div class="quote_post">20 and 9 in 19 minutes.</div> That was just crazy man!
