Phoenix Suns: #5 all-time NBA franchise
by Billy Hoyle on Jun 11, 2009 11:09 AM MDT
Email
PrintAccording to John Hollinger, the Suns are the #5 all time NBA franchise in spite of being the "best franchise never to win a championship" Hollinger admits this is something of a backhanded compliment. Hollinger also states the Suns as a franchise has "Consistently entertaining teams with remarkably few knuckleheads." The Suns rank behind the Lakers, Celtics, Spurs, and Bulls. He says Barkley was out best player, D'Antoni our best coach and the 92-93 finals team our best team/season. This seems pretty accurate to me, what say you?
[Note by Phoenix Stan, 06/11/09 10:34 AM MST ]
Not bad for a dusty little desert town, huh?
Not to bag on Hollinger for not being fully up on his Suns history but I don't agree though w/ D'Antoni as the best coach. Not by a long shot. Last time I checked (which was last night) Cotton Fitzsimmons has his name in the Ring of Honor and finished his career 6th on the all time win list. I can't imagine a scenario that ends with Mike D's face being unveiled at USAC.
As for best Suns players...well, you can make the case for the Chuckster but there is a long list of other guys you could also argue for going back to Van Arsdale. My personal choice is Alvan Adams but that's one of those "things in the past are always better then the present" deals.
20 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Maybe, maybe not
The Walter Davis-Alvan Adams team that blew the last game against Seattle ranks up there. Also, The D’Antoni team in 04-05 would have blown the doors off of the ’93 group. KJ and Nash could not guard each other, but Amare would have made Chambers look silly. Shawn could take care of Barkley, but who on that 93 team would have guarded Joe Johnson?
April 29, 2008 Total Eclipse of the Sun. Is the sky falling?
Agreed, but ...
… I don’t know about Marion checking Barkley. Marion is long and athletic, but do you really think he has the bulk to stop Chuck from just backing him down in the post?
"The mustard is off the hot dog!"
by Billy Hoyle on Jun 11, 2009 11:26 AM MDT up reply actions
Amare would shut down Chuck
ha!!!!
Blogging Suns Basketball
by Seth Pollack on Jun 11, 2009 11:50 AM MDT up reply actions
Shawn
Would just pull the chair out from under him and Chuck would travel every time. Shawn wouldn’t body him up. Chuck would never know whick direction Shawn is coming from, and get his shot blocked since he is only 6’5". Barkley never had to play against someone quicker than him.
April 29, 2008 Total Eclipse of the Sun. Is the sky falling?
No way in hell could Shawn guard Barkley.
KJ would defend Nash much better than Nash would defend KJ. Majerle could have shut down JJ.
Yup.
Majerle was a great defender in his prime. He was slower by that season, but JJ wasn’t the same JJ that we see now on the Hawks, either. Thunder Dan would have definitely handled him.
I beg to differ
Joe has two inches and 25 lbs on Thunder Dan. I don’t remember Majerle having much success against taller players.
April 29, 2008 Total Eclipse of the Sun. Is the sky falling?
Disagree...
I do agree that talent wise the 04-05 starting lineup may have been better, but they had no bench. That’s why the 93 team would beat the 05 team. Here’s the bench matchups:
2004-05: Barbosa (young and inexperienced), Jim Jackson, Steven Hunter, Bo Outlaw
vs.
1992-93: Danny Ainge, Negele Knight, Cedric Ceballos, Richard Dumas, Oliver Miller, Frank Johnson
I’m sorry but the bench would make the difference if these teams played, and it seems like people on this blog forget how great Barkley was, and also KJ.
by Aluminum Foyle on Jun 14, 2009 7:17 PM MDT up reply actions
+1 I caught the NBA classics replay of the 94 WCF.
Barkley was on top of it, playing smart and aggressive. People do forget how good the 92-93 Suns were.
PSN ID- presbot
I'm going with Nash...
The Two-Time MVP and the quarterback of SSOL. Best player in Suns history.
Marion couldn't handle Barkley's luggage
Shawn is probably my favorite Suns player since KJ, but there’s no way in hell he could have “handled” Barkley, particularly the 92-93 MVP version, possibly on either end of the floor. Barkley is ranked in the 50 best all time, and is arguably in the top 5 ever at his position, how could he not be listed as the franchise’s “best” player? Nash is probably a close 2nd, but even then, the KJ of 92-93 was probably the top point in the league at the time. Much like G. Hill, he was a sure-fire hall-of-famer until he couldn’t stay healthy. As far as Amare making Chambers look silly, how soon we forget. I don’t have the link, but TC has an all-time dunk of his own or two out on the youTubes.
Overall, I’m good with Hollinger’s ranking. Best franchise never to win it all? For sure, and better than a bunch that have.
Chambers
Looked silly defending James Worthy and Kevin Willis, and Amare is better than either of those. As far as defending Tom, well, we all know why Amare is not a goodd defender. It is surely not talent, as we saw in the Boston game a year ago when Amare bodied up Garnett and frustrated him into an awful game. Amare’s defensive problem is desire. And I can’t see Amare letting a white boy like Chambers get the best of him.
April 29, 2008 Total Eclipse of the Sun. Is the sky falling?
Actually, Amare would probably be matched up with "The Big O"
Oliver Miller and Mark West also manned the pivot that year along with TC. That Suns squad also featured Danny Ainge, “Club Ced” Ceballos, and Richard Dumas in his one good year, while the 04-05 bench pretty much started and ended at Leandro.
KJ would have torched Nash, and kept up with him on the other end, and Majerle could certainly have done ok on JJ. Ceballos/Q a likely wash, and Barkely would have killed Amare and Marion. That 92 team shot the 3 pretty well, ran up and down as much as the 04 team did, and defended much better. I think the 06-07 team was better than the 04-05 one, but again, the 92-93 team could match the starters, and had a much better bench. We all see the fat Chuckster of today and forget, but that year he was lean, fast, strong, and pretty much the best player not named Jordan in the L.
Best single season ever -- perhaps
That’s probably Barkley.
The best player the Suns have ever seen, though? No way.
Just from that era …
Does Charles get the Finals without KJ? Would Chuck even have been in Phoenix without what KJ did in the 4 years prior? Who kept the Suns relevant after Chuck scorched his way out of the locker room?
What part did Barkely play with KJ in resurrecting the Suns? Something smaller than Chambers, I’d submit.
I’m ranting
Mmmmm ... Guinness
I think Hollinger is saying "Best player to wear that team's uniform"
In which case it has to be Barkley. He is undoubtably the most talented Suns player – he would have won 2 or three MVPS if Jordan wasn’t around.
I think the better way to look at it is – which player had the best career as a Sun
At which point I would have to put Alvin Adams, Walter Davis and Nash ahead of Barkley
Not KJ tho. He simply wasn’t on the court enough.
Finally some proof...
I lived in Los Angeles for a few years and enjoyed way more then my share of ribbing and overall shit talking from my Laker fan friends out there. Even though the Suns don’t hold a candle to the Lakers history I always tried to explain how consistently good and fun the Suns have been to watch.. at least I have some numbers to back me up now ha…
Detroit...
should be #5 on this list, they should be higher than PHX, with their 3 championships.
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recommended FanPosts
Recent FanPosts
Friend Us On Facebook
SBNation.com Recent Stories
In Association With
Follow us on Twitter
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
