NBA Discussion Thread*

[Kilmoll the Sexy]

I want the Suns to lose purely because of Winnow. Of course, when your entire team refuses to learn to play defense, you can pretty much count on them losing close games to good teams.

[noel]

Nash is going to retire a very sad man.

At least he's made it out of the first round! McGrady might only retire with a gold medal (nothing to scoff at) and a scoring title.

[noel]

I want the Suns to lose purely because of Winnow. Of course, when your entire team refuses to learn to play defense, you can pretty much count on them losing close games to good teams.

Shaq actually played pretty good Defense last night, but sadly as well as he's playing, he's old and tired.

[Sueven]

Is it still the refs fault if the Suns get swept?

[Boogahz]

Is it still the refs fault if the Suns get swept?

I stand by my original statement!

I pick the key player in a Suns victory to be the refs. I pick the key player in a Spurs victory to be the Suns, since they are so good at beating themselves.

Shaq actually played pretty good Defense last night, but sadly as well as he's playing, he's old and tired.

That was also where the Spurs were scoring. Playing through a pick & roll is taught early, and recognizing when a teammate needs help is taught at the same time. The problems in the paint had nothing to do with Shaq, except for him basically being the only person there to defend against Ginobli and Parker streaking in as they have been doing for years. You would think that with the history of this "rivalry," the Suns would have been prepared to defend against it.

I will admit that I have not seen many Suns games this season, but is Diaw always that scared to shoot down low? He looked like he was deliberately avoiding having to do so.

[Sylvus]

Spurs it is!

Bring 'em on!

May as well get them out of the way first. Besides Houston, that's the first round team I was hoping for. Might end up with New Orleans in the second round though depending on the outcomes.

Too bad it wasn't Houston!

[Winnow]

Nash is going to retire a very sad man.

Nash has had the flu. It's the only hope I have to cling to (that he gets better) as he's been dribbling off his feet the first two games. Other than that, there's no excuse for the absolute collapse of the Suns in the third quarter last night. The Suns looked like they were the Phoenix Zombies last night throughout the 3rd quarter.

It's possible the Suns can come back but that will never make up for their chokes in game one and two.

[noel]

Nash is going to retire a very sad man.

Nash has had the flu. It's the only hope I have to cling to (that he gets better) as he's been dribbling off his feet the first two games. Other than that, there's no excuse for the absolute collapse of the Suns in the third quarter last night. The Suns looked like they were the Phoenix Zombies last night throughout the 3rd quarter.

It's possible the Suns can come back but that will never make up for their chokes in game one and two.

I really don't understand how you're knocking them for their game 1 performance. They played really well. Lets not forget that the Spurs ARE the reigning NBA champions. Lets also not forget that winning a playoff game in San Antonio doesn't happen a lot unless Derek Fisher or Robert Horry is on your team.

[Sueven]

Because there are no available excuses and it's not possible that the Spurs could simply be just as good as or a little bit better than the Suns.

[Winnow]

The Suns led by 14 or 16 points in the first half in game one. That lead was cut to 8 by halftime. They led by 14 points again in the second game and that lead was cut to 7 points by halftime. The Suns can outscore the Spurs. The Suns are being out coached. Popovich is by far the better coach.

D'Antoni took too long to react and change things up in the third quarter. It was apparant within the first 4 minutes that there was something seriously wrong with the Suns's gameplan or motivation in the third quarter. For some reason, they took the entire third quarter off. Amare and Shaq had one foul each yet Amare remained unaggressive for the entire third quarter. I would have had him go nuts in the third and let him pick up some charges (possibly) while trying to extend the lead. Instead he was held scoreless or had just a bucket or two.

It was poor management of the team. Nash really did look out of it as well. Having had the flu recently, if he has it, I can understand why he may still not be 100%. I think he got it a couple days before last Saturday so he should be semi back to normal by Friday.

I'm not making excuses though. I'm pissed at the lack of desire in the third quarter by the players, even if D'Antoni didn't do anything to help the situation.

[Sueven]

So, you're identifying a lack of intensity by Amare in the third quarter as a problem. And you're blaming this on D'Antoni.

It's possible you're right. But my question is:

What makes you think that Amare's lack of intensity of D'Antoni's fault, and not Amare's fault?

[Winnow]

So, you're identifying a lack of intensity by Amare in the third quarter as a problem. And you're blaming this on D'Antoni.

It's possible you're right. But my question is:

What makes you think that Amare's lack of intensity of D'Antoni's fault, and not Amare's fault?

You can ask hypotheticals all day long. Amare fired two jumpers that hit off the back of the rim in the third quarter. When you've worked so hard to keep Shaq and Amare out of foul trouble in the first half, you need to take advantage of it in the second half with aggressive plays. D'Antoni should have called a timeout right there and told Amare to drive hard to the hoop.

If you can find a quote from D'Antoni that said he told Amare to do that, then you have a case. With Nash hurting from the flu which you could obviously see as he struggled just to dribble the ball down the court without stumbling around, you need to go straight to your big men with one foul each and see what damage they can do until they pick up another foul or two.

[Sueven]

I'm not trying to make a case, I'm asking for your Suns expertise. Usually it's the player, not the coach, who is blamed when the player doesn't play aggressively. This seems like it'd be particularly true with the Suns, who don't run many set plays and take a lot of guidance from Nash as well as D'Antoni. I was wondering if there was something they were doing differently that led you to think D'Antoni was responsible, or whether you just think that D'Antoni should have instructed Stoudemire to be more aggressive.

Also, the lack of D'Antoni quotes explaining what he told Amare during the third quarter doesn't really demonstrate anything... I think that most coaches would think that saying something like "Well, I told him to drive hard, he just didn't do it" would constitute throwing your players under the bus.

And it's not a hypothetical, it's a question about a past event that actually occurred

[Winnow]

I'm not trying to make a case, I'm asking for your Suns expertise. Usually it's the player, not the coach, who is blamed when the player doesn't play aggressively. This seems like it'd be particularly true with the Suns, who don't run many set plays and take a lot of guidance from Nash as well as D'Antoni. I was wondering if there was something they were doing differently that led you to think D'Antoni was responsible, or whether you just think that D'Antoni should have instructed Stoudemire to be more aggressive.

Also, the lack of D'Antoni quotes explaining what he told Amare during the third quarter doesn't really demonstrate anything... I think that most coaches would think that saying something like "Well, I told him to drive hard, he just didn't do it" would constitute throwing your players under the bus.

And it's not a hypothetical, it's a question about a past event that actually occurred

You're just dreaming up shit like I am.

At least I have Amare and Shaq with one foul each at halftime to back up my theory that the Suns were indeed playing differently in order to keep their big men out of foul trouble. Feel free to look back over the Suns season and find a game where Shaq and Amare have anywhere near 1 or less fouls apiece at halftime.

That fact that D'Antoni didn't say anything doesn't help either cause so don't try using it as a point for your argument. (of course coaches won't demean one of their own players like that)

[Sueven]

Jesus fucking christ I'm not arguing. I'm asking you a question. I didn't even watch the game. I was trying to figure out WHY you were blaming D'Antoni. I guess I got my answer in a ridiculously fucking roundabout and obtuse manner.

[Pherr the Dorf]

Side note...

Dwight Howard really looks good with a pair of 20/20 games

[noel]

I'm glad to see it too. Howard, Bosh, Lebron and CP3 are what will make this league great in the coming years.

I like what the Magic are doing and I'm glad to see Van Gundy having success. I think he got a raw deal in Miami, so hopefully he can do some damage in Orlando.

[noel]

Detroit is aware that they've only actually won a championship once in the last few years, right?

What's happening to them now in the series against Philadelphia couldn't have happened to a more arrogant team.

[Zamtuk]

Get the broom out.

[Boogahz]

?

[Winnow]

I hate just about everything having to do with the Spurs style of basketball and flop/whine tactics but it wins them championships.

The Suns gave up in the 3rd quarter of game 2. They lost all motivation and should be embarrassed by their performance. They let the Spurs get under their skin. There's no excuse for it. In the past years, they played hard every game no matter what. The last six quarters of basketball have been pathetic. The leadership and desire is completely gone and I don't give credit to the Spurs because that's never happened the last four series the Suns have played the Spurs.

It appears the Suns have lost confidence in D'Antoni. Now that Steve Kerr has decided to break D'Antoni's system with slower style basketball, it's probably time to get a new coach that knows how to play that way. Firing Steve Kerr would be the other option but he's best buds and a neighbor of Suns Owner Robert Sarver so he's probably safe for a year.

My prediction if someone introduces the Suns to cocaine:

Suns in Seven! Backdoor sweep! Epic!

[noel]

The biggest problem I saw in the Suns game was the way the Spurs were just clowning them on the perimeter with Duncan/Ginobli or Duncan/Parker. There was just zero defense being played by the Suns allowing the Spurs to play like that and it was borderline embarassing.

Edit:

Commentary: Carmelo Anthony is the new Chris Webber.

[Aardor]

Commentary: Carmelo Anthony is the new Chris Webber.

BURN.

Man, I wish he played every game like he cared. Or he at least gave the impression that he cared. Denver is so disappointing.

[noel]

Commentary: Carmelo Anthony is the new Chris Webber.

BURN.

Man, I wish he played every game like he cared. Or he at least gave the impression that he cared. Denver is so disappointing.

AI looked awesome a lot of the game. His shots just weren't falling.

[Aardor]

Commentary: Carmelo Anthony is the new Chris Webber.

BURN.

Man, I wish he played every game like he cared. Or he at least gave the impression that he cared. Denver is so disappointing.

AI looked awesome a lot of the game. His shots just weren't falling.

And it's a damn shame he can't play defense, and the rest of his team seem to "choose" not to, instead of playing harder D because he can not. Maybe I expect too much against the Lakers.

[Spang]

There's no D in Enver.

[noel]

I actually thought AI was playing defense in the first half. There were soooo many deflected passes or passes that changed direction, and AI was doing some Matrix like moves to get some of the passes.

[Sueven]

I mean, Iverson's defense is limited by the fact that he's generally the tiniest guy on the floor. There's only so much you can do at 5'11. He's quick as hell with good hands and can read passing lanes, which allows him to play a gambling style where he goes after steals and counts on his teammates to back him up. This is fine if he's got teammates who actually can back him up, he can be a useful defensive contributor. This was the case when he took the Sixers to the finals, as that team featured a variety of quality defenders throughout the season-- Eric Snow, Raja Bell, Aaron McKie on the perimeter, Theo Ratliff, George Lynch and Dikembe Mutombo (DPOY) on the interior. This Nuggets team has Marcus Camby and not much else.

Iverson and Anthony are mismatched stars, I think. The big advantage that they both provide is that both can give you 30 points a game without the rest of the team having to contribute a whole lot, and both disrupt opposing defenses for this reason. Iverson is also really the only good passer on that team, and is at least sometimes capable of being a leader by example. Beyond that, neither one adds all that much. I feel like the team would be much better off subbing one of those two for a similarly talented star with a different skillset.

If I was running the Nuggets, I'd probably try to rebuild them in the model of Iverson's best Sixers teams, with an emphasis on tough, disruptive defense and transition scoring. That'd involve trading Carmelo. But I might just prefer this approach because those were my favorite basketball teams, and I'd like to see something similar in the NBA today. John Hollinger, a guy I usually hate, had some insightful points to make about the Nuggets today. He argues that the problem is that the Nuggets lack of outside shooting allows opponents to pack the lane, and the team would be better off going smaller and faster, with better outside shooting.

Look at Denver's most effective offensive lineups and you'll see a similar trend. The top five-man units with more than 50 minutes, according to 82games.com, were:

1. Iverson-Smith-Kleiza-Anthony-Najera

2. Iverson-Smith-Kleiza-Anthony-Camby

3. Iverson-Smith-Anthony-Najera-Camby

4. Iverson-Smith-Kleiza-Najera-Martin

Smith, Kleiza and Najera are all bench guys who can shoot. The lesson here seems to be that the Iverson/Anthony combo is most efficient when there's no more than one non-shooter on the floor at a time.

Another issue I see is that Linas Kleiza is a really good player who's stuck on the bench far too much. J.R. Smith is also a really valuable piece, but he's probably being used appropriately as an explosive bench scorer.

Personally, I think that the way to go is to trade Anthony. Kleiza could step in and increase his production, and J.R. Smith could get a few more minutes to compensate for the loss of Anthony's offense (and get his three-point stroke on the floor more often). I'd try to get versatile guys who can shoot.

More ESPN suggestions:

For instance, what if the Grizzlies get the No. 2 pick and decide they want to take hometown kid Derrick Rose even though they already have three point guards on their roster. If you're Denver, do you trade Melo for Mike Conley Jr., Hakim Warrick and Mike Miller?

Yeah, you do that, right? I'm sure that's not the only possible match

[noel]

That makes a lot of sense. I guess the biggest problem is that trading away Anthony is really trading away your youth/future. AI is still really, really good, but he can't have many miles left on that body as hard as he plays.

For me, I do not like Anthony. As talented as he is, and I believe he is extremely talented I don't believe he has what's needed in his head. He's still ridiculously immature, and I just can't get with his decision making, on and off the court.

[Sueven]

That makes a lot of sense. I guess the biggest problem is that trading away Anthony is really trading away your youth/future. AI is still really, really good, but he can't have many miles left on that body as hard as he plays.

True. Rumors of Iverson's demise have been greatly exaggerated for about five years now, but it will come one of these seasons.

And the trade Carmelo strategy definitely does prioritize the present over the future. I guess the other options are

1: Keep the Iverson/Anthony combo together, try to make moves to improve the team while still preserving future flexibility.

To do this, the Nuggets would have to figure out how to improve their team without moving their core players. Outside their two stars, the guy who's probably most interesting to other teams is Kleiza. I imagine there's also some interest in J.R. Smith, although maybe not as much because of his perceived immaturity. Beyond that? Camby is getting old and has a rep for fragility, despite his recent improvement in that department. Nene and Kenyon Martin are valuable players, but they have monster contracts that far exceed their value. So there's not too much flexibility. Najera is still a useful player, I suppose he has some value.

What they'd be trying to do is to improve their team now while retaining and developing their young players. So their most valuable chips, Kleiza and Smith, are probably off the table, because that's the youth they need to retain. I guess they could try a 'your flawed contracts for my flawed contracts' swap where they unload Nene or Martin for a similarly talented-but-flawed veteran who can shoot from the perimeter. I don't know when those two contracts expire (I'm pretty sure Nene has at least three years left, Martin I think has at least two, but could be wrong), but maybe they could pull off a deal where they fleece another team for a disgruntled star.

It seems to me that there aren't really concrete steps the Nuggets can take if they choose to go this route, they'd have to luck into something.

2. Trade Iverson and build for the future.

The problem here is that I'm not really sure what a winning team featuring Carmelo Anthony looks like. My first inclination is that you need to pair him with a star point guard whose game emphasizes passing, ballhandling, and defense. Someone like Deron Williams would be ideal, but obviously teams don't give up young players like that. Derrick Rose would also be ideal, but there's no way the Nuggets can trade for a pick high enough to get him, and it's unlikely that they become bad enough, even without Iverson, to get themselves a similar player in an upcoming draft. If they thought they could pull off a move like that, they'd also want to ditch Najera for some youth, cap space, or draft picks (sort of like the Kyle Korver trade earlier this year), and they'd want to ditch Martin for anybody with a less onerous contract. They'd have to make a decision as to how valuable they think Nene will be (he's still fairly young) and then move on that determination.

I guess they could gut their team-- ditch Iverson, Najera, Martin (if possible) and maybe Nene (if possible) during the offseason and the first half of next season, let the young guys play, hope they develop well, and hope they come out of it all with enough cap space and/or draft picks with which to stock the rest of the team. Might work.

I still like the trade Carmelo route best. They'd probably have 2 or 3 years to compete with that team before they have to start rebuilding, and hopefully they could arrange things so that they have a number of contracts going off the books around then, giving them a fresh start for a (hopefully) relatively painless rebuilding program.

[noel]

Yeah I guess if I'm operating on the premise that Carmelo sucks, trading him doesn't really matter. I think the biggest problem is that he was billed as a superstar, and really he's just another Jermaine O'Neal/Lamar Odom. He's a great player but he's not good enough to be 'the guy'. Frankly I think with Anthony it's mostly 'not mature enough' instead of 'not good enough', but getting rid of him now isn't a bad idea. You'd get a lot of trade value, and you could build for the future or present depending on what you liked.

[Winnow]

Boston in a struggle with an 8 seed in the East!

Garnett's a curse! 2-2

They're crushed, broken...ATL takes it to seven.

[noel]

Really, really impressed by Atlanta. I was also really impressed and pleased to see how the refs handled the 4 Technical situation with Garnett and Atlanta's center (no I don't know his name). 2 or 4 Ts was the correct call and allowed the players to keep playing and entertaining.

[Pherr the Dorf]

Anyone think David Stern wishes that had been the Warriors and the Lakers instead?

Orlando closed out with Howard's 3rd 20-20 game of the series

[noel]

Anyone think David Stern wishes that had been the Warriors and the Lakers instead?

Orlando closed out with Howard's 3rd 20-20 game of the series

I think everyone wishes it had been a team that had actually tried to compete.

[Kilmoll the Sexy]

Boston has had some horrible shot selection problems. They are not going to win a jump shooting contest with anyone. They may actually need to put Big Baby into the starting lineup and let him and KG work the inside and get Rondo penetrating more. I think Atlanta did nothing but piss them off this last game.

[noel]

Boston has had some horrible shot selection problems. They are not going to win a jump shooting contest with anyone. They may actually need to put Big Baby into the starting lineup and let him and KG work the inside and get Rondo penetrating more. I think Atlanta did nothing but piss them off this last game.

Actually they also won this last game. Scoreboard.

And maybe since they won two time in a row... BOHICA!

[Winnow]

Shaq is costing the Suns the game. I know he can't make free throws but he can't even get off his feet to slam the ball. He's missed at least three point blank layups.

[Trek]

I heard the Suns did that three-peat thing when you win 3 championships in a row or whatever





Teh bestedt team evar!!!11!

[Winnow]

This year they didn't win, or deserve to win, the championship. Last year was their three-peat.

Winner of New Orleans/San Antonio will be the champs this year.

[Zamtuk]

I agree with your assessment on who will win the championship.

Just the thought of the Parker/Paul battle coming up gets me excited. It will be one hell of a series.

[Zamtuk]

Later D'Antoni!

Time for the Suns to return to obscurity.

[Winnow]

I'm curious who wanted and traded for Shaq. If that was all Steve Kurr, he should be the one fired but won't be because he's a butt buddy of the owner Robert Sarver. If it was D'Antoni that wanted Shaq (which I don't think it was) he should be fired.

Shaq's inability to make a simple layup is pathetic. The Suns are stuck with him for 2 more years.

D'Antoni already has interest from Chicago and New York. He'll find work somewhere for sure.

Not sure what the game plan if for the Suns next year. A new coach isn't going to help. I think it's more like D'Antoni getting the hell out of dodge knowing he'd be stuck with him for two more years.

You may be right. Unless Shaq retires (highly doubtful with his paycheck), the Suns can't reload until 2011 with Nash and Shaq most likely leaving.

I'll concede it's over for a few years unless some sort of amazing trade is made.

[Winnow]

I think everyone can agree that "Hack a Shaq" isn't good for the game. It penalizes the team in possession of the ball.

My proposal would be to treat fouls that occur off the ball as technicals (anyone on the floor can shoot the free throws) but you don't get the ball back like in a technical. That would stop the Hack a Shaq (and I mean hacking anyone that sucks at free throws) without the ball. I'm not mad at Popovich for doing it as it's part of the game now. I just don't think it should be as it's not good for the fans. Who wants to see an intentional foul every trip down the court? And that's the key. It's "intentional" which actually should be free throws and the ball back

I know people will disagree but I think it's a good idea for the league. Stern's an idiot though.

I also think the Suns should draft a PG or Center with the 15th pick. Nash is past his prime and will be good for 30 minutes a game. We need him to mentor a promising new PG while he's still here. As for Center, we need an athletic Center that can defend.

[noel]

It wasn't Shaq's fault that Nash (who I love not as much as you, but I think he's one of the top 5 players in the NBA) SUCKED ASS in the fourth quarter. I've never, ever seen Nash play that badly, ever.

I'll say it for the record. It's MARION'S FAULT. He's the guy who put being the man before getting to the championship on a winning team. He forced the Suns hand. I don't know what else was out there or what else they had as an option, but I think the Shaq gave the Suns more than they could have even hoped for. Hell, he helped them GET to the playoffs with that win over San Antonio on the regular season.

As far as D'Antoni goes, I've always liked Kerr a lot, but he's BEGGING if he thinks there's a better coach out there. They need to have a joint presser where they both say they're on the same page and D'Antoni isn't going anywhere. The one thing D'Antoni needs to improve on is his defensive mindset, and his lack of development for bench players.

I think if Grant Hill doesn't go into this series injured (when isn't he? -- I love Hill, but who traded for HIM?) that's enough to allow the Suns to win or at least push it all the way to 7.

I think blowing up this team is a horrible idea.

[Boogahz]

Who wants to see an intentional foul every trip down the court?

I think people like laughing at the guy that cannot get a basic fundamental of the game he is being paid to play right.

I do think the rules need to change though. I can understand it in the closing 2-3 minutes of a game, but watching it done early in the third quarter is painful.

[Sueven]

I'm curious who wanted and traded for Shaq. If that was all Steve Kurr, he should be the one fired but won't be because he's a butt buddy of the owner Robert Sarver. If it was D'Antoni that wanted Shaq (which I don't think it was) he should be fired.

Jack McCallum without question knows the Suns better than any other national writer, and he says:

remember that D'Antoni was a bigger booster of the trade for Shaquille O'Neal than Kerr was.

Winnow, this was you two weeks ago:

Duncan can't stop Shaq or Amare while Shaq can and did stop Duncan. ...and that Spurs white guy with the gay hairband thing may as well not be out on the court. Advantage Suns in a big way.

The Spurs are pretty much done when it comes to matching up with the Suns. They're 1-3 this year vs the Suns and 0-2 with Shaq in the lineup. Kurt Thomas is no help. Duncan isn't going to cut it. On offense, Shaq stops him now and on defense, Amare always abuses him (averaged 37 ppg in a playoff series vs Duncan) and Shaq was shooting baby hooks over Duncan all night long.

Don't know but I'm convinced that the Suns made the right moves to counter Duncan

And now whoever was responsible for those same moves (you know, the ones that you were convinced were correct) needs to be fired?

Geniuses don't turn into idiots overnight. A gamble is a gamble whether it pays off or not. Everyone knew that this was a gamble and many people (yourself included, and myself included as well) thought it was a worthwhile one. The fact that it didn't pay off doesn't mean that everyone involved is an idiot who needs to be fired. It's not like Steve Kerr has a history of risky moves which blow up in his face-- he's been a GM for half a season, and he made a gamble that many people thought was a wise gamble. D'Antoni also has no such history, he's won more than twice as many games as he's lost, and he's probably a much better coach than any available alternatives. If he needs to be fired because the front office chemistry isn't there, so be it, but firing him because he thought the Shaq trade was a good idea doesn't make sense to me.

I'd just like to point out that you're now on record as disapproving of the Steve Nash signing and approving of the Shaq trade. A general manager's job may not be in your future...

I'd also like to note my disappointment at the fact that two of my three favorite teams in this years playoffs (Suns and Nuggets) are already eliminated, and the Sixers probably aren't far behind.

Goooo... Utah?

[Winnow]

Shaq can't make point blank layups (because he can't get off his ass to dunk it) That has changed my entire opinion. If you suck that bad at free throws, you absolutely must score when you're underneath the hoop with a slam and not lay it off the backboard to bounce off.

I'm pretty sure D'Antoni is gone.

It's time to blow up the team over the next two years in preparation for 2011. If they can find a way to make the games entertaining, I'll be OK with it the next two years. Find whatever pieces you can, and get some lotto picks in 2009/10, and then grab the big time free agent or two in the summer between 2010-11 seasons when you have 30 Million to play with.

[Sueven]

But this is the same Shaq who you were praising for his touch (sky hooks over Duncan) and his power/athleticism (pictures of him blocking shots), right?

I do agree that it's probably time to start thinking about rebuilding. Nash, Shaq, Bell and Hill will all be a year older next year. The Suns are in a tough position. They have two really good young players (Amare, Barbosa), but they're surrounded by aging guys with bad contracts who aren't going to be getting any better before those contracts run out. I'm not sure how you even go about improving that team, unless you're willing to blow it all up and start over... but even then, they don't have particularly valuable trade assets, and, with Amare sticking around, they'll probably never be bad enough to get top-notch lottery picks even if they give away all their veterans...

Would you consider trading Nash? I'd imagine he'd have some value at the trade deadline next year, going to a team who needs a good point guard / dead eye shooter.

Edit to add: You know what would look REALLY good right about now? All those first round picks the Suns gave away. If I was a Suns fan, I'd feel a lot better if I had Sergio Rodriguez and Luol Deng on my roster.

[Winnow]

I wonder if the Suns will pick up Avery Johnson as their coach. I'd be OK with that.

But this is the same Shaq who you were praising for his touch (sky hooks over Duncan) and his power/athleticism (pictures of him blocking shots), right?

Yep, the very same one! He sucks now. If you can't make point blank layups, it's time to hang up your sneakers as a big man.

Those draft picks would look good but then we would never have been in the position to possibly win a championship the past three or four years. That's a little too much Monday morning QB'ing I think.