Suns Invite Dowdell to Camp, Let the War for 5th Guard Begin
by Wil Cantrell on Sep 15, 2010 9:03 AM MST
in Phoenix Suns Commentary
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PrintAs expected, the Suns invited Zabian Dowdell to training camp. Valley resident Chucky Atkins is also expected to get an invite to Suns camp, forcing a nice little competition for the fifth and final guard spot with rookie Matt Janning.
The Suns could be one injury away from needing one of these guys during the season, but my master of the obvious senses tell me that Atkins is last year's Dan Dickau, and while it may be wise to stash Dowdell on the bench as insurance, the edge in this battle goes to Matt Janning.
Janning's game has been discussed on BSOTS and you can find an interview here, so most of us know what he brings to the table. The Suns consider him a high basketball IQ guy with upside, but he is certainly NBA raw. Another factor playing into the mix is Jason Richardson's contract situation. After Josh Childress, there is no true 2 guard. If J-Rich gets traded or signs somewhere else in the off season, Janning could provide a cheap, young in house replacement for the future. In addition, he can go at either the 1 or 2, which adds further depth for the Suns.
If the worst were to happen (I won't mention it specifically but it involves injury to certain vital cogs in the Suns wheels), the Suns may be in better shape with either Atkins or Dowdell as a backup. At 36, Atkins has been around the NBA block and would add some veteran poise and ball distribution help (which is about all he adds at this stage in his career). Dowdell isn't nearly as experienced as Atkins with the majority of his career played overseas in Spain (77 games).
But perhaps Hedo Turkoglu makes this decision a little easier for the Suns. Turk's "Point Forward" skills could allow the Suns to invest in young Janning instead of Dowdell. Janning may not be forced into action in the case of a back court injury which gives him time to sit, learn, and put on some NBA style muscle.
The other side of the coin, split between Atkins and Dowdell, is to consider the veteran factor. If one looks at true PG depth for this season, then either Atkins or Dowdell are the best "ready to play" options.
Of course, unless something really awful happens, we're probably only looking at this 5th guard option playing minimal to no minutes per game.
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Competition is healthy
Jannings spot to lose,unless there loading up on guards anticipating a jrich move which I doubt and is pure speculation on my part.
Don't except
Chucky to make it and Steven Hunter is not an option
Raising Arizona Sports at SB Nation Arizona twitter: @sethpo
Yeah Hunter at guard sounds like a bad option
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Sep 15, 2010 9:15 AM MST up reply actions
The way he never became a better player after he left the Suns, Hunter at any position might sound like a bad option. Eh?
by 8472species on Sep 15, 2010 9:19 AM MST up reply actions
Rather have Hunter
If he’s healthy.
With four true guards, two swingmen and a point forward, I have a hard time imagining a scenario where we’ll need a fifth guard.
On the other hand, we’d be desperately short of seven-foot centers if Robin’s back flares up again.
by suns68 on Sep 15, 2010 9:58 AM MST via mobile up reply actions
Disagree.
We need a third PG, someone to handle the ball in case Steve or Goran miss a couple games. Hedo can be the “point forward,” but he can’t very well be asked to defend a PG, right? We’re three-deep at the 5 with Robin, Frye and Jones. No need to go four-deep there.
"We didn’t go for coffee and this kind of stuff."
-El Dragon on his relationship with Sasha Vujacic
Also
If the answer is “Steven Hunter,” then I hope the question never has to be asked.
"We didn’t go for coffee and this kind of stuff."
-El Dragon on his relationship with Sasha Vujacic
The guard combinations are endless
If Steve or Goran were out, Grant Hill would almost certainly run the point for the reserves, a task at which he’s fully capable. If we lost two of those three, Hedo could initiate the offense while the starting point is resting, with Dudley and Childress to guard the other team’s guards on the defensive end, like we did with Diaw a few years ago.
If we lost a shooting guard, we could go with a three-guard rotation, or move Grant or Dudley over to cover. (It’s not like we’re going to run out of small forwards anytime soon).
Any of these options are better than giving the reins to Atkins, Janning or Dowdell.
On the other hand, if Lopez is out, Frye has to take the starting minutes whether he actually starts or comes off the bench. That leaves Jones as our only real backup option, and I don’t think any of us have seen him play enough to know whether he’s up to it.
Hunter is an 8-year NBA player with a lifetime average of 4.5 pts and 3.2 boards in 15 minutes a game. That would give us a decent, if unspectacular baseline at backup five and if Jones turned out to be better than that, play him.
Janning = Hornacek?
If I thought you were serious about nicknaming Matt Janning “Hornacek,” I’d think the Suns shouldn’t bother with Zabian Dowdell or Chucky Atkins.
by 8472species on Sep 15, 2010 9:25 AM MST reply actions
Nah
Just added that based on size and frosty complexion. I think it’s way too early to be making real comparisons.
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Sep 15, 2010 9:41 AM MST up reply actions
I knew that would attract a comment from you, species.
"We didn’t go for coffee and this kind of stuff."
-El Dragon on his relationship with Sasha Vujacic
+1000
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Sep 15, 2010 9:44 AM MST up reply actions
If Robin did get hurt badly, how many of you would consider offering him for Marc Gasol?
Don't trade Dudley!
I'd consider offering him for Marc Gasol if he was healthy
Not saying I would do it, but I’d consider it
Steve Nash, the league's MVP, is a longhaired Canadian who spoke out against the war in Iraq and reads The Communist Manifesto. Quentin Richardson declared after a game-winning shot that it "was like Hamlet. It was a suspense thriller, and I killed them at the end." Amare Stoudemire, when asked to comment on a 22-point third quarter against the Kings, said, "I've got a tendency to jump over some guys' heads and throw it down."
I'm not sure
Gasol has better stats and a better offensive game, i’m not sure if how good he is defensively but he does seem to get his blocks. Gasol averages almost twice as many points (14.9 8.4) and Rebounds as Lopez (9.3 4.9), but Lopez is sure to increase those numbers with a summer working on his offensive game and Hedo replacing Amar’e in the frontcourt (then again Gasol played with Zach Randolph last season so Gasol would probably average more in the same situation). If it was in a vaccum i’d probably go with Gasol but i’m not sure Gasol fits our system and might slow us down compared to Lopez who is perfect for us.
I wish I could vote Reynolds...
Come back Scottie!!!
But since he’s already gone to Italy…Janning gets my vote my a mile over the others.
I never saw much of anything in Dowdell…He seems to lack the ability to play as a PG in our system and facilitate the offense. I didn’t see Janning do much of this either, but to his credit, he played very well as a SG and didn’t get much opportunity to play PG.
Janning is an intriguing prospect, and I wouldn’t mind trying him out this year.
I used to be Magic_Dragic
but when I found BSotS – I gave up on PO.
They say "don't swim with the sharks", but I'm faster than sharks so it's not a big deal...
You need to get AZTribe
to convert to BSotS full time – That fool is baad.
They say "don't swim with the sharks", but I'm faster than sharks so it's not a big deal...
by Eutychus on Sep 15, 2010 2:51 PM MST up reply actions 1 recs
I honestly think he could give Alex a run for his money :)
They say "don't swim with the sharks", but I'm faster than sharks so it's not a big deal...
I just got frustrated with
the slow response on the website – and reading/posting/commenting on BSotS is soooo much easier.
They say "don't swim with the sharks", but I'm faster than sharks so it's not a big deal...
What's up stat01 and Magic_Dragic?
Good to see some familiar faces from there as well!
Yes, I still post on both sites, but this one is usually more active. I would love to see Tribe post here as well, as I think he would be a welcome addition to the banter!
what's up guys
Yeah I think PO is fizzling out more and more every day; it’s a shame, but honestly I don’t think they put a whole lot of effort or thought into improving or keeping their product competitive. They just seem to be resting on the laurels of their past awards in my opinion.
Their new message alert has been broken for months, their RSS feeds have never worked, their quick reply still wont put spaces between paragraphs if you’re on anything other than firefox, there’s just little to no monitoring of spam accounts and posts (some dude’s been spamming the threads all night about Grand Cayman time shares), trying to do anything from your phone is a real chore, and there’s really only about ten people who have been posting there during the summer. I’m definitely feeling the frustration too now.
I do get more impressed with BSOS every time I drop by; the posts and overall atmosphere seems a lot more level-headed than realgm or PO and like OmahaSun said I like the articles. How is BSOS for gameday threads; I’ve never checked it out before?
by arizonatribe on Sep 19, 2010 12:05 AM MST up reply actions
hey, we've never met but I thought I'd reply since no one had
we get 500-1000 comments per game thread, and the content is pretty fun. It’s tough to keep up in real time, people are posting so fast.
BTW, spam is a pain in the ass. I’m banning a couple accounts every morning but they’re like cockroaches.
Blogging Suns Basketball at Bright Side of the Sun
thanks Alex!
Good to hear; can’t wait for the season to start.
by arizonatribe on Sep 19, 2010 5:34 PM MST up reply actions
TRIBE LIVES!
Yeah – I talked to a few peeps last year who work for the Suns and asked if they would ever work on improving PO’s interface – the answer was basically no.
SBNation is amazing and basically the best place for solid debate/conversation. It will really pick up when the season starts too – but by far this has been the most active off-season spot with the best off-season content (thanks to our buddies Alex and Wil).
Hope to hear from you more – your input on the daily articles would be very well received.
They say "don't swim with the sharks", but I'm faster than sharks so it's not a big deal...
by Eutychus on Sep 20, 2010 11:01 AM MST up reply actions 1 recs
I'll take whichever
player looks best in the discount Herve Leger dress and Louboutin pumps.
by suns68 on Sep 15, 2010 9:44 PM MST via mobile reply actions
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