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Around SBN: News And Other Updates Leading Up To Pats-Giants

Steve Nash Responds To Busy Suns Offseason

Nash and Gentry share a shake at the Mercury playoff game on Thursday. (Photo by Ryan Malone, SB Nation Arizona)

Steve Nash is back in town after a summer of ... well just check his tweets.

I stuck my head in the practice court where Nash was getting some shots up yesterday and shared a wave and saw The Most Interesting Canadian In The World at the Mercury playoff game where he was sitting courtside with his twin daughters, his brother Martin (the pro soccer player) and a niece.

I did not however, get a chance to chat with Steve about all that went on this offseason. No worries, Suns fans. Mr. Paul Coro has you covered.

Nash on Kerr leaving:

"He did a phenomenal job for us. I miss him already.

"He has such a wealth of experience as far as being a part of winning teams that he did a great job of building a team of guys who can co-exist and get more out of each other because of their personalities. He didn't want selfish guys. He didn't want guys in here who wouldn't work. So we have a locker room of character guys because of him. Our locker room was the best it's ever been last year because of the decisions he made."

Star-divide

So basically, Steve said all the nice things about Steve but of course wasn't really going to comment about what Steve thinks about why Steve left.


Nash on the Suns offer to Amare:

"It disappointed me because we were close and we're going to miss a big piece, but I think Robert went to or beyond where anybody could ask him to go," Nash said. "This franchise would suffer a severe risk if Amar'e ever got hurt, so I understand why the last two years were guaranteed only if he played 22 minutes a game. I can't fault Robert for that. I can't blame Amar'e. He got that money guaranteed. It's just a shame."

That's pretty much what everyone else said which just goes to prove how smart Steve Nash is. He agreed with all of us.

Nash on the Suns being undersized:

"To try to spread those guys between the two (off-guard) and four (power forward) at times, which may or may not work, it'll be a challenge," Nash said. "But the positive side is they're all terrific players. We have a wealth of depth at that position, defensively and with skill and shooting. The toughness and athleticism will serve those guys well but you can't expect them to play a ton of four and to thrive."


Again, Nash saying what we've been talking about since the night the Suns added Hedo. Who's going to play the four? How are they going to rebound and defend the paint?

The problem, which Gentry touched on during Blanks press conference, is that there just aren't many good options out there. I've gone through the rosters and names it's the same thing, either guys who wouldn't really help or guys that teams aren't going to be willing to give up.

And course, you can't add a power forward or back up center without trading away some one on the team. This was the fatal flaw questionable move in trading for Hedo and not trying to turn Barbosa into more of a power player like Brandon Bass or Ronny Turiaf.

We'll see what happens next. There's no question the team recognizes this issue with their roster and now it's up to new man Lance Blanks to figure out if he can make a reasonable deal. Barring that, the Suns will play small again and just have to hope that Robin Lopez can give them a very productive and healthy season.

Then again, this team thrives on being the underdog so don't be surprised to keep hearing Nash talk about the challenges they face. They love to use that stuff as a motivator.

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And course, you can’t add a power forward or back up center without trading away some one on the team.

That’s the problem. This is the reason why I was never and still am not in line with the acquisition of Warrick. I don’t doubt his ability or whether he can be great in our system. I believe he can, but I just feel that he wasn’t a necessary piece to add. I thought we should have gone with either Lou, Bass, Turiaf or Tolliver as our options to backup Hedo at the PF. Or better yet, I thought we should have left that backup PF spot open and let Clark and Lawal battle for it.

Now if being too small ends up being a problem than we will have to trade one of our rotational guys and the most trade-able would be J-Rich, Warrick and sadly enough, Dudley.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 27, 2010 7:21 PM MDT reply actions  

in retrospect

Yes, but remember they got warrick before getting Hedo

Raising Arizona Sports at SB Nation Arizona twitter: @sethpo

by Seth Pollack on Aug 27, 2010 7:24 PM MDT via mobile up reply actions  

I know, but remember that they originally wanted Hedo and Amar’e together? Sarver apparently has always coveted Hedo. Mabye it was just a rumor, but they were working on a Barbs for Hedo deal earlier in the summer before Amar’e declined the offer and before they signed Warrick.

I understand that Hedo is a risk yet I also understand the reasoning behind that acquisition. I understand that Warrick is not a risk yet I can’t see the reasoning behind his acquisition. I feel it was unnecessary.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 27, 2010 7:33 PM MDT up reply actions  

I think he will prove to be a very good addition as our backup PF, but an unnecessary one. One that we will probably later trade for an actual Power-forward.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 28, 2010 11:28 AM MDT up reply actions  

Unless you plan to pick up a power forward that plays 48 minutes per game and cannot be injured, having a backup is necessary.

by waxmonkey on Aug 28, 2010 12:10 PM MDT up reply actions  

I’d rather have Lawal and Clark battle for that backup spot or go and sign a true power-forward in Turiaf, Bass, or Lou.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 28, 2010 6:30 PM MDT up reply actions  

I suspect you’re underestimating Warrick and a lot of people here are overestimating Lawal.

I’d give backup PF minutes to Warrick over Lawal any day until one of them shows otherwise.

by waxmonkey on Aug 28, 2010 6:55 PM MDT up reply actions  

I know, there is nothing we can do about it now.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 28, 2010 6:31 PM MDT up reply actions  

This was the fatal flaw in trading for Hedo and not trying to turn Barbosa into more of a power player

I disagree. I am thrilled with the acquisition of Hedo. He is a higher risk player than Warrick, but with higher risk it can mean greater reward. If that is the case we might actually end up being just as good if not better than the team last year to go a long with expected improvements from Dragic and Lopez.

Again, I feel they jumped too early on Warrick. They were planning on getting Hedo before they even signed Warrick. Originally, they wanted him and Amar’e together. I think they panicked a little and jumped the gun too early when Amar’e said no. They should have told Warrick that he was just a backup plan if they failed to acquire Hedo.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 27, 2010 7:27 PM MDT reply actions  

They signed Warrick to replace Lou, and at 4 million, I think they thought that was cheaper than Lou would go for.

I can’t really believe that someone hasn’t snatched Lou up – I can’t believe that there’s only a couple of teams he could help – he could help us, but it wouldn’t be fair to him.

Auntie Em: Hate you, hate Kansas, taking the dog.
Dorothy

by haremoor on Aug 28, 2010 12:30 AM MDT up reply actions  

yea

Besides all the other decent PF were getting like full midlevel exceptions….so they had to swoop in and grab someone quick.

by forget on Aug 28, 2010 1:35 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions  

All I can say is

Look at your point guard. Now look at Steve Nash. Now back to your point guard, now back to Nash.

and here’s some tickets to that team you like…

by Fritzy on Aug 27, 2010 7:33 PM MDT reply actions   1 recs

Honestly I think we have about as many problems with the PF position as the Magic do.

Their starting PF is Rashard Lewis for crying out loud. He, like Turk, is better suited for the SF position. I always thought he was playing out of position last season. Granted, they do have Brandon Bass for a backup but he’s only a PF in the sense that he’s a power player. He’s strong but he’s not the tallest big man out there.

I always thought Van Gundy would move Rashard Lewis to the 3 spot and start Brandon Bass as a PF. That gives them more of a traditional lineup. But I guess he wanted all 3 point shooters out there with Howard. Now, our lineup would be quite similar: Robin Lopez with three 3 point shooters and Grant Hill. I think Alvin will find a way to make any lineup work.

Steve Nash is my mancrush. But Goran Dragic is the 2nd coming of Manu Ginobili, which makes him just as tasty.

by NashMV3 on Aug 27, 2010 8:22 PM MDT reply actions  

They also have a center thats led the league in rebounding the past 3 seasons

As much as Robin has improved on the boards its not enough to make up for a 3 playing 4.

by hcblankscreen on Aug 27, 2010 8:39 PM MDT up reply actions  

We might not know it

but i’d be willing to bet quite a lot that Dwight Howard will outplay Robin this season, as much as i love the ’fro’d one.

by DaveJD on Aug 30, 2010 10:06 AM MDT up reply actions  

I don't mean that Robin will outplay Howard

that’s silly.

But we won’t know if the Suns’ lineup has a fatal flaw until they actually play the games. That’s all I meant.

Blogging Suns Basketball at Bright Side of the Sun

by Alex Laugan on Aug 30, 2010 10:13 AM MDT up reply actions  

No homo but

man i missed hearing about nash

Sports are ninety percent mental and the other half is physical.

by Wichita SunSteeler on Aug 27, 2010 8:50 PM MDT reply actions  

I must be missing something

Brandon Bass? Ronny Turiaf? I thought the point of the exercise is to make OUR team better.

by suns68 on Aug 27, 2010 10:09 PM MDT via mobile reply actions  

I'd like having Turiaf on our team.

He’s a bigger and stronger Lou. The guy plays with heart. Plus he did this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0KRGPhHVHA

Steve Nash is my mancrush. But Goran Dragic is the 2nd coming of Manu Ginobili, which makes him just as tasty.

by NashMV3 on Aug 27, 2010 11:44 PM MDT up reply actions  

I have seen Turiaf play multiple times both with LA and Goldenstate. He is a high energy bench player that isn’t very talented, but makes up for it by getting under people’s skin and hustling. He is a bigger stronger Lou pretty much. He would fit right in with our bench.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 28, 2010 11:31 AM MDT up reply actions  

yet very inury-prone

we need guys who can stay on the court

Blogging Suns Basketball at Bright Side of the Sun

by Alex Laugan on Aug 28, 2010 5:56 PM MDT up reply actions  

I’d still take him over Warrick(not that Turiaf is the better player). We have the best medical staff and if he got hurt we just let Lawal and Clark gets some experience.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 28, 2010 6:32 PM MDT up reply actions  

Yeah some of us were even thinking of taking T-Mac.

Aaron Nelson works wonders. If Grant Hill revitalized his career here, I’m sure T-Mac can. Hell, we prevented Grant Hill from being a second round virgin for his entire career.

Steve Nash is my mancrush. But Goran Dragic is the 2nd coming of Manu Ginobili, which makes him just as tasty.

by NashMV3 on Aug 28, 2010 7:51 PM MDT up reply actions  

Tmacs problems

are only partially injury-related. Frankly, he’s not a good team player. Houston froze him out when he cam back from injury because he messed with their chemistry. prior to that, Orlando and Toronto never won consistently despite his scoring

Blogging Suns Basketball at Bright Side of the Sun

by Alex Laugan on Aug 28, 2010 11:11 PM MDT up reply actions  

True.

But if he’s at least 80% of his old self, I wouldn’t mind gambling on T-Mac for the veteran’s minimum. If he doesn’t work out, we’d just push him to the end of the bench.

Steve Nash is my mancrush. But Goran Dragic is the 2nd coming of Manu Ginobili, which makes him just as tasty.

by NashMV3 on Aug 28, 2010 11:15 PM MDT up reply actions  

and there goes the hard-earned chemistry

he’s signed by Detroit now anyway. We’ll see how he pans out in a limited role.

Blogging Suns Basketball at Bright Side of the Sun

by Alex Laugan on Aug 29, 2010 7:29 AM MDT up reply actions  

Our rebounding won’t be much worse than the years with amare starting at center and marion at PF, honestly we can probably beat everyone in the west besides LA, the spurs, and portland. I don’t see anything else they can do to change this team into a title contender quickly. Its kind of disheartening that management made these moves knowing that their only purpose was to manufacture a couple more 50 win seasons with early playoff exits. If I were them I would have just paid amare and taken a chance on his knees staying healthy.

by forget on Aug 28, 2010 1:31 AM MDT via mobile reply actions  

Marion and Amar'e were a pretty good rebounding duo in 2006-2007

they both combined for 19.4 RPG (Amar’e: 9.6, Marion: 9.8). Marion is a pretty good rebounder and he was a good defender. Marion and Amar’e together make a very athletic frontcourt duo.

All in all, Marion is a better rebounder than Amar’e, even though he gives up about 3 inches.

Steve Nash is my mancrush. But Goran Dragic is the 2nd coming of Manu Ginobili, which makes him just as tasty.

by NashMV3 on Aug 28, 2010 3:33 AM MDT up reply actions  

PF ...

Good to see Nash back …
I know that Turk is not the best solution to guard PF-s of the league and to rebound but …
how many teams are there that have two dominant big guys ?
Lakers, Boston maybe with KG, Houston with Yao and Scola …
So Hedo’s defense is not such a big problem because Lopez is going to guard the best big man on the court, and Hedo will guard the other one …
And how many of the “other” ones can stay with Hedo ?
The Suns will be ok as long RoLo is healthy …

by Alexx on Aug 28, 2010 5:23 AM MDT reply actions  

If the rebounding issue

is obvious to us the fans, I am sure the players understand the same.
 The team will have to take this on as a unit. Each player will have to concentrate more and get the ball off the glass.
 I like this team. As mentioned before, what options beside Lou, is out there.

by Grockcubs on Aug 28, 2010 5:54 AM MDT reply actions  

I Know It is not the popular belief here

But C-Frye is a big Body. He has some skills and I do see him as a future possibility to guard the other Big for certain stretches of Time.

The Max time a player can stay on the court is 48Min and his eff is bound to diminish after 30+ Minutes. Especially if he is Killing us during the game. We have C-Frye / Warrick & Turk who can take turns guarding the OTHER big with ROLO, Spending time on the Best Big on the court.

Does anybody here catch the drift of what I am saying ??

by SS21 on Aug 28, 2010 9:48 AM MDT reply actions  

With Frye yes, he did start improving on his defense and rebounding late season, so I believe he has the potential. He isn’t necessarily big, but he is tall, mobile and stronger than we think. For him it all comes down to determination and aggressiveness. If he does that he can grab10+ rebounds on any given night. Stats wise, I don’t think I will seem much of an improvement from him because I expect he will get less minutes with a deeper team.

Don't trade Dudley!

by Beavis 25 on Aug 28, 2010 11:36 AM MDT up reply actions  

I missed Steve.

I can’t wait unitl the season.

by bmiller16 on Aug 28, 2010 1:21 PM MDT reply actions  

I like Warrick but I thought we would have looked after our own first. Lou defends, blocks shots, rebounds, set screens and gets under the opposition’s skin. Let’s not forget about the energy he brings every night. All these things that he brings to the table are what we need; I thought it would be a no-brainer. It was the only move that left me mystified. I’m happy with all of the other moves we made in the off-season. Amar’e isn’t worth the max money, but I wish him well. Barbosa’s role had changed so we got Turkoglu who can play all five positions and has a high basketball IQ. Sarver’s managerial acquisitions has shown he’s learning as an owner; no more bad players with expensive contracts. I believe the roster won’t change; we’d all love one more big but none appear to be available, unless Memphis decide to have another fire sale. I’m comfortable to roll with what we have. We may lack size but we’re deep and versatile. Barring injuries I can smell playoffs.

by Sunderstruck on Aug 29, 2010 4:37 AM MDT reply actions  

regarding Lou

I just gotta say to all those who think Lou is so awesome:

If he’s so great, why has no one gone out of their way to sign him yet?

He has all the intangibles you mention above. But he also can’t catch a pass unless it hits him in the gut, has no offensive repertoire, can’t make free throws consistently and can’t really lay post defense. He’s great at getting the unexpected wow block, but gets bullied a great deal in one-on-one defense.

Blogging Suns Basketball at Bright Side of the Sun

by Alex Laugan on Aug 29, 2010 7:32 AM MDT up reply actions  

It must be the money.

If he’d accept 2 mil a year, then I’m mystified as to why he hasn’t yet been signed. He’s an absolute steal at that price.

If he’s looking for 3-5 mil a year, then I better understand why there hasn’t yet been a connection.

I’m wondering if his agent has him convinced anything less than 10m/3y is an insult, and he’s a little miffed not seeing his fax machine light up.

In a world where Darko Milicic gets an immediate 5m/yr offer, Lou should be showered with 3m+ offers.

by waxmonkey on Aug 29, 2010 9:48 AM MDT up reply actions  

I like this.

I agree. I loved Lou, don’t get me wrong. He was a great guy and would occasionally do some really awesome things.. In terms of chemistry, i’ll miss him a lot. But in terms of playing, I don’t really feel like it harmed us all that much to lose him. And I do think it’s a real shame if he’s not taking offers because he thinks it’s not enough money…

"If the Suns can shock the world
Goran Dragic is the name."

by Dragic_is_Magic on Aug 29, 2010 10:47 AM MDT up reply actions  

Those are my feelings as well.

Lou’s energy was great, but he wasn’t really a very good player. Great intangibles but a lack of talent describe an ideal 12th man, not a regular rotation player. With Amar’e’s departure, the Suns needed a more offensive-oriented player, someone who can run the P&R and finish at the rim. I’ll definitely miss seeing Lou run out onto the floor, but with guys like Jared and Goran in the 2nd unit I don’t think it will hurt the team too much.

by Omaha Sun on Aug 29, 2010 11:33 AM MDT up reply actions  

Those are all good points, but...

I still stand by mine. I’d rather have Lou backing up the PF with the current roster we have than Warrick. As to why nobody else has signed him I don’t know but if I were in a position to I would. His work ethic and professionalism would be valuable to any teams’ younger players, hell even some older ones. I don’t believe his defence is as bad as you’ve decribed and I never said he was (so great). But what he is great at is what we need. Will his departure make the Suns fall apart ? No, of course not. But having him pushing for minutes against guys like Clark and Lawal and keeping them looking over their shoulders is worth it in my opinion.

by Sunderstruck on Aug 30, 2010 3:25 AM MDT up reply actions  

But that's exactly the problem.

Lou pushing against Clark and Lawal for minutes when Clark and Lawal aren’t going to get very many minutes.

Auntie Em: Hate you, hate Kansas, taking the dog.
Dorothy

by haremoor on Aug 30, 2010 9:45 PM MDT up reply actions  

So what’s the problem if Lou doesn’t get minutes? I want him pushing our young players keeping their competitve juices flowing. Who better to teach them that no matter how much game time you see you have to bust your arse every night and if you don’t then back to the bench. I just wouldn’t have signed Warrick at the expense of Lou. I think what I’m trying to say is I’d rather have Lou the 12th man on our bench guiding our young players more than anything else, we’re better with him than without him. :)

by Sunderstruck on Sep 1, 2010 6:08 AM MDT up reply actions  

Lou's intangibles

are mostly on the defensive end of the floor.

All things I have heard about Warrick Indicate that he is something like Amare (Amare-Lite) in most respects. Finishes at the Rim / PNR Play, Avg. Jumpshot Etc.

Warrick allows us an option to continue playing the PNR to some extent and have that as a regular option in our offense. Remember, the PNR has been the Suns Bread and Butter Offense for a long time and requires a guy that can Roll and Finish at the Rim and automatically creates open shooters or mismatches.

So, there is no doubt as to why we needed Warrick on the team. With Turk we have increased the BBIQ and added another scoring and passing threat. This makes our offense more potent. Ina way we have 02 Points of attack, wherein if one does not work in the first 10 Seconds, we change to the next which might be just as effective making Nash/Dragic into a shooter.

Lou would not be getting any minutes and the youngsters will still have to work/struggle their arse off to get any kind of PT with te Depth we’ve got.

by SS21 on Sep 1, 2010 7:24 AM MDT up reply actions  

So what’s the problem if Lou doesn’t get minutes?

Lou probably has the problem with this.

by waxmonkey on Sep 1, 2010 9:38 AM MDT up reply actions  

He might, but I bet he’s more worried about finding a team than minutes at this point

by Sunderstruck on Sep 4, 2010 9:18 PM MDT reply actions  

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