Evaluating the current roster

by SBZ on Jan 9, 2012 2:48 PM MST

As the season progresses, we are learning more about what we have and more importantly needs for the future. At the end of last season, The Suns had a lot of issues that needed to be solved. In my opinion, this season has been a pleasant surprise in many regards. First and foremost the power forward position does not seem to be the achilles heel of the team going forward. Markieff morris looks like the answer moving forward, He is able to rebound, play defense, and rebound. Also paired with Marcin Gortat, the front court looks promising moving forward. Also with RoLo and Channing Frye, these positions have adequate depth. The real concern arises when looking at the backcourt and small forward position. I think we can all agree that this year is out of the question, and the team has to start looking for the future.

The Suns absolutely need to get a new point guard for the future. Steve Nash is still playing at a high level, but he won't play for ever. Ideally if we can get a point guard in the draft that we can have learn behind nash for a year or two that would be perfect. Nash still has a few good years left, and he hasn't shown any desire to leave the team. Price is a good back up, but will never amount to any more. THe current suns team will probably be right outside of the lottery picks, but maybe with a trade we will be able to draft a premier point guard in this years draft. The current league is a point guard league, and we need a playmaker to compete in the future.

I noticed that a lot of analyst and even fans complain that suns don't have a 2 guard that can create his own shot, but if you look at all of the successful suns teams of the past, they haven't had one either. The suns are at their best, when they have a 2 guard that can consistently hit 3's and play good defense. An ideal fit would be someone like wes mathews of portland. I understand that he will never be available, but maybe J smith when he comes back from china? Dudley is a good role player, but he lacks the athleticism to be anything more than a 6th man off of the bench. he is at his best when can provide short spurts of hustle off of the bench. O.J. mayo would also fit the bill, especially since memphis is keen on getting rid of him. I understand both of these players have bad reputations, but maybe under the tutelage of professionals like hill and nash they will learn how to act in the locker room. if you look at smith he has always been with bad teammates like K mart, Melo, and iverson.

The small forward position is similar to the point guard position, in that HIll is good now but he is old and can't be in the long term picture. A name i like at this position is wilson chandler. He provides the same type of play that Hill does currently. He can hit a jump shot, plays good defense, and can also run the floor which is evident by his time in New York under D'Antoni. I think Hakeem Warrick is flourishing in his role coming off the bench as the back up 3, but giving him more than 20 minutes a game is a mistake.

I think Frye RoLo Warrick Dudley and price coming off the bench would be one of the better bench units in the league, and would provide adequate depth for a lineup of Gortat Morris Chandler Smith and a rookie point guard/ nash going forward. I would be interested in hearing other opinions on this?

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I think that team is good

But a superstar away from beong championship bound. We must land a eric gordon or westbrook typr player. Add that to everything you said and were golden

"Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose"

by phxpurple on Jan 9, 2012 5:07 PM MST via Android app reply actions

no westbrook

i agree a superstar caliber player would be beneficial, even if not gordon, maybe someone like kevin martin from houston. I am personally not a fan of westbrook, because he just doesn’t like to pass, and that wouldn’t work in the suns offense. Sure, he would provide an offensive spark, but he just wouldn’t make players better because he would rarely pass to them. With westbrook, you would definitely need another star who can also score on his own

by SBZ on Jan 9, 2012 7:01 PM MST reply actions

people are wrong about westbrook

hes not a ball hog. hes a SHOOTING guard playing point guard. He looks worse than he is because he happens to be on the same team as KD35. if you put westbrook on a team that already has a vet PG,like PHX for example,and no real scorer he would excel not having to be something hes not like in OKC.
Nash wont let Westbrook dictate the gameplan because our system runs through a non scoring PG meaning westbrook will still get his points just not always on his demand unless were in the 4th and we need him as the go to guy. you cant tell me that if westbrook is available we should pass on him because he may be a bad distrbutor when thats not his strong suit in the first place.
who knows after a few year of playing with nash maybe hell mature and be able to shift into a combo scoring pg with the ability to create for others.
.
but anyways I want Gordon first.

"Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose"

by phxpurple on Jan 10, 2012 2:33 AM MST up reply actions

westbrook

Can westbrook honestly continue scoring if he doesn’t have the ball in his hands constantly?, sometimes i feel that westbrook gets a lot of his points because he constantly has the ball in his hands, but if you move him to the two guard position that won’t be the case.

by SBZ on Jan 10, 2012 8:29 AM MST up reply actions

Hmmm but i if we only had a guy like Gallinari....

Blind enough to believe on Pudgemonster.

by Lino Canaan on Jan 9, 2012 7:32 PM MST reply actions

I like this guy too

he can create for himself and draws fouls like crazy

Voted most likely to say "I told you so"

by jc79 on Jan 9, 2012 7:35 PM MST up reply actions

He is awesome, i just fee bad for NYK always doing the worst deals possible

They traded him in the Carmelo deal, but Carmelo was already going to NYK next year and they lost Raymond Felton, Gallinari, Mozgov and Wilson Chandler, i want all of those guys, including Felton.

Blind enough to believe on Pudgemonster.

by Lino Canaan on Jan 9, 2012 7:39 PM MST up reply actions

Nari is weak

i wana a monster out there on the floor. not some italia boy who knows how to flop.

"Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose"

by phxpurple on Jan 10, 2012 2:35 AM MST up reply actions

What?

As long as we have Steve, I still believe!

by NashMV3 on Jan 10, 2012 12:24 PM MST up reply actions

You pretty much hit the nail on the head with everything you had to say SBZ. I think we have a pretty solid team right now and a talented and deep frontline.

What worries me is the fact that we don’t have anyone ready to take the starting pointguard or shooting guard/small-forward position when nash and hill eventually retire. We’ve been putting it off for the last several seasons.

While we’ve added talented backups in brown(struggling but still an exciting talent) and price (an athletic sparkplug on the defensive end but not a consistent starter) they lack the abilty to take over games or make the big shot when needed. They add to a pretty good bench.

We really need to find a superior talent with the chance to become an all-star behind nash and hill while their still around to do some teaching. Despite the money we will have to spend this summer, i can’t see westbrook leaving OKC or howard choosing us (despite the monetary gain) over a definite contender like the bulls,thunder or mavericks.

We have a very small chance at landing either williams or love but even that probably won’t happen. I have always felt we can increase our chances of getting the star player we want by drafting him or trading for him in the draft at a lower cost.

We should be able to find nash’s replacement by drafting one of these talented young pointguards- kendall Marshall, Myck Kabongo,Marquis Teague,Austin Rivers or Tony wroten.

There will also be quite a few talented off-guard and small forward prospects to choose from- Terrence jones,william buford,kris joseph,tim hardaway jr, jeffrey taylor,chris johnson and terrence ross.

I believe this draft will be much more stacked with talent than the 2010 draft was. It’d be very foolish for the suns to pass up a chance to add one or two college stars at positions of need.

by jay humphries on Jan 9, 2012 8:41 PM MST reply actions

of the names mentioned fir PGs

I don’t want any lol. I want Perry Jones, Jared Sullinger, terrance Jones or Harrison Barnes. I don’t like any of the college PGs enough to take in the first unless we are drafting in the 20s I guess. This years draft is all about Forwards.

by SmokinKieff on Jan 9, 2012 11:31 PM MST via mobile up reply actions

i agree

this is a deep draft, that could provided some quality talent. I especially agree with your point, that signing a max value free agent isn’t likely just because there is no draw to phoenix. Also, we might be able to acquire some more picks for cash. There is some quality SF’s especially perry jones, but it depends where our draft pick is.

by SBZ on Jan 10, 2012 8:31 AM MST up reply actions

Horrible timing on this post. We just won 2 impressive blowout games, one against a very good team. I am not giving up on this year yet by any stretch. And we haven’t seen Redd yet. He may be your 2 guard you are looking for to make some shots (maybe not the defense part).

by BringBackBarkley17 on Jan 9, 2012 9:53 PM MST reply actions

don't mean to be a downer

but portland was on a back end of a back to back, and had arrived in phoenix at 4 am on game day. i think the suns will keep things interesting but you would be crazy to think the suns will be able to contend for a championship.

by SBZ on Jan 10, 2012 8:34 AM MST up reply actions

Gilbert?

I think Arenas would be a great fit…think he has a lot to prove and the Suns are the team to do it on. Hibachi!

by jessnsam on Jan 10, 2012 8:52 AM MST reply actions

IDK about Gilbert

He seemed pretty washed up in Orlando, and never seemed to make an impact. That being said, the medical staff might be able to rejuvenate his career. I don’t know if he would be a good fit with the way the team is going, because he plays absolutely no defense.

by SBZ on Jan 10, 2012 9:00 AM MST reply actions

Another issue (for any player) coming to the Suns

Would be Gentry’s ridiculous 12-man rotation. If Gilbert was unhappy with Van Gundy…he’d be furious with Gentry.

by jessnsam on Jan 10, 2012 9:09 AM MST up reply actions

No

one vet project (Redd) is enough for a season. we would be pushing our luck to sign two. plus Arenas is still delusional and feels he deserves more. nothing worse than an ego with no talent to back it up. (Carter, Peaches)

by miketheboss on Jan 12, 2012 1:24 PM MST up reply actions

JR Smith? Wilson Chandler?

I don’t follow you.

JR Smith is not a bad defender, in that he is horrible. Synergy rated Smith as the worst defender in the league last season.Additionally, Smith has never cracked the starting lineup in his career. There is a reason Denver threw money at Affflalo and doesn’t care the Smith went to China [because Afflalo is the guy you are really talking about – great defender, great shooter]. Smith is a terrible shooter, in that he is a career 42.8% from the field, takes horrendous shots, turns the ball over regularly, pouts when he is taken out of games, and is generally a backup 2 guard. Why is it that you believe he is so good. He has had 7 years to improve and he hasn’t. The word potential no longer applies. He is not an answer, short or long term.

Wilson Chandler? Yes, he is a decent defender, but not great. He is a very good finisher, but he is suspect from outside of 10 feet. Sure, he shoots ALOT and makes a few, to make it seem as though he is a shooter, but in reality, he forces may bad shots up, ala Al Harrington. I don’t think he would be a bad pickup necessarily, but it really depends upon how much you have to pay him.

Arenas is done. First off, he was perhaps one of the most overrated players in history. yes, he threw up two seasons of 28+, but in the 3 season span where he avg 25,29,28 he shot 43.2% from the field and took mostly 3’s to get that scoring. Since those seasons, he has been an injury riddled psycho who has done little on the court. Why would we want that?

the problem here is that your assessment of Dudley isn’t quite on the mark. While I don’t believe he is ever going to be an all-star, I certainly think he fits the bill as a shooting guard that shoots and plays defense. The suns play better on both ends when he is on the floor,and I don’t see why he can’t be a solid starter. Sure, he isn’t sexy like JR Smith or Gilbert Arenas, but he is effective, efficient and plays well within the structure of our team. I would start afflalo over him, but I wouldn’t even bother with Smith or Arenas.

by hubertdavisfor3 on Jan 10, 2012 10:05 AM MST reply actions

Short Answer: Balls

On our current roster….in crunch time…who has the confidence and competence (balls) to take those big shots??? JYD has shown that he ‘s lacking in that dept. Frye will take the shot…but do you really feel comfortable with that? Nash looks ike he doesn’t want to take those shots most of the time.

Say what you will about Arenas…but the man has made some big shots at crunch time during his career. Arenas was a perennial all star…Dudley’s maximum potential is 6th man of the year candidate.

by jessnsam on Jan 12, 2012 7:05 AM MST up reply actions

Fuck Sarver!

This discussion makes me miss J-Rich even more.

by jessnsam on Jan 12, 2012 7:08 AM MST up reply actions

I agree that JR smith has never really taken an interest in playing defense, and even at times has been completely atrocious, but the fact is he is athletic enough to learn. An article from the denver post in 2009 even pointed out that when george karl put an emphasis on defense to Smith, he performed very well. There were times when he came of the bench for his defense. Also Smith does take a lot of poor shots, but thats what brings down his field goal percentage. If you say that Jr smith is a bad shooter because of shot selection, thats one thing but to say that he is just a bad shooter is flat wrong. If taught a little bit about shot selection, he could easily increase that percentage closer to 46 or 47 percent from the field if not better. Also you complain about his shot percentage, but Dudley isn’t that much better. Dudley is currently shooting 43 percent ( although it is early), and averaged 46 % the last two years.

As for wilson chandler, he is an underrated defender and is talented. he shot decent in new york, but had a slump when he arrived in denver. this was probably from learning a new offense mid season.

I love dudley just like the next suns fan, but i don’t feel that he is a starting shooting guard that can bring his hustle for 30 + minutes a game and be effective. I hope i am wrong, and we will sure find out a lout about that this season.

by SBZ on Jan 10, 2012 10:52 AM MST reply actions

While i like the talent level of the bigs in this draft, i wouldn't add another one.

I definitely like the bigs available in this draft but i think we have a deep and talented frontcourt already with the addition of morris.

It’s our backcourt and wing position(aside from the occasional big game from dudley and warrick) that needs the most help. Redd might come in and have a very positive effect on this team but we can’t forget that he’s pretty old for a guard as well.

If we’re smart. we’ll draft a star collegiate pointguard and then make a trade to aquire another first round pick later in the draft enabling us to find the talented shooting guard/small forward to place next to morris for next season.

By the way, if i was the suns front office, i would consider drafting someone like perry jones and playing him as a shooting guard. With his athleticism,shooting,ball-handling and most importantly size he could really exploit smaller off-guards in the league and create a big-time mismatch in our favor.

by jay humphries on Jan 10, 2012 6:12 PM MST reply actions