What a week! We're going to do things a bit different for the weekly checkup this time and break it down into segments. Think ESPN.com's Daily Dime, only with fewer items and without the pretty formatting. This may get a bit lengthy, so bear with us.
1. Out with the "new"...
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2. In with the "old"...
So the Suns are now pinning their hopes on a soon-to-be 36-year-old center who has four championships with two different franchises. Before he even officially arrived, he told Steve Nash "I won't let you down". In his press conference on Thursday he vowed to make skeptics "eat their words" and talked about the need to win not just one but two championships with the Suns to complete his "legacy". The question is, can his body make good on these lofty aspirations? The Suns' physicians think so. The Suns players seem excited about it too. But until Shaq actually takes the floor in a game, we can only speculate (good and bad) on how this will work out. Burning Questions (aside from the obvious):
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3. What does Dan think about this?
A reader wondered what former Bright Side of the Sun blogger turned Suns.com blogger Dan Hilton thinks about the trade, so we asked. Speaking strictly as a fan (not an official Suns position), he had this to say: "The way I've been explaining it is this: According to most national sources, the local media and many blogs, the Suns didn't have a chance to win a championship this season and were under-performing. The front office obviously thought the same thing. The object of playing is to win a ring and if you have a chance to upgrade the one thing people say you need (interior defense), I think you have to make the move. Only time will tell if this was a good move or not but, in my opinion, it is worth the risk." We hope to have more from Dan in the next week or so (read: as soon as we get off our lazy duffs and write up a list of questions to send him). |
4. Views from around SBNation
Clips Nation thinks the Suns should have been more patient and laments the effect the addition of Shaq will have on the Suns' entertaining style: "The Suns were a blast to watch. Watching a young, dominant Shaq is about as much fun as watching me post up ClipperMax. Watching an old, slow Shaq is more like watching my 73 year old dad post up ClipperMax (Papa was quite the baller in his day). Shaq can be effective still, I have no doubt about that. But not particularly entertaining." Pick Axe And Roll blames Memphis: "I think GM's were blown away by that trade. This is the first panic move generated by the Gasol to LA transaction. The internet is abuzz with effusive praise for the Lakers. The speed at which everyone is handing the Lakers the Larry O'Brien trophy makes the Celtics offseason coronation seem glacial by comparison." |
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5. By the way, there were some games this week...
Three to be exact. First, the Suns took on the Bobcats in a game I shamefully described as a "routine blowout". Since it turned out to be Shawn Marion's last night in a Suns uniform, I wish now I had approached it more like srp did in appreciating the joy of the moment. On Wednesday, fresh off the hype and emotional turmoil of both losing a long-time teammate and gaining a legend, the Suns dropped a close one to the Hornets. It was a double-overtime classic in which the Suns showed a lot of heart and passion. Tough to come up short, but great to see a glimpse of that 2005-06 resilience again. Wrapping up the week was last night's narrow escape over the Sonics. Thank goodness for free throws. And Wally Szczerbiak. |
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6. He said, She said
A few final thoughts from both of us to make this post even longer.
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