There's been a lot talk recently about Amare Stoudemire possibly receiving some bad advice about whether or not he should be back in the Suns lineup. Hoops guru Sonny Vaccaro acknowledges the rumors which say Amare is being pulled in two different directions. Apparently, team doctors say he's ready to play. Other outside sources, i.e. friends, relatives, are telling Amare that he isn't ready to be back on the floor. This has the Suns franchise pulling their hair out from the roots, some have been said to think that Amare's outside influences are interfering greatly with his mindset and approach to the game. Has there been any talk of this in the Phoenix region? I'm interested to hear if this has been a topic of discussion, and if so, what the consensus is among Suns fans reguarding Amare.
The word out here is Amare was out TOO long and didn't want to play with a little pain. I was kind of torn on the issue, because should Amare really come back to a team who won't make the playoffs? Risk injury for nothing? But I do want him out there, I want to see him, I want to win... so I see both sides. I haven't heard anything about his friends and family pulling him in different directions. He had the comment, "I'll come back when I want" while he was out with his injury which wasn't good to hear for the Suns or Suns fans... Iverson played WITH A BROKEN ARM!! Penny played before he was healed though, look what happened so again I understand partially. I really hate these kind of stories... Marbury's family (dad specifically) was a problem in New Jersey. Not sure if Phoenix had any problems. Most players actually are influenced by "friends" which is horrible... if these "friends" knew anything they'd be IN THE NBA (coach, GM, player, whatever). I just hope Amare's not falling into that crap, if that is the case I wouldn't mind shipping him out, it's not like the situation is going to get any better and just hurt team chemistry.
"I'll come back when I want"?, that's not a statement you want to hear coming from a young, cornerstone player like Amare. That sounds like the problem right there, Amare needs to check himself if he thinks he's beyond reproach in the NBA. Whether it comes from the influence of friends, or others within his family, that's a bad attitude to have. Guys like Iverson, even Kobe on most occasions, play through enormous pain. Although you can never be the judge of another man's pain, a statement like the one that Amare made is obscene. If I were Colangelo, I would be pretty damn hot about that. I would make it known that if deemed healthy, he's expected to at least practice and run team drills to assess his progress.
Since Amare was drafted, it was known that some of his family was a bad influence. I think his mother was in prison when he started with the Suns. What helped him last year and some of this year was the veteran mentorship from guys like Scott Williams(released), Penny Hardaway(traded), and a maturing Stephon Marbury(traded). With this young team, I'm afraid some of the younger guys don't have that veteran leadership that they need more in the locker room than on the court.
Apparently his mother has her nose in everything involved with his career now. Last summer she almost screwed him over on a shoe endorsment...saying he should have been getting more $$$... and getting his agent fired in the process. Sh!t like that. She could seriously do some damage in the long run. What Id like to see is the Suns try and bring Barkley in as some kind of assistant. Not a coach...but as a kind of personal mentor for Amare. He still lives in Phoenix. Have him come down to a few team practices. I think Charles would be the perfect influence on him...and show him the way a PF should play...make a man out of him.
it's sad. it's clear,to me anyway,his moms and all are in it..not for the betterment of her son but so she could possibly benefit from his increased funds...sad when that happens.
but he didn't play like a punk as evidenced recently by a twenty-point and ten-block party vs. the Jazz but they lost....
People are entitled to acting rather abruptly, we don't really know them as people, how they act and how they think. It's their lives, it's not like we've really had true experience with them, how do we know what they've been through, hell KG use to be dirt poor before he became an NBA superstar. I'd excuse him, he has some rights, but he shouldn't take this too far, afterall rules and authority are there for a reason.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Downtown:</div><div class="quote_post">Since Amare was drafted, it was known that some of his family was a bad influence. I think his mother was in prison when he started with the Suns. What helped him last year and some of this year was the veteran mentorship from guys like Scott Williams(released), Penny Hardaway(traded), and a maturing Stephon Marbury(traded). With this young team, I'm afraid some of the younger guys don't have that veteran leadership that they need more in the locker room than on the court.</div> I remember reading about Amare in SLAM before he came to the league, they noted these problems concerning his family, particularly his mother. It's a shame that some parents cannot simply enjoy the success of their children without feeling the need to be involved in every aspect of their business lives. I understand that many young NBA stars have been raised without a father in their home, and that mom means the world to them, but sometimes that can be a detriment to their maturing process on and off the court. I don't know if these claims are 100% true, but if his mother/family is giving him conflicting advice, this is not a good thing for Amare. The Suns may have improved their team for the future after trading Stephon and Anfernee, and releasing Scott Williams, but they have definitely left Stoudemire with no veteran guidance.
I saw a special on Amare on HBO with Bryan Gumble when he was in high school, I was trippin' out when they drafted him because he went to like 7 high schools in 4 years, his mom is a jail-bird greedy (you know what). He's been taken in by coaches who used him to get paid... he was just used and taken advantage of. So yeah I think we all knew what he went through, but I figured if he could make his own money, and get into the NBA and get away from all that, he would put those people all behind him. Now I hear his friends and mom are pulling the same crap they did back then... he's really gullible it seems. Scott Williams requested to be in the locker next to Amare and since then it's been kind of a teacher/student thing, but even before Scott was released Amare got injured with an injury that should have been 2-3 games MAX. He was out for 9 games. Of course I don't know the severity of the injury, and perhaps he really was unable to play, but some of his comments seemed selfish. That's all I've really seen that made me think he had outside forces giving him advice. But this offseason I'm sure there are going to be grumbling about his contract... he's on his rookie contract and after 2 good years, you KNOW his mom is going to want even MORE money.
I met his mom ...and yes she is a Bitch..lol Amare is a cool guy (I met him too) but her mom is in everything..im not surprised..I was really sad when Marbury , Penny and Scott were gone...because of Amare..maybe he could get traded ...unless the Suns getting some good talent.. btw , I know him from high school...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting TMac_OwNz:</div><div class="quote_post">btw , I know him from high school...</div> Hey that's cool... I went to high school with the twin brothers of an NBA player, he graduated the year before I got there. He would always visit and play in the gym though, granted he isn't the biggest star but he was an NBA player for a year. It was Gerald Brown, most of you (non-Suns fans) won't know him, he was a bench warmer on the 98-99 Suns (played in 33 games). Anyway back to the subject, I just hope the Suns bring in a good veteran and a coach Amare can learn from... he needs some serious guidance and not just on the court!
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Anyway back to the subject, I just hope the Suns bring in a good veteran and a coach Amare can learn from... he needs some serious guidance and not just on the court!</div> They already kinda have a veteran player in McDyess, but him and Scott already had a relationship. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">even before Scott was released Amare got injured with an injury that should have been 2-3 games MAX. He was out for 9 games. Of course I don't know the severity of the injury, and perhaps he really was unable to play, but some of his comments seemed selfish. </div> After the team doctor cleared him to play, he still missed about 3-4 more games. I think that was wrong and selfish for him to leave his team out there like that. 80% of the NBA plays with pain the second half of the season, some with worse injuries.
