I just hate the direction we are heading since Sarver bought our team.

I know two years from now is a long time. But how will our team look like?

Ok, love your analysis but let me throw something out there and see how you and others react. I too loved Mike and I too thought that he needed to emphasize a little more D after last years end. Yet I am not sure that a similar thing to this wouldn’t have happened to the Suns if Mike had stayed around. I dont believe that they would be this inconsistent, but I also dont believe they would be much closer to a Championship. Here is the problem, the rest of the league has caught up! The Suns innovated the offensive style of the game and, once again, basketball is what it should be, entertaining! But the other teams of the NBA don’t see the Suns style as so confusing and it was clear from their dropping win percentage that the run game, while effective, was not enough. I am convinced that the only reason we did as well as we did was b/c we had Nash. Gentry will bring some of this back and Nash will be Nash again. BUT! If and when Steve gets too old to be effective anymore, what happens then? This system does not work without him and all attempts at creating a new PG like Nash have been failures. I dont blame Porter or Mike for only an 8 man rotation. how can you when it is so blatantly obvious that without Nash on the floor 8 of 10 times the Suns are just trying to stay afloat. A new coach will not solve this problem. Bottom line, we need some new blood and fast. I do not, under any circumstances endorse the trading of Shaq or Amare, they are too valuable. But for the future of the franchise, the Suns have to do much better on their rookies.

As far as the excuses, I wanted to debunk a lot of them:

1) Should have given him a year. He didn't have enough time.

Chemistry and player morale was at an all time low. Since 2009 started, they've quit on him and Nash was seen even giving up on plays. Body language and intangibles were negative or absent, and this culminated in many of their blowouts, where the team literally would blow up.

The turning point, I think, was against Philadelphia when Porter pulled everyone when down just 11 points with almost 10 minutes to go. That's a losing mentality. There was also the embarrassing loss to Golden State where Porter failed to realize that Azubuike could actually make threes (and ESPN even called him on this).

This mentality manifests itself during end-game situations as well. The Suns suck in the last two minutes because they are unprepared and don't have confidence. Two things a coach are supposed to help provide.

Porter had enough time, and it was obvious that he had given up and his players had done the same.

2) Porter is a great guy and everyone respects him.

Sure, but cause and effect have little to do with who is nice and who is a good guy. It's business, man.

The smallest deed is greater than the largest intention and Porter didn't deliver on any of the promises he made. Defense was horrible, offense changed pace but was predictable and caused turnovers. And what about the givens or intangibles a coach provides?

Confidence, morale, belief, motivation, preparation. Those don't just happen because you were a great player in the NBA. They happen because you care and you nurture 1-1 relationships and carry yourself properly in group situations.

So to all of you playing violins for Terry — he'll be fine. People get fired all the time in this league for many reasons, but the bottom line is that he wasn't winning games he was supposed to win, and the stats don't lie.

The fact that Terry was a good player is irrelevant. Isaiah Thomas wasn't a great coach either.

3) It's the players' fault.

Really? Blame the kids, huh? Throw the team under the bus? This is a better team than they had last year, believe it or not. Grant has his legs, Richardson is a weapon on both ends of the floor and Amundsen hustles harder than Boris ever could.

Most college or high school coaches could dominate if handed this team, and I firmly believe that.

They have the talent, and they need someone to challenge them, motivate them, and give them a solid game plan that works a few times in a row so they start to really believe. That's it.

Porter was best at saying "keep up the intensity" or "keep up the energy". He wasn't talking about not entering the post from the top of the key, getting back in transition or focusing on when to throw it back out on the wing and run a pick in roll instead of ground and pound.

He was out of focus, and now matter how many times you yell at your team to pick up the intensity, it's never going to be a solid substitute for scouting, positive reinforcement and a better plan to execute.

4) It's Kerr/Sarver's fault.

Porter is responsible for coaching the team. The rest is details. You can complain and whine about crappy first-round decisions and Sarver's tendency to ship off talent for extra value meals — but fact remains that Porter had a good squad, their strength of schedule was weak and they underperformed.

I don't think Kerr and Sarver have anything to do with the team's attitude towards Terry or Terry's poor decision making and game management. That's on Terry, and he needs to accept responsibility for it — and the fans should understand that.

So before you mail it in, watch what happens this week. Suns have clips twice and okc before Boston. The team you see on Sunday will be a different team and you're going to start to see things you haven't seen most of the season…

Confidence, hustle and fire.