The Phoenix Suns need to fully convert on-the-fence fans…like me

Winning over on-the-fence Phoenix Suns fans: Conclusion

The be fair, this season showed an extraordinary improvement in all the areas I have laid out. When the Suns were above .500 at the beginning of the season, the Stick was rocking louder than we’ve heard it in years, partially led by the intensity of players like Kelly Oubre and Jevon Carter.

Hopefully, this (as well as the momentum generated in the bubble) means more positivity to come for the Phoenix Suns and their fans. Ideally, it means more on-the-fence Suns fans will finally click the “Buy” button on that jersey they have been eyeing for a while, and really jump in headfirst into the orange and purple pool.

But we have to keep that upbeat energy going. This advice also goes for this website’s comment section, which brings me to my final plea for the future of Valley of the Suns as I bow out of its leadership role.

FanSided does a tremendous job of propping up voices of fans around all of sports and entertainment in general. While some folks have made a career out of sports journalism by starting with sites like Valley of the Suns, it is important to remember that 99 percent of writers who come through here are regular fans with a knack for expressing opinions and a passion for basketball. Although some do, most of us do not have formal training in sports journalism.

No one at Valley of the Suns works here full time. We all have real jobs and this is simply a side gig for which writers receive very little, if any, compensation.

Sometimes, this creates a lot of turnover amongst contributors, and like most jobs, some employees are better than others.

But before you rip them and decry the downfall of the entire blog, remember most of these writers are just like you, except for one major difference: they had the courage to turn a blank document into an article and put it up on the Internet for the world to consume; a more challenging task than it may seem.

Or better yet, apply to the Valley of the Suns and take that challenge yourself.

During my tenure here, I have received everything from genuine praise to legit hate, with one person going as far as looking up my personal information and “calling me out.” While I have made it a point to stop taking every comment to heart, I can’t say the same about the person(s) who will replace me as Site Expert, whomever that may be.

So, be better. Don’t be an online stereotype. Let’s create a community those on-the-fence Suns fans see as welcoming and want to be a part of, not one that turns them off because they’re afraid to make a mistake or flub a factoid in a conversation.

I also understand most of you are cool, so props to you. If you are in this category and have enjoyed a chunk of my 400 posts, then cheers! Feel free to follow me on Twitter where I’ll muse on the Suns and other topics.

I’m not sure what is next for me in terms of writing, but considering I’ve written the equivalent of three novels on this site in the last year, this won’t be the last time my fingers wear out keys on my laptop.

Until then, go Suns.