Comments on: Pro/Con: Are the Suns for real? http://valleyofthesuns.com/2009/12/04/procon-are-the-suns-for-real/ Phoenix Suns basketball blog. The hottest source in the Valley for Suns news, rumors and analysis with a fresh perspective from ESPN's TrueHoop affiliate. Thu, 09 Sep 2010 13:21:28 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: The Z. Man http://valleyofthesuns.com/2009/12/04/procon-are-the-suns-for-real/comment-page-1/#comment-28613 The Z. Man Wed, 09 Dec 2009 02:31:21 +0000 http://valleyofthesuns.com/?p=9168#comment-28613 Way to go Kyle!!!! That is a VERY good analysis. Mike, care to pass the baton to Kyle? We like you Mike but lately you are so down. Kyle can give us all a lift. Suns will be much improved when they get LB back. Now he is a dude who can play 40 minutes per game easy. MUST start and ALSO finish with LB. Let's go SUNS!!!! Way to go Kyle!!!!

That is a VERY good analysis.

Mike, care to pass the baton to Kyle? We like you Mike but lately you are so down. Kyle can give us all a lift. Suns will be much improved when they get LB back. Now he is a dude who can play 40 minutes per game easy.

MUST start and ALSO finish with LB. Let’s go SUNS!!!!

]]> By: Preview: Kings (9-8) at Suns (14-5)| Valley of the Suns http://valleyofthesuns.com/2009/12/04/procon-are-the-suns-for-real/comment-page-1/#comment-28256 Preview: Kings (9-8) at Suns (14-5)| Valley of the Suns Sat, 05 Dec 2009 21:04:19 +0000 http://valleyofthesuns.com/?p=9168#comment-28256 [...] ← Pro/Con: Are the Suns for real? [...] [...] ← Pro/Con: Are the Suns for real? [...]

]]> By: Kyle Fleeger http://valleyofthesuns.com/2009/12/04/procon-are-the-suns-for-real/comment-page-1/#comment-28230 Kyle Fleeger Sat, 05 Dec 2009 15:14:24 +0000 http://valleyofthesuns.com/?p=9168#comment-28230 Today I was listening to a debate on radio about whether these Suns are really any different than what I am calling the “Nash Suns”. This is the team of the last 5 years. Although there has been some talk of the differences in offensive styles for the Suns, and it’s obvious the Zone Defense is more regular. Even if these Suns don’t “fast-break” as much as the .07 seconds or less teams from 04-09, they are still a fast paced team. This has lead to the criticism that these Suns aren’t really any different. Here are some of the things that I found to be relevantly different about the current Suns roster. The amount of minutes being distributed to the Suns starters is fewer than in EVERY year past. This year, the max number of minutes anyone is playing in a game is Amar’e with 33.8 minutes per game. The 04-05 Suns that everyone talks about had 5 players with more minutes per game and a max of 39.5 MPG. Even last year the Suns had a Max of 37 MPG (they were deliberately limiting minutes). What is the effect of these limited minutes… hopefully we will get the opportunity to see a Suns team that can play as fast during the playoffs as they did during the season. A guaranteed effect will be getting defensive and young players more time early in the season. In 2004-2005, the Suns eighth man was CASEY JACOBSON. Leandro averaged 7.0 points, because D’antoni 6 men only, and Jim Jackson was ahead of him, JIM JACKSON! The following years Suns had a Max minutes high of 40.3 per game. 4 Suns had more minutes than the highest minute per game total this year. As a running team, we have to stay fresh, and our bench players have to get in condition to play. One of the reasons this is relevant is because in the playoffs when teams come right at Amar’e with their bigs or get us into foul trouble with physical play, we used to have NOBODY to come in and serve as a legitimate replacement. Then, we get dominated by other players benches. OR our players get tired by the end of games and we used give up HUGE leads in the fourth quarter. As recently as last year, we only won 4 games all season where we were trailing going into the fourth quarter, this year we have 5 already. This is the MAJOR difference between 04-09 and this year. The Suns are strategically different, in fact, they are better. I will be adding more to this as I finish some statistical comparisons between the 5 years, but this is obvious and a good move by Gentry. Today I was listening to a debate on radio about whether these Suns are really any different than what I am calling the “Nash Suns”. This is the team of the last 5 years. Although there has been some talk of the differences in offensive styles for the Suns, and it’s obvious the Zone Defense is more regular. Even if these Suns don’t “fast-break” as much as the .07 seconds or less teams from 04-09, they are still a fast paced team. This has lead to the criticism that these Suns aren’t really any different.

Here are some of the things that I found to be relevantly different about the current Suns roster.

The amount of minutes being distributed to the Suns starters is fewer than in EVERY year past. This year, the max number of minutes anyone is playing in a game is Amar’e with 33.8 minutes per game. The 04-05 Suns that everyone talks about had 5 players with more minutes per game and a max of 39.5 MPG. Even last year the Suns had a Max of 37 MPG (they were deliberately limiting minutes).

What is the effect of these limited minutes… hopefully we will get the opportunity to see a Suns team that can play as fast during the playoffs as they did during the season.

A guaranteed effect will be getting defensive and young players more time early in the season. In 2004-2005, the Suns eighth man was CASEY JACOBSON. Leandro averaged 7.0 points, because D’antoni 6 men only, and Jim Jackson was ahead of him, JIM JACKSON! The following years Suns had a Max minutes high of 40.3 per game. 4 Suns had more minutes than the highest minute per game total this year.

As a running team, we have to stay fresh, and our bench players have to get in condition to play. One of the reasons this is relevant is because in the playoffs when teams come right at Amar’e with their bigs or get us into foul trouble with physical play, we used to have NOBODY to come in and serve as a legitimate replacement. Then, we get dominated by other players benches. OR our players get tired by the end of games and we used give up HUGE leads in the fourth quarter. As recently as last year, we only won 4 games all season where we were trailing going into the fourth quarter, this year we have 5 already.

This is the MAJOR difference between 04-09 and this year. The Suns are strategically different, in fact, they are better. I will be adding more to this as I finish some statistical comparisons between the 5 years, but this is obvious and a good move by Gentry.

]]> By: PZ http://valleyofthesuns.com/2009/12/04/procon-are-the-suns-for-real/comment-page-1/#comment-28143 PZ Sat, 05 Dec 2009 01:43:24 +0000 http://valleyofthesuns.com/?p=9168#comment-28143 I don’t see why their status can’t be a bit both. For example I’d agree with Lockman that the Suns aren’t “elite”, but I’d follow that up by saying that can still target the 2 seed. Last year there were 4 teams that were truly elite and only one played in the west. When it comes to pure talent, things are similar this year. Last year the Nuggets went 21-20 on the road and never fulfilled the criteria of being an elite team. Unlike the Suns however, they used a system that actually played to their players’ strengths and took care of business by dominating weaker teams and snuck into the 2 seed which allowed them to avoid playing a great team until the WCF. The Suns are in the same boat as the other good but not quite elite teams of western conference. I don’t see why their status can’t be a bit both. For example I’d agree with Lockman that the Suns aren’t “elite”, but I’d follow that up by saying that can still target the 2 seed. Last year there were 4 teams that were truly elite and only one played in the west. When it comes to pure talent, things are similar this year.
Last year the Nuggets went 21-20 on the road and never fulfilled the criteria of being an elite team. Unlike the Suns however, they used a system that actually played to their players’ strengths and took care of business by dominating weaker teams and snuck into the 2 seed which allowed them to avoid playing a great team until the WCF. The Suns are in the same boat as the other good but not quite elite teams of western conference.

]]>