Daily Links (with practice notes)

Practice today for the Suns ran longer than planned. The general mood of the team seems pretty serious. There's no high-fiving jocularity going into the season.

We got our first look at Jarron Collins. He seems to be about the same size as Channing Frye. Not a particularly wide body maybe a bit longer. He was a nice interview and talked about doing what he's asked to do. You can see why he lasted so long in Utah. He's a pro.

Collins also is a long time family friend of the Lopez family. He and his brother Jason played youth club ball with older brother Alex Lopez and he's know Brook and Robin since they were toddlers. I asked him if that makes him a good choice to be a mentor to Robin. He didn't take the bait and basically said at this point he knows Robin so well that the best he can do is just provide encouragement.

Other Griffin Brother

Taylor Griffin was once again the last player off the court. He said he was excited to play in his first NBA game and is clearly disappointed that Blake is injured. He said that he talks to his brother about every other day.

Options Date

The Suns have until October 31st to pick up the 4th year options on the rookie contracts of Dudley and Tucker. I asked David Griffin about it and he said they would likely announce the decision on Thursday. He called it a no-brainer but I am not really sure what he meant.

Picking up Dudley's option is a no-brainer to me but do the Suns really want to guarantee Tucker $2m for next season? If they don't pick up his option he becomes an unrestricted free agent next year which means this trade season he's an expiring contract. But maybe that's what Griff meant by it being a no-brainer. We'll find out soon enough.

You all know how much I love Tucker. He's a great guy and I think is a legit NBA player but here in Phoenix he's just stuck behind Barbosa and Richardson and that won't change next year either. It's a numbers game with him but I'm always going to be a Tucker fan.

Predictions:

It's that time of the year. I am picking the Magic to beat the Spurs in the finals.

I really don't care about MVP, MIP, ROY, etc but feel free to call your shot in the comments below.

Daily Links after the jump

• Basketbawful
  Hilarious. The Clippers mis-spelled "Phoenix" in a promotional piece
  
• azcentral.com - members
  LB or Dudley to start for Suns Play head coach for a moment. With Jason Richardson suspended for the first two games for his driving convictions, who do you start against the Clippers and Warriors?
• A Suns Q and A with BP's Kevin Pelton| Valley of the Suns
  Kevin Pelton of Basketball Prospectus discusses the Phoenix Suns from a statistical perspective.
• Hardwood Paroxysm " Blog Archive " LION FACE/LEMON FACE PREVIEWPALOOZA: Pacific Division
  Another look at the Suns
• NBA Dish: Charles Barkley Wants His
  Charles Barkley. Bill Simmons. Steve Kerr. Who doesn't want to leave the media to be a GM?
• KTAR.com - Israeli team loses $22,000 to Staples Center thief
  Way to go LA!!
• Post Game Reaction: Battered and Bruised, the Arizona Cardinals Beat the Giants 24-17 - Revenge Of The Birds
  The Arizona Cardinals went to New York to battle a good Giants team. After a hard fought effort, they came out victorious.
• Cardinals Starting to Become a Force in the NFL as they stun the Giants 24-17. - Revenge Of The Birds
  Since the Arizona Cardinals came to Arizona they have had one continuous problem facing them, winning on the road. Prior to this season the team has won just 18 games out of 80 on the road in the past 10 years. This year the Cardinals came into Sunday winning one game on the east coast,
• Aldridge Signing Is a Turning Point for Player, Coach and GM - Blazersedge
  The Blazers next year will no longer have a collection of guys out performing their rookie contracts. All things change and this might be the last year for the "young" Blazers.
• Are the Hornets Vulnerable? - Basketball News & NBA Rumors -
  New Orleans is a team that should be able to hold off upstarts like the Phoenix Suns and Memphis Grizzlies

• NBA Dish: Charles Barkley Wants His \'Chance To Fail\' As A GM - The Baseline - The Baseline - Sporting News
  Charles Barkley. Bill Simmons. Steve Kerr. Who doesn't want to leave the media to be a GM?

• NBA season preview: Western Conference
  Eric Yates' Western Conference preview has one shocking prediction. What is it? Also, read how Jason Owens thinks the Eastern Conference will shake out.