SB Nation - Louis Amundson

Preview: Kings at Suns

Ziller — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 21:30:14 -0000

More photos » by John Froschauer - AP

THE OPPONENT

The Suns are 14-5. The only good thing about that, for Kings fans, is that the Suns were at one point 14-3, which means the Suns have lost two straight. One loss came at the hands of ... New York (guh), an embarrassing blow-out defeat in which Danilo Gallinari lashed out at the creation of MTV's new hit Jersey Shore. The other loss came at Cleveland, which is a bit more understandable. Actually, it's completely understandable. Cleveland is pretty incredible.

Steve Nash refuses to obey human physiology, and Alvin Gentry's gambit (that getting back up to speed would improve the offense more than starting Channing Frye would hurt the defense) has worked. (That will now be dubbed the Gentry Gambit, by the way. It differs from the Bonner Gambit in that the latter states that if you have a good enough defense from positions 1-4, you can play a tall shooting guard at center.)

			FG			3PT			FT			Rebounds			Misc
	G	M	M	A	Pct	M	A	Pct	M	A	Pct	Off	Def	Tot	Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	PPG
Amare Stoudemire	19	33.8	7.2	12.5	57.1	0.0	0.1	0.0	4.8	6.4	75.4	2.1	5.0	7.1	1.1	2.9	0.6	1.2	3.5	19.2
Jason Richardson	17	31.4	6.2	12.4	50.5	2.5	5.6	44.2	1.8	2.5	72.1	0.9	4.1	5.0	1.7	0.9	0.8	0.4	2.1	16.8
Steve Nash	19	32.3	6.1	11.7	52.3	1.6	3.6	44.1	2.7	2.8	94.4	0.5	2.3	2.8	11.5	3.8	0.4	0.2	1.2	16.5
Channing Frye	19	30.1	4.6	9.9	46.8	2.7	5.7	46.8	0.9	1.2	78.3	0.8	4.9	5.8	1.4	0.8	0.8	0.8	3.4	12.9
Grant Hill	19	30.2	4.6	9.6	47.5	0.4	1.0	42.1	2.4	3.0	78.9	1.4	5.3	6.7	2.1	1.3	0.6	0.3	1.6	11.9
Leandro Barbosa	14	21.4	4.6	9.4	48.5	1.2	3.0	40.5	1.2	1.7	70.8	0.3	1.6	1.9	2.0	1.1	0.6	0.1	2.0	11.6
Jared Dudley	19	22.1	2.8	6.3	44.5	1.5	3.3	46.0	1.5	2.2	70.7	1.5	2.3	3.8	1.2	0.8	1.0	0.2	1.9	8.6
Goran Dragic	19	15.9	2.5	5.6	43.9	0.7	2.1	35.9	1.1	1.9	56.8	0.6	1.7	2.3	2.9	1.6	0.5	0.2	1.7	6.8
Louis Amundson	18	15.2	1.9	3.6	53.8	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.9	1.6	58.6	1.8	2.7	4.4	0.4	0.9	0.1	0.9	1.9	4.8
Alando Tucker	7	6.1	1.3	3.0	42.9	0.1	0.6	25.0	1.9	2.4	76.5	0.6	0.3	0.9	0.4	0.3	0.0	0.0	0.1	4.6
Robin Lopez	4	9.8	1.8	2.8	63.6	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.8	1.0	75.0	1.5	1.8	3.3	0.0	2.0	0.3	0.8	2.0	4.3
Earl Clark	15	10.3	1.7	3.7	45.5	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.3	0.5	50.0	0.6	1.1	1.7	0.5	0.7	0.3	0.4	0.5	3.6
Taylor Griffin	1	8.0	1.0	2.0	50.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.0	1.0	0.0	1.0	0.0	0.0	1.0	2.0
Jarron Collins	11	7.3	0.5	0.7	62.5	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.2	0.8	22.2	0.5	1.5	2.0	0.1	0.3	0.0	0.3	1.2	1.1

The Suns are a bad rebounding team (13th on offense, 30th on defense) so feast away, Mssrs. Jason Thompson and Jon Brockman! The real battles are at ... well, hold on.

THE KEY BATTLE

I think that, assuming at some point Paul Westphal wants to bring Beno Udrih back into the starting unit as he did to open the second half of the Pacers game, this is not the right game to do it. We know factually that Beno can't guard Nash. We assume Tyreke Evans will also have problems, but the chance Evans can slow Nash a bit (plus make him work hard on the other end) plus the idea that Donte Greene will cause more problems on defense for Jason Richardson than Evans would, and ... I think you go Evans/Greene again. The issue would be whether Westphal wants to keep up with Phoenix (score every time they do) or to slow them down enough to keep pace (spend energy defending, hope you make enough shots). Ideally, both. But this is a real world, you know? As such,

Guards vs. Guards.

INTERESTING SIDESHOW

I have no idea whether any current Phoenix residents actually lived there during Westphal's tenure. But if so, this is like ... Dick Motta returning, right? How would I react if Dick Motta got hired by the Grizzlies and came to ARCO? Hmm. I hope I don't spend the first quarter ignoring the game while pondering this.

BOLD PROCLAMATION

Florida's white helmet-white uni motif is worse than the Kings' short-lived gold lamé kits.

NUMERIC PREDICTION

Suns by 5.

DETAILS

This will be a 6PM Pacific tip. Game thread at 6, post-game thread at 8:45. Recap under the sea.

3 In the Key - Toronto Raptors Game-Day Preview vs. Suns

Raptors HQ - Vicious D — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 13:30:24 -0000

More photos » by Winslow Townson - AP

J-Rich has now experienced the full Steve Nash-effect (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

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After now securing two wins in a row, the Raptors roll into Phoenix to try and keep up with a fast-paced Suns team. Vicious D takes a look at how these two teams will stack up against each other.

I'm sure you guys have heard by now, but I've been in a Fantasy Draft with a bunch of reporters and bloggers over at PeteMarasmitch.com. When I took Chris Bosh in the first round, I was actually debating between both Bosh and Amare Stoudemire for my first pick. In the end, I went with Bosh who had bulked up, was in his contract year and was less likely to suffer any huge injury. And so far, who could be disappointed by Chris Bosh's game this year?

It's the rest of the team that has left us questioning at times.

Nevertheless, the Raptors roll into Phoenix riding a two game winning streak built on comebacks thanks to some limited effort on the defensive end. Against the Suns, they'll need a full game's worth of work, but I'm not holding my breath. These are the Phoenix Suns after all and behind Jason Richardson's newly rediscovered offense, Steve Nash's impeccable leadership, and Amare Stoudemire's athleticism and power, the Raptors will be tested even when firing on all cylinders. Heck, if past Raptors vs Suns contests are any indication, this game is in danger of working out much like the previous Memphis, Spurs, and Orlando games of this year.

That is a game with little attention to defense along with tons of high-powered scoring.

Which is why this team has to bend their trends that they've shown so far. We can talk all we want about the Raptor's defense the past two games, but the Clippers and the Bulls are hardly offensive juggernauts who have two or three options available at their disposal. The league definitely has more teams with two or three players who can get it going at any game and Phoenix has at least seven players who can score double digits for them on any given night. These are the kinds of teams that the Raptors have to get better at stopping. And to pull out a win against these high-powered Suns? The Raptors will need to focus on these keys:

1) Personal Defensive Accountability

The Raptors have yet to hold down a team like the Suns because their defense is often effective when they help and collapse on people. However, against teams like the Suns who create their offense based of finding the open man for a high percentage shot, help defense is the first step towards a Raptors loss. Defensive accountability for every player is going to be a big factor in this game. Every person has to try to defend their position without help, otherwise the Raptors will be asking for trouble.

2) Fight the Bench

The Suns have a bevy of bench talent that starts with Leandro Barbosa and ends with young players such as Earl Clark. Fast, capable of scoring at will, athletic, and with a bit of toughness int the form of Louis Amundson, the Raptors have to be careful as a Phoenix second unit can easily destroy the Raptors as well as the starters.

3) No Slow Starts

A bad start by the Raptors in this game will lead to the team getting blown out of the water. There just can be no room for that error against an elite team. Make no mistake about it, the Suns are one of the top teams of the West thanks to their change back to their free-style basketball. If the Raptors are once again caught napping at the gate, there will simply be no miracle come back. The Raptors need four quarters of effort to pull this one out.

For a take on the Suns' side of things, we turn to our weekly "Blogging with the Enemy" feature.

This week we've asked "Phoenix Stan" from the Phoenix Suns' blog, "Bright Side of the Sun" to give his take on Phoenix, and tonight's match-up:

1) RaptorsHQ: The Suns took the league by storm with their surprising start. Last season the club disappointed with Shaq Daddy slowing the once high-powered offence to a crawl. So what’s your take on this team in general? Is the return to the running game the reason for its early success or are some of Kerr’s moves, (Frye, Dudley etc) and the job Gentry is doing not getting enough pub?

Bright Side of the Sun: First it is kind of a myth that the Suns have returned to the running game. This team is playing very different from the 04-07 Suns. Those teams relied 100% on their speed and offense. They really did shoot within 7 seconds. This team is much more willing and able to work in the half court and they are definitely more focused on the defensive end and on rebounding which is also slowing things down.

Steve Nash told me recently after beating the tar out of the Hornets that as long as the team is winning and scoring he's fine with less running.

Kerr deserves a lot of credit for building the bench. Jared Dudley was a great pick up and was not a throw-in. Kerr said that he had to be included in that trade so that wasn't just luck. Amundson is another great find and Dragic is looking good so far. Mostly though there was a change in thinking from the D'Antoni days. Kerr decided the team needed to be deeper and better defensively and he went out and made that happen on the cheap.

So yes. Credit to him. But it's going to take a lot of Amundson's to make up for Shaq.

2) RHQ: Everyone’s talking about Nash being back to his old self but let’s talk about Amare. Do you think he sticks around Phoenix next year and if so, is it for max dollars?

BSOS: This is the single biggest decision facing the Suns organization. Much like Chris Bosh's situation, Amare is holding the cards here. He's made a few things clear in his many interviews on the topic. a) He likes it here and feels the Phoenix fans support him b) He wants to be somewhere competitive which is one reason he wasn't keen on being traded to the Warriors in that draft day deal for Biedrens, Curry and friends that fell through. c) He wants to get max money.

For the Suns it's just too soon to say what they will do. I don't think that right now they feel Amare is a max player and likely are skeptical about hitching the wagon to him for the next 5 or 6 years. But at the same time they aren't likely to get a star back in any trade scenario and this isn't a franchise or fan base that has the patience for a long rebuilding project. With Nash signed for a couple of years it really is a pickle. I would think best case is they extend Amare for only a couple of years so that his contract matches Nash's remaining term but that's not going to happen.

My best guess right now is that the Suns won't make a trade at the deadline and that Amare will end up not opting out and we will be right back talking about this again next season when he is in the final year of his contract. Anyone that tells you they KNOW what is going to happen though is on crack.

3) RHQ: Keys to tonight’s game; what do the Suns have to do to get the W?

BSOS: The Suns just need to do what they do. They will be well rested and displeased about getting blown out in LA. The Raptors are putting up a lot of points but I think the Suns match up well. Frye and Amare on Bargnani and Bosh at least physically aren't over-matched like with bigger centers (Howard, Bynum, Oden) and on the wings I am confident that Jason Richardson and his new found defensive focus will do just fine and I will always take my chances with Hill on Hedo.

Obviously, Nash is playing at a tremendously high level and I just want you guys not to feel too bad if he tears the Raptors apart. He's pretty much done that to everyone so far - Paul, Rondo, Chalmers, Evans, Davis, etc...

The biggest advantage for the Suns though is probably the bench. Our four guys have done a great job holding and even extending leads. Dudley and Amundson are bringing it on the defensive and hustle end and Dragic is really looking like a different player than last season. Confident and efficient. Barbosa is a bit banged up with a sore wrist but even without him the Suns are getting solid production from the reserves which is probably as big a factor in the Suns success as anything else.

A big thanks to "Phoenix Stan" for the answers and be sure to check out Bright Side of the Sun for their take on tonight's game as well.

We'll be live-blogging as usual so drop by to discuss what should be a very high-scoring and fast-paced match.

Just How Good Are The 6-1 Suns?

Phoenix Stan — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 23:33:26 -0000

The Phoenix Suns are 6 and 1 to start the season and playing great team basketball. Can it continue? (Photo by Max Simbron)

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Nobody thought the Phoenix Suns would start the season 6 and 1 and tie the 2000/01 team for a franchise best start through seven games. Nobody.

With Amare working his way back into shape and a tough early season road schedule this team was expected to struggle to find it's footing and hopefully come on later in the season when things rounded into form and the schedule lightened up.

Given the great start is it too soon to rethink the preseason prognostications that almost universally predicted this team would win around 46 games and be happy to make it to the playoffs as a 7 or 8 seed?

Yes. It is too soon but that's not to take credit away from what the Suns have accomplished so far in the early days of the season.

The Suns join only the Celtics, Heat, Lakers and Magic at the top of the league standings with one loss each and of course, Phoenix handed the only losses to the Heat and Celtics and suffered their only defeat from the Magic. Pretty good company to kick things off and clearly not a fluke that the first three wins over the Clippers, Warriors and Timberwolves might have indicated.

Offensively, Phoenix is right back at the top of the association with the best field goal percentage (50%) and one of the most balanced attacks anywhere. In seven games, five different players have lead the team in scoring (Barbosa, Frye, Stoudemire and twice each for Nash and Richardson).

Shaq is no longer clogging up the lane and the Suns back to their running ways although with a Pace factor of 100 possessions per game they aren't anywhere close to reckless abandon.

The team is shooting over 45% from three and while that number will likely come down that isn't a given since most of those shots are coming from excellent shooters getting wide open looks. Inside we've seen the return of Amare's power game and the emergence of Jason's back to the basket post moves.

The Suns are still deadly in transition and are executing the half court offense as well as they did last year and better then in the glory years of 2004-2007.

The only highly correctable flaw is the miserable 70% shooting from the free throw line.

Even more surprising is the defense and rebounding.

The Suns are out-rebounding opponents 301-295 without the presence of The Big Glass Cleaner and are holding teams to a respectable 18 points in the fourth quarter of the last three road wins.

The bench play has been fantastic even with Barbosa missing three games and the Suns no longer have to fear giving up big leads when Nash goes for a rest. Since Alvin Gentry has taken over as head coach the Suns reserves are averaging 33.5 points per game which is higher than at any point in the past five years.

Goran Dragic is looking like a stable backup point guard with a 2.33 assist to turnover ratio which is comparable to Steve Nash (2.44) and Jared Dudley and Louis Amundson are bringing the energy, hustle and toughness that you want from your reserves.

The Suns are getting stops, staying even on the glass, scoring efficiently, attacking from anywhere on the court and playing with depth. This record is legit. All that combined with a feisty team that has an underdog's edge and a toughness that's been missing in Phoenix for many years and you've got a Suns team that is a threat to continue winning at a very respectable pace.

Poll

Does the Suns 6-1 start change your thinking about what this team can accomplish?

This team can compete for the Western Confernce title! (55+ wins)

527 votes

Suns are better than expected and can keep rolling to (50+ wins)

808 votes

Cautiously optomistic but still a long way to go (45+ wins)

295 votes

This proves nothing. (40+ wins)

31 votes

Flash in the pan. Too old. A crash is coming (35+ wins)

14 votes

1675 votes | Poll has closed

Men of a Certain Age: Vets Dominate in Suns 109-107 Win over Clippers

Mike Lisboa — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 07:15:00 -0000

More photos » by Mark J. Terrill - AP

1 game winner down, 81 to go. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

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Back in July, I penned a little piece of commentary on the Suns' offseason called "No Franchise For Old Men" about how the Suns shouldn't have made re-signing Steve Nash and Grant Hill a priority. Um, yeah. About that...

Grant Hill (19 points) carried the Suns early and Steve Nash buried the Clippers late (24 points, including the game-winning lay-up) to secure an opening night win in Los Angeles. Throw in Marcus Camby's Clipper-leading 23 points and it was practically "Space Cowboys" night at the Staples Center. Actually, the old guys leading the way was pretty typical for what was in almost all ways an atypical game.

For a team looking to impose their style of play on their opponents, the Suns did not do a very good job of running. 2 fast break points in the entire game is not a stat you want to see from an alleged run and gun team. The Suns looked a little lethargic out of the box and never really got running at all. Credit the Clippers with some good transition defense and the twin towers of Marcus Camby and Chris Kaman for significantly clogging the lane once they were back. They recorded several early blocks and changed shots.

Despite the inside presence of Camby and Kaman, the Suns more than held their own on the glass with edges in both total rebounds (36-35) and offensive boards (10-7) with Grant Hill leading the way with 13. (Side note: I hate "what ifs" but you have to wonder what kind of career Grant Hill, and the rest of us, were deprived of due to his injuries. If this guy is balling like this in his late 30s, what would he have done at full speed in his prime? Just freaking sad and scary to think about.)

I'm not sure if Amar'e Stoudemire was tentative or just looked tentative. On at least 3 different plays, he received the ball deep in the post. 1 year ago, those were thunderous dunks. Tonight, they were either blocks or fouls on hesitant moves to the rim. This doesn't concern me much as he's still playing his way into shape, but it's a situation worth monitoring. Hopefully, rounding into shape for Stoudemire will include improving on his 5 rebounds in 40 minutes.

If you're looking for bright spot in the Suns' game tonight, look no further than the play of the bench. The second line provided a great spark and outplayed the heck out of the Clippers second team. Don't let their relatively anemic point totals (21 points total) fool you. Louis Amundson did his irritant banging thing and Jared Dudley was everywhere, notching 7 boards in 23 minutes. Goran Dragic was more than capable in reserve of Nash shooting a perfect 3 for 3, and dealing 3 assists with no turnovers in 11 minutes of reserve duty. And Earl Clark's first NBA performance bore a lot of similarities to his pre-season performance: he looks great when driving but struggles with his jumper. He did demonstrate his versatility on the defensive end, performing effectively on a few different players.

Defensively, the entire squad has a ways to go. There will not be many nights, the Suns can afford to give up almost 56% shooting and walk away with a win. If it hadn't been for some late offensive heroics by Nash, they might not have done so tonight. It also helped that the Clippers shot better from the field (55.8%) than they did from the charity stripe (55.6%).

This really was a loaded game for the Suns and I am not really doing it justice here. I think this team is far from firing on all cylinders and for them to be effective and truly make a run at the playoffs, they have very little margin for error. They clearly missed Jason Richardson at both ends of the floor tonight. Leandro Barbosa did not look comfortable as a starter and didn't seem to find his stroke until he was playing with the second unit.

I expect a similar performance Friday night versus Golden State and hopefully a much more aggressive and cohesive game once J-Rich returns versus Minnesota. That's the Suns' de facto 3 game learning curve, because after that they become Road Warriors in a brutal stretch of schedule that has them playing 18 of their next 23 games on the road.

What does Hustle Look Like?

Phoenix Stan — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:47:36 -0000

You know it when you see it (just like porn)

So here it is...

All photos exclusive to Bright Side of the Sun from Max Simbron

Poll

What's your favorite hustle play shown?

Sweet Lou block

97 votes

Dudley dives for the steal beating 2 Warriors to the ball

123 votes

Nash drive to the rim

14 votes

Clark rebound

8 votes

Amare battles four Serbs

42 votes

284 votes | Poll has closed

¡Que Lastima! Los Suns de Phoenix No Ganar in Mexico, 116-94

Wil Cantrell — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:49:02 -0000

More photos » by Gregory Bull - AP

Alando Tucker plays scarecrow in preparation for Halloween while the 76'ers play basketball.

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It was clear from the opening jump that the Suns weren't going to have it. Perhaps it was a plan to never get invited back to Monterrey, or perhaps they were tired, or maybe they just weren't trying that hard. Whatever the reason, the Suns were never really in this game. Enter the stock quote from Amare Stoudemire:

"We had a lot of fun (on the trip to Mexico). We have a lot of fans out here in Mexico and I thought it was a successful trip for us..."

OK, maybe they had some successful practices or maybe making it back alive was considered a success. But shooting 38% can hardly be considered successful in an NBA game.

It could be easy to hit the Dragic panic button as it could be just as easy to say Amare "isn't there yet." But I will not panic, instead I'll just say that I didn't see much inspiration out of the squad as a whole last night, and I'm not very concerned.

Among the positives:

We need to clone Jared Dudley. He's always playing 110%, with a swagger to him that should be contagious.
Jason Richardson looked great coming off the bench, knocking down a couple of threes, and um, HE TOOK A CHARGE! Other than that, I did see some good man to man D from Rich which aligns with his comments regarding putting extra emphasis on D this year.
While Channing Frye didn't exactly shoot the lights out by any means, I was impressed with his defense. He had a nice block and wasn't afraid to mix it up under the hoop. It was my first chance to see him in a Suns jersey, and while his shot looked very flat, you can tell he doesn't disappear when things aren't going his way.
Louis Amundson showed some aggressiveness-on the offensive end! Seeing him make a move and drain a shot that wasn't an offensive rebound putback seems strange. And let us not forget the Suns highlight of the game-the sequence in the third period where Lou and Dudley took on three 76ers underneath the hoop. The junkyard dog and El Louis, kept at it until Amundson drew a foul.

And now for the rest, which wasn't all that pretty:

The Suns didn't do much well in this game. They shot poorly, they were out-rebounded, and they committed a lot of turnovers. Steve Nash often looked like a quarterback whose receivers had no idea what play was being called. On at least two occasions he passed to a sea of red jerseys with no Sun around.
Alando Tucker is playing himself out of rotation time. I like him as an individual a lot, but he appeared nervous with the start and couldn't get anything to fall later on in the game.
Earl Clark shouldn't be taking a shot outside 15 feet. If I had it my way, he wouldn't be shooting at all unless it was a fast break layup. He was also late on a couple of rotations on the defensive end. OK, he's a rookie, I won't give him that much grief.
Dragic had 6 assists which is slightly encouraging. But like the rest of the Suns other than J-Rich, his shot wasn't falling, and on more than one occasion he appeared out of control. My favorite was his behind the back move followed by a behind the back pass to the half court line. No Suns player nearby.
The Suns were out-rebounded 58-49, many of which were offensive rebounds that resulted in second 76er second chance points. Does that sound familiar to anyone?

Next up for the Suns, Tuesday against the Kings. See you all there! ??

Suns vs 76ers boxscore

Liberty Ballers

Suns vs 76ers recap

Highlights via NBA.com

Thunder Gameday: Phoenix Suns at Oklahoma City Thunder

Mr Pappagiorgio — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:56:05 -0000

So the Oklahoma City Thunder will make their 2009-10 home debut tonight in the Ford Center as they take on the Phoenix Suns. Thus far the Thunder are 0-2, with both losses coming last week on the road. All in all the Thunder have been able to take a lot of positives and negatives from each of their first two games. In reality, The Thunder probably should have won both those games as they let 4th quarter leads slip away to big runs. Tonight will be another important step in getting this team ready for the regular season, and being as its the first home game, perhaps head coach Scott Brooks has a plan to get us a win.

The starters have yet to play much more than 25 minutes in either game last week, but perhaps being the first home game, guys like Durant, Green, and Westbrook can get into the 30's (minutes) for the first time this pre-season, in an effort to not only get them a little bit closer to regular season type minutes, but to also re-energize Thunder fans as they make their way back into the Ford Center for the first time since last spring. In the process it could very well give this team a much needed win and a boost as we head closer to the regular season opener. I also apologize for not getting this up sooner and being as late as it is, we'll skip the long winded game preview that usually gets posted, and instead let you take a quick look at the roster as you're probably already about to head down to Bricktown for a little wining and dining before trotting on over to the Ford Center for tonight's game. So make the jump and take a peak. Tipoff is 7pm, and we'll have an OPEN THREAD posting 30 minutes prior as we usually do for commenting and such.

Oklahoma City Thunder Roster

	#	Pos.	DOB	W	H	College
Ryan Bowen	40	F	11.20.75	218	6-9	Iowa
Nick Collison	4	C	10.26.80	255	6-10	Kansas
Kevin Durant	35	F	9.29.88	215	6-9	Texas
Jeff Green	22	F	8.28.86	235	6-9	Georgetown
James Harden	13	G	8.26.87	220	6-5	Arizona State
Mike Harris	-	F	6.15.83	240	6-6	Rice
Serge Ibaka	9	F	9.18.89	220	6-10	None
Tre Kelley	6	G	1.23.85	188	6-0	South Carolina
Nenad Krstic	12	C	7.25.83	240	7-0	None
Shaun Livingston	14	G	9.11.85	185	6-7	Peoria Central HS
Byron Mullens	23	C	2.14.89	260	7-1	Ohio State
Kevin Ollie	7	G	12.27.72	195	6-2	Connecticut
Malik Rose	9	F	11.23.74	255	6-7	Drexel
Michael Ruffin	51	F	1.21.77	248	6-8	Tulsa
Thabo Sefolosha	2	G	5.2.84	215	6-7	None
Etan Thomas	36	C	4.1.78	260	6-10	Syracuse
Kyle Weaver	5	G	2.18.86	201	6-6	Washington State
Russell Westbrook	-	G	11.12.88	187	6-3	U-C-L-A
D.J. White	3	F	8.31.86	251	6-9	Indiana

Phoenix Suns Roster

	#	Pos.	DOB	W	H	College
Louis Amundson	17	F	12.7.82	225	6-9	U-N-L-V
Leandro Barbosa	10	F	11.28.82	202	6-3	None
Earl Clark	55	F	1.17.88	220	6-9	Louisville
Dan Dickau	12	G	9.16.78	180	6-0	Gonzaga
Goran Dragic	2	G	5.6.86	180	6-4	None
Jared Dudley	3	F	7.10.85	225	6-7	Boston College
Channing Frye	8	C	5.17.83	245	6-11	Arizona
Taylor Griffin	32	F	3.16.89	238	6-7	Oklahoma
Grant Hill	33	F	10.5.72	225	6-8	Duke
Robin Lopez	15	C	4.1.88	255	7-0	Stanford
Steve Nash	13	G	2.7.74	178	6-3	Santa Clara
Carlos Powell	11	F	8.29.83	225	6-7	South Carolina
Emir Preldzic	-	G	6.9.87	220	6-8	Bosnia
Jason Richardson	23	G	1.20.81	225	6-6	Michigan State
Amare Stoudemire	1	F	11.16.82	249	6-10	None
Raymond Sykes	4	F	7.3.86	220	6-9	Clemson
Alando Tucker	29	G	2.11.84	205	6-6	Wisconsin

Phoenix Suns Season Preview Series, Part 3.1: Players

watdogg10 — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:01:28 -0000

More photos » by Barry Gossage - NBAE/Getty Images

Steve Nash looks to return to form this season with the run n' gun back in full effect. (Photo by Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty Images)

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Have you ever been playing a video game with a friend and just as you’re about to win…3…2…1…"RESET!" Don’t you hate that? Somebody can’t admit their faults so they just pretend they never happened? Before you answer, think about your Suns for a minute. D’Antoni and Nash team up to form one of the greatest companionships known to professional basketball but before its ever allowed to reach its full potential D’Antoni is in NY and we’re left with Nash and a 300 pound wall that Nash has no idea what to do with. The experiment ultimately fails and Steve Kerr does what? He hits his magic reset button.

In part 3 of our 5 part 2009-2010 Season Preview series we'll take a look at the Suns roster after Kerr's "reset" back to the run n’ gun to help us better gauge where this team is at and what it is capable of. Personally, I'm all in. I've officially talked myself into this team but more on that later.

Due to the length of this post, I'll have to break this up into 2 parts. In part 3. 1 I'll be covering Point Guards and in part 3.2 I'll cover Wings and Bigs.

Now, you may be thinking that this is a strange way to look at the Suns roster, maybe even asking why I'm not using the traditional PG, SG, SF, PF, C format and the truth is, this is not a traditional team. The run n' gun system is based more on PG play, spreading the floor and moving to the open spots than your traditional X's and O's offense. I mean, when your projected starting "Center" says that he's going to be putting up a lot of 3's that has to say something, right? Anyway, let's get to it.

1. Point Guards - In the run n' gun offense PG is the most important position. Having one of the best in the game run point makes it easy, but there's a reason that the Suns have struggled to maintain leads when Nash leaves the game.

Steve Nash

Season	Team	G	GS	MPG	FG%	3p%	FT%	OFF	DEF	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PF	PPG
08-09	PHX	74	74	33.6	0.503	0.439	0.933	0.3	2.8	3.0	9.7	0.7	0.1	3.35	1.50	15.7

Expect Steve Nash to return to form playing the uptempo style for an entire season and in the meantime he should average at or above 10 assists/game again. The big key with Steve this season is health and fortunately he has the best training staff in the L. Hopefully we can figure out a solution at the backup that will allow him to play less minutes during the course of the season.

Steve Nash's offseason consisted of soccer, China and film making - pretty standard for him.

Leandro Barbosa

Season	Team	G	GS	MPG	FG%	3p%	FT%	OFF	DEF	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PF	PPG
08-09	PHX	70	11	24.4	0.482	0.375	0.881	0.5	2.1	2.6	2.3	1.2	0.1	1.33	1.60	14.2

Yes, I'm putting Leandro Barbosa in the PG section even though he will spend time at both guard spots. LB has consistently improved at the PG position each season and it all came together last season during the LA game where he led the Suns to a victory over the eventual NBA Champions. I expect LB to continue his improvement and spend significant time backing up Nash this season. Barbosa will be a major key in the success of the Suns this season continuing his role as the 6th man bringing energy off of the bench and playing important minutes in the second halves of games. Expect him to spend time alongside of Nash as well when Richardson is getting a breather.

Leandro went from an extremely difficult offseason last year (with the passing of his mother) to an extremely joyous one this season (with the birth of his child). He also led Brazil this summer in impressive fashion at the PG spot as Brazil took gold in the FIBA Americas Tournament.

Goran Dragic

Season	Team	G	GS	MPG	FG%	3p%	FT%	OFF	DEF	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PF	PPG
08-09	PHX	55	1	13.2	0.393	0.370	0.769	0.6	1.3	1.9	2.0	0.5	0.1	1.33	1.60	4.5

Goran Dragic gets another chance to prove himself worthy this season. After an up and down rookie season (mostly down) he looks to come back a little more comfortable and hopefully a lot more confident this year. The Suns gave him the 3-year (with an option on the 4th - unheard of for a rookie contract but because he was taken in the 2nd rounds standard rules don't apply) worth approximately $2 million per year so yeah, he'll get his chances. The big question is whether or not his improved comfort level will translate to improved play. Regardless of opinions, Dragic will get a lot of run early in the season but if he doesn't perform and Barbosa continues to improve as a PG he may be sent to the end of the bench or a little further East of that to Iowa. You may also see him spend time at the SG position, too.

This offseason, like LB, Goran played for his national team in Europe. While his team performed very well in the tournament (taking 4th), Dragic's play was (as we've seen) consistently inconsistent. Some games he shined and others he bombed (same with his play in the Las Vegas Summer League) - not the best sign given that the talent level he was going up against in both were inferior to that of the NBA. Dragic also played the wing almost exclusively for the Slovenian National Team. Again, not the best sign for a player that is supposed to be a PG in the NBA (Slovenia did have a veteran PG running the show, but last I checked Goran was in the L and the 31 year old Jaka Lakovic is not). Feelings are mixed about the young PG but like I said, he'll get his chance to prove himself this season.

2. Wings – Wing play is always made easier when playing with Steve Nash. All that is asked is that they space the floor, 3-point shooters shoot when they get the ball and slashers go to the basket…that’s about it! Getting good production from our wings behind the arc and otherwise will be key in allowing Nash and Amare the room to operate successfully.

Jason Richardson

Season	Team	G	GS	MPG	FG%	3p%	FT%	OFF	DEF	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PF	PPG
08-09	PHX	58	57	33.1	0.488	0.383	0.778	1.1	3.4	4.5	1.9	1.1	0.4	1.22	1.80	16.4

Jason Richardson has half of a season under his belt and should be much more comfortable in the Suns system this season. JRich is a very good career 3-point shooter and should be ready to step up as a scorer as he and Nash develop more chemistry this season. Look for Richardson to step up and play a major role this season if the Suns are to be successful.

Richardson’s offseason was a big mystery basketball wise. This I do know, JRich learned to DJ and even played (DJ’d?) some gigs. What effect this will have on his game is yet to be seen.

Grant Hill

Season	Team	G	GS	MPG	FG%	3p%	FT%	OFF	DEF	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PF	PPG
08-09	PHX	82	68	29.8	0.523	0.316	0.808	0.8	4.2	4.9	2.3	1.1	0.7	1.54	2.20	12.0

Grant Hill is looking to continue to build on the great season he had last year. Last season marked the first time that he has played in all 82 regular season games…ever! The question is, how much longer can the Suns training staff keep him going? There are basically two schools of thought:

Grant Hill turns 37 today and can in no way recreate the season he had last year.
Because of injury Grant Hill doesn’t have the same mileage on his legs that others his age do. This might just be enough to allow him to keep playing at a high level.

Personally, I hope for the second but fear the first. Again, only time will tell. The Suns will need Hill to be a leader and continue his solid play this season. Hopefully he can teach young Earl Clark a thing or two while he’s at it.

This offseason Hill took time to relax and take in some Mercury action. Seriously though, at this stage of his career Hill needs to worry more about keeping his body healthy than anything else.

Earl Clark

Season	Team	G	GS	MPG	FG%	3p%	FT%	OFF	DEF	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PF	PPG
08-09	Louisville	37	37	34.3	0.457	0.326	0.647	2.8	5.9	8.7	3.2	1.0	1.4	3.2	1.9	14.2

Earl Clark had a very successful season playing for one of the best teams in college basketball. He led the Louisville Cardinals to the number one overall seed in the college tournament but ultimately they fell short. Clark was touted as a top 5 talent in this year’s draft but fell to the Suns at 14. Personally, I wanted the Suns to take one of the PGs available but I have officially talked myself into the Earl Clark era. Clark has lots of talent but how much heart he has is still unknown. The hope is that Grant Hill and Steve Nash will rub off on Earl and he will develop the same work ethic and drive that has driven them to greatness. I think Clark will get minutes at the beginning of the season and if he performs he could work himself into more playing time and maybe even a starting role for games when the Suns go small due to favorable matchups.

Clark has had a pretty typical summer getting ready for life in the NBA. He showed flashes at the Vegas Summer League and brought joy to Phoenix fans far and wide when he showed that he could actually play defense – even if it was against other players getting their first run in summer league.

Part 3.2

Thoughts, Observations, and Audio (Soon) From Suns Media Day 2009

Wil Cantrell — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 04:31:28 -0000

Phoenix Suns coach Alvin Gentry and star pupils Jason Richardson, Amare Stoudemire and Steve Nash are ready to go back to school. Photo by Max Simbron

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Today was certainly the Bright Side of the Sun. Steve Nash called his mood "joyous," Amare was singing and pounding a basketball playfully. J-Rich was all smiles. He even talked about playing defense, and Steve Kerr was, Steve Kerr.

2009 Suns media Day was enough to send me home with a smile on my face. The talk from everyone was positive. Of course it would be, they haven't played a game. But when Steve Nash says he's very comfortable with the Centers on the team, you believe him. Then later you think about it-Frye really? Lopez, really? Then you think, "well maybe we will be ok."

Stan and I picked up some awesome interviews. They will be up tomorrow. In the meantime, here are some tidbits of interviews I remember off the top of my head:

Lou Amundson wants to be called Louis.
Steve Nash is pretty thick in person, not frail and skinny as he looks going up against Chris Paul and Barron Davis
Dan Dickau is indeed a Sun. And unlike Steve Nash, he is very short and with the exception of his arms, very skinny.
Alvin Gentry stated Amare Stoudemire will be playing the 5 even though Mr. Tzu may not know it at the time (SHHHH Don't tell him).
Steve Kerr believes Channing Frye will be shooting "a lot of threes."
Louis Amundson is not relieved his bike is safe now that Shaq is gone. In fact he had nothing negative to say about Shaquille.
Amare Stoudemire likes to be the center of attention, or: Amare is just naturally wired, very vocal and full of joy because he was jumping around, bouncing a ball all over the place, smiling ear to ear talkin' this and that all over the joint.
Jared Dudley is still working the tweet and all over the NBA street rags doing interviews. The man can talk, and his personality is more than cordial.
Leandro Barbosa doesn't care if he's starting or not so we shouldn't care either.
Earl Clark wants a piece of Kobe and Carmello Anthony

Stay tuned, more to follow!

The bright side of summer...

watdogg10 — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 21:58:01 -0000

More photos » by Laura Rauch - AP

Goran Dragic drives around Mike Taylor during their NBA Summer League basketball game at Thomas & Mack Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, July 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Laura Rauch)

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On the first day of my high school English class my teacher, Mrs. Petersen, handed out a list of "fatal errors"...should even one of these flaws show up on a paper and the highest you could score was a 'c' (which meant a lot because my high school did not have 'D's - grading went A, B, C, F). Fortunately, I had enough experience to be able to avoid making these fatal errors. I was able to build on the writing fundamentals I had learned up to that point and find the writing style that works for me. Just as in writing - and in all walks of life - in basketball, you have to build on a steady foundation of fundamentals. You can't walk before you crawl type of thing. The greatest to ever lace them up once said "You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise."

Around these parts I have become known as somewhat of a pessimist due in large part to my stance (apparently it's quite controversial) on Goran Dragic (if you're new to the site you can see what I say about him here or in my original blog at cutgorandragic.blogspot.com). People tend to forget the positive things I've said about Gentry (here), Hill (here), JRich (here) or even that I have defended Amare when others were ready to burn him at the stake (here). So for those of you that say I'm not an optimist - and that's fine, everybody is entitled to their own opinion - how's this for optimism...the Phoenix Suns will make the playoffs this season! I truly believe that this team as presently constituted (players/coach) is a playoff team that can even make a run at the NBA Finals - obviously A LOT would have to go right but hey, every championship team needs a few lucky breaks (or the assistance of David Stern) to take home the hardware. However, in the spirit of taking things one step at a time, let me start with the playoffs. Lets face it, last year's team was a mess. You had the big twit and his ego clogging up the lane, Terry Porter completely ignoring the strengths of his players and trying to turn the team into something it clearly couldn't be (for the record, I don't just blame Porter for this...I believe this was influenced by a higher authority or two), and you had a rookie backup PG who probably should've still been in Europe developing trying to play an important role on a should've been playoff team. This year, with one philosophy being preached from beginning to end and without Shaq (while some didn't like the Shaq trade because it was just about money...I loved it and believe that this is a case of addition by subtraction) these Suns will make a run at the playoffs and should be a lot more fun to watch than everything we saw last season.

Now, again taking this one step at a time, there are things that each player on the roster should be working on this summer in order to make the playoffs possible. Below is a list of each player on the known roster - Nash, Hill, JRich, Amare, Clark, Barbosa, Dragic, Lopez, Frye, Sweet Lou, Dudley and Tucker (no I'm not including Taylor Griffin as he shouldn't make the team - hell he shouldn't have even been drafted but we all know how the Suns can't resist the lesser brother of a future superstar). I am going to go through what I think each needs to be working on and some specific things that some should be doing to improve the weaknesses in their game. Now, given my (as Mike so tenderly put it) "proclivity for pointing out Goran's shortcomings" I could write this whole post just on what he needs to work on. That being said, expect his to be the longest as he is going to be the player with the highest ratio of things asked of him on the court to things he needs to improve on. Lets get to it.

Steve Nash/Grant Hill: At this point in their careers we pretty much know what we're getting with these two. The only thing they need to be doing is whatever Aaron Nelson and the Suns medical staff tell them they need to be doing. Grant just played all 82 games of the regular season for the first time in his whole career and Nash continues to age (as everyone who talks about the Phoenix Suns ever will remind you). Whatever the Suns staff does apparently works and these old men just need to continue to drink from Nelson's fountain of youth.

Jason Richardson: I believe a lot of the Suns success this coming season is going to hinge on JRich. JRich and Barbosa are the two players the Suns have that can spread the floor and kill you if you leave to help by hitting the 3 or blow by you on a hard closeout and get to the rim. JRich also has the ability to exploit mismatches by posting up against smaller guards. I would have JRich putting up 1,000+ shots/day from all different angles on the court. Have him watching video of Nash on the pre-Shaq teams and see where he likes to get to and where he likes to kick to. I would also have him work on reaction drills where he gets the ball and is forced to recognize different speeds/angles of a defender's closeout. If they are coming too hard give a good fake and either take one escape dribble for the shot or take it to the hole. If they are closing out too slow put up the quick shot. Finally, I would have him working on being more decisive in the post. Get the ball, feel your defender and react quickly. Last season when he would post he would give the defense to much time to prepare for what he was going to do. With his athletic ability he should be able to make a move quickly/efficiently and catch defenses off guard.

Earl Clark: Clark should be a starter this year. Yes, he's a rookie who will make a lot of mistakes but if there is anyone who can make a rookie wing like Clark look good it's Nash. Plus, starting Clark takes us back to the days of Amare/Marion and I believe gives us the best chance of exploiting other teams and just outrunning/scoring teams on a nightly basis. Of course, being a rookie he will have a lot to work on...the thing I think he needs to work on most? Conditioning. If he can get into the best shape of his life so that he is able to race up and down the floor for 25 minutes a night he will be effective and may even challenge for rookie of the year...Nash has that effect on people. I would also have him in the video sessions with JRich learning the offense as well as the ins and outs of playing with Nash.

For the record, I HATED that the Suns took Clark with so many quality PGs on the board, but I have officially talked myself into the kid in this system.

Amare Stoudemire: Number 1 for Amare, get healthy. He needs to make sure that his eye is on point and ready to go. Obviously he needs to work on pick and roll defense as well as his being strong when defending the post. I would recommend that he spend a lot of time watching video of Perkins and Garnett in Boston. Perkins knows how to use his strength to make opposing post players VERY uncomfortable and Garnett moves very well when defending the P&R. Amare needs to watch for the little things that make these guys successful on D. After seeing he needs to head straight to the gym (preferably he'd have the video up in the gym for reference sake) and try and incorporate those little things into his defense. I am very high on Amare this season. A) Shaq is gone and out of the lane, B) Amare wants to get paid and in order to do so he has to prove that he's healthy this season and that he is willing to play D (or just an unstoppable beast on the offensive end - preferably both). I fully expect Amare to make either first or second team All NBA this season. If he can learn what makes the Celtics so successful and impliment it even to a far lesser scale, it'll be that much easier for him.

Leandro Barbosa: LB will be involved with running the offense on the second team. He has improved every year in his ability to do so and I fully expect this improvement to continue. I would have him learn the offense from the standpoint of every other position on the floor. He already plays the 2 a lot so he has that down but he should know what the 3, 4 and 5 players are going to be doing in every scenario on every possession. This will help him see the floor that much better. I would also have him learn the art of keeping his dribble. Many times he'll start driving, get into the lane and just take off without having a clear shot or knowing where his teammates are. Nash, in this same situation will keep his dribble alive and wrap around to the near corner. If Barbosa can learn to recognize better in these situations he will cut down his turnovers and be much more effective running the offense. I would set up some reaction drills for him to practice recognizing what is happening around him and also have him watching footage of what Nash does in similar situations.

Goran Dragic: Going back to Jordan's quote on fundamentals, Jordan goes on to say that a lot of players fail in the L because they get there without ever learning the proper fundamentals. They have no foundation. For example, we have seen no shortage of promising 7'ers make it to the L only to fail because their whole lives they got by by being taller than everyone and never really developing the fundamental games to help them strive when everyone is as big or as strong as them. The biggest (most fundamental) problem with Goran is his handle. Going back to his days of making a name for himself in the Adriatic League, Goran's scouting reports said that he had good size and was able to get to the rim and had a good drive and kick game but that he had an average handle - meaning he was average even for an Adriatic League PG. Going back and watching a lot of tape to prepare myself for this post, I recognized three main flaws with Goran's handle. 1) His dribble is too high, 2) he dribbles the ball in a defensive position (I'll explain in a bit) and 3) he has a tendency to stare at the floor as he starts any aggressive move with the ball. First, the high dribble makes it so that he is slower when changing directions and more likely to get swiped by stray hands. This forces him to rely on his quick first step to drive and also forces him to dribble the ball defensively. What I mean by this is he doesn't have the ball ready to attack. Because of his high dribble he is forced to use himself as a shield. He keeps the ball back slightly ready to step between his defender and the ball at any point. Some of you may remember being taught to dribble this way and it is an effective tool - however, when you are a PG and the whole offense hinges on you being able to get to your spot you have to be ready to attack at all times. One of the reasons Dowdell was more effective at running the offense in Summer League is he keeps the ball low and in front of him and is able to push forward to get to his spots, Dragic, on the other hand, keeps it a little behind and therefore has trouble pushing through when a defender gets in his path forcing him to just back it out. This takes precious clock time and stalls the offense. So, when you hear me refer to him handling the ball like a PF, this is what I mean. PFs are told to dribble this way to protect the ball. PGs need to be able to keep it low and protect it in traffic while at the same time being able to get to their spots to start the offense. Some have argued before that Magic Johnson had a high dribble...well, Magic Johnson also had the swagger of an American street baller - something Goran does not nor will he ever possess. He has to learn how to be a fundamentally sound PG ball handler to be effective. Finally, something I noticed is that Goran's eyes immediately drop to the floor whenever he starts any aggressive move. Meaning that until he looks up towards the end of his move he has very little sense of what's going on on the rest of the floor.

Goran needs to improve his handle. He needs to be constantly doing drills that force him to handle the ball with both hands in tight spaces and keeping his head up even when he's being aggressive. He needs to be in the film sessions with LB learning the offense from every position on the floor. I would also have him watching hours of film on Tony Parker. Have him learn how to control the game while playing to your strengths. I would also have him doing reaction drills similar to JRich and Clark. Recognizing what to do with different looks that defenders will give. Finally, I would have him practice getting to his spots. He needs to be able to do what the offense requires regardless of the defense. To do this he needs to recognize how the defense is playing and if they're overplaying than he needs to punish them going back the other way. While playing in Europe Goran needs to focus on these things and try to impliment them into his game there. Test the waters, get the practice he needs because again, if you're just practicing bad habits...all you ever learn are the bad habits you had in he first place.

Robin Lopez/Channing Frye (I'm lumping them together even though most of my advice would be for Fropez): First and foremost these two need to learn the offense. They need to learn to be effective by rebounding and hitting the midrange jumper. They also need to learn to be effective in the post. I would have each of them shooting 1,000+ 15-18 footers every day. Make them shoot it faster than they would in a normal game so that they'll be able hit them at real game speed. I would also work with them on limiting the number of dribbles that they use. In Vegas, Fropez got the ball 3' from the basket in the post. He turned to face up (again from 3') took 3 dribbles towards the baseline to go up and under on the opposite side of the hoop. Were this a real NBA game he would have gotten swatted or swiped. They need to be effective using one dribble. Know what you want to do and do it. I would work with both of them at having a very effective post move/countermove and a pump fake from midrange where they could use 1 dribble either to attack or escape. Neither one of them should be (or need to be) handling the ball much more than that. I would also work with them on recognizing shot angles - as each will be probably around 8 - 15 feet out on shots - and attacking aggressively without fouling.

Lou Amundson: Look, Lou is what he is. He knows his role and what pays the bills. I would continue to have him work on free throws, midrange shots and shot angles for rebounding. Other than that, he just needs to get into the best shape of his life so that he'll be able to provide the same energy while running a lot faster and more in the high octane offense.

Jared Dudley: Dudley, like Lou, is what he is. He needs to get into the best shape of his life and I would have him in the gym shooting 1,000+ shots a day from all over the floor. I would also have him working on quickness drills that should help his lateral movement. Also, in this offense he is spread to the 3 point line a lot so I would have him running the same reaction drills as JRich as well as working on attacking angles for rebounding.

Alando Tucker: I'm not going to lie to you, Tucker was probably the hardest for me to evaluate given his lack of playing time and the fact that he only played in one summer league game. I think there is a spot for Tucker not only here but in the league. I would have him shooting the 1,000+ shots a day and running the same reaction drills as JRich and the others. But I think I would also work with him on moving without the ball and using screens effectively away from the play. Alando has the tools to be a Rip Hamilton type player and I would like to see him play that role a little bit. I would also like to see him attacking the rim more. Don't try the fancy up and unders but attack right at the defender. Work with him on absorbing contact without changing his shot midair. If he could become the Rip Hamilton type as a 3 he'll have a spot. Goran, LB and he could run an attacking backcourt for a few minutes a night that might catch some teams off guard.

You can probably tell by a lot of my suggestions that I fully expect this team to go back to the 7SoL system. I think we have the personnel to make it work and be successful. I think that we can surprise the NBA this year and establish ourselves as playoff contenders...of course, this should surprise nobody as I am, after all, an optimist.