Sometimes I wish Diaw were more selfish on offense because he would be an incredible player if he took the ball to the hoop with the idea of finishing. Passing back out should be a secondary option once he starts driving to the basket.
I totally agree. Do you remember a game a couple years ago, I forget against who, but it was on the road and I believe Diaw had his career high. He was very aggressive offensively that night and it was great to watch.
If it is true that it is Hill's idea to come off the bench, it would change the dynamic. Up to now, the review seemed to be this:
HILL
1. High percentage mid range shooter.
2. Very good ball handler
3. Good at drawing fouls and hits the foul shots.
4. Smart, experienced player who knows the game.
1. Good rebounder for a 3
2. Very athletic
3. Good, physical defender
4. Gets to the basket on the break
5. Has at times been a good three point shooter
WHAT MIGHT HAVE CHANGED?
1. Barenes might have shown a great touch on his three in recent workouts
2. The coaching staff MIGHT think Barnes will shoot better at the start of halfs if he is warmed up rather than when sitting on the bench. (We might call it the "anti-microwave" factor.
3. Hill may prefer to come off the bench and play against opponent's second stringers.
4. Coaches may want Hill in the lineup for when Nash is out to help Dragic and give security when Dragic seems rattled.
This is all speculation. I would imagine there will be a lot of experimentation.
__________________
"I like to act decisively whenever I'm trying to get something done," Dumars said. "But I'm well aware that there has to be another team that's willing, and there has to be a good deal for both teams. Those two things will slow you down in doing a deal."
Last edited by Irish; September 20th, 2008 at 12:21 AM.
Heck, there's nothing surprising in Barnes starting ahead of Hill, the only thing that seemed out of whack is Welts stating it as a done deal at this time of year. It would just about have to follow a quote from Hill that he'd prefer to come off the bench to be a sensible utterance now.
We have a Suns starting lineup debate, courtesy of the Black Jesus Disciples blog.
Mark McLane, a 29-year-old Valley salesman and Suns fan, sparked it when he used his Suns-oriented blog to write glowingly about his experience at a Suns fantasy camp Wednesday and pass along an anecdote about Suns President Rick Welts dropping an information meteorite on the Planet Orange campers.
In summarizing what Welts told the group (http://blackjesusdisciples....), McLane wrote that one of Welts' points was that "in a roundabout way, Matt Barnes adds depth to the team, as he will be starting and Grant Hill will move to the bench this season."
Um, did anybody tell Grant about this?
Welts had already heard about the blog when he was reached this afternoon, thanks to espn.com's True Hoop picking up the item for a larger audience. Welts said he was misquoted. He said he was making mention of the possibility of Barnes starting "down the road," as has been previously mentioned by General Manager Steve Kerr. Kerr said the lineup will be determined during camp by Terry Porter.
There is no doubt that there has been consideration for the move, just as the much-debated idea of starting Leandro Barbosa instead of Raja Bell also gets discussed.
Told of Welts' denial, McLane remained sure about what he had heard. He said he was sitting near the podium where Welts was talking and thought, "Whoa, that's more information than I thought I'd get." (By the way, this is Mark McLane, not Marc McCain, another Suns fan who has made the news when Bob Young wrote about the front-row season ticket holder's criticism of Steve Nash.)
Regardless, the news/denial is fodder for conversation until the real stuff starts with players officially reporting Sept. 29 and starting practice in Tucson on Sept. 30.
Here are some other orange slices:
+ The buzz out of voluntary workouts of late has been about rookie Robin Lopez. It's never been a question that he would contribute immediately. The question about him has become just how good he can be.
+ Goran Dragic still is waiting on the minutiae of his buyout to wrap up. It has limited him to workouts rather than scrimmages but the Suns are still confident the buyout, travel and visa will be completed before camp starts. Tau Ceramica has filled part of the backup role pegged for Dragic by signing former Arizona Wildcat Mustafa Shakur, who must contend against the Argentine point guard tag team of Pablo Prigioni and Matias Nocedal.
+ Raja Bell will probably be the last Sun to come in town, although he had been in and out once already. But Bell has been playing regularly with a group of NBA players in Miami.
+ The Suns found some payroll savings last week when Reno of the NBA Development League officially hired Jay Humphries as its first coach. Humphries was going to remain on the Suns payroll without a role on the new staff and no offer to join Mike D'Antoni in New York. It sounds like a great opportunity for Humphries, who was not given much of a chance to make an impact last season as the new guy in an established regime. His coaching experience had all come in Asia so his old NBA playing franchise served him well to bring him stateside. His main tasks, outside the usual assistant's share of game-planning, were to assist Marcus Banks and the rookies, none of whom D'Antoni was inclined to play. Although Alando Tucker is impressing people this summer, consider that the Suns shipped Strawberry and Banks away after being disappointed in them and Miami is already trying to move Banks.
+ And for the frequent questions about what kind of shape Shaquille O'Neal is in, there is good feeback natually from the Suns folk. It did not look too promising after O'Neal walked out of exit interview day saying he would be in Phoenix this summer to work out with the Suns staff. He ended up being spotted everywhere but the Valley this summer but his weight is said to be in line with what the Suns hoped to see him at entering camp. He scrimmaged twice this week, even making a nimble move when he was knocked down to do a fluid, backward somersault and come to his feet. He has been working out the past two years with Ultimate Fighting Championship legend Royce Gracie up to four times a week.
__________________
"I like to act decisively whenever I'm trying to get something done," Dumars said. "But I'm well aware that there has to be another team that's willing, and there has to be a good deal for both teams. Those two things will slow you down in doing a deal."
Hill is not the best 3p shooter out there. If the team focus on developing Amare's postup game in addition to Shaq, a better 3p shooter who defends well like Barnes is a better fit. Hill could sub in as a major ball handler when Nash and Shaq sit. In this case, his midrange game gets a better chance on the court.
In addition, it's easier to manage Hill's minutes to be sufficiently low, if Barnes can start effectively in his place. So, this would be ideal if it could work out. From past experience, Shaq, Nash, Hill and Bell all need to have their minutes and health closely monitored in preparation for the playoffs. We'll see.
If the Suns have to worry about Barbosa becoming rattled at this point in time, well it does not speak well for Barbosa. And this is coming from a fan of Barbosa.
__________________ You have to live life like you don't know any better.
I got no problem with Barnes starting ahead of Hill. I think maybe Lopez should start ahead of Shaq, too! Save the old guys for the playoffs! We need Nash to get less minutes no matter how many minutes other PGs have played. Nash losses his three point accuracy as the season goes on, and that's just legs being tired. We should worry less about wins in the regular season and weight everything for the playoffs. Just my two cents.
__________________ KOC Rules!
Yuma's Dad RIP 03/22/07
I expect the Suns franchise record for three point attempts to be broken by Hedo this season!
If the Suns have to worry about Barbosa becoming rattled at this point in time, well it does not speak well for Barbosa. And this is coming from a fan of Barbosa.
you're right.
you think LB is going to be traded before the trade deadline?
__________________
“You can’t worry about things you have no control over.”
-- Steve Nash
"I don't even care how much I score.
I just want to win."
-- Ron Artest
Irish, have you been following the thread? Mainstreet posted the link to this article 5 hours ago on page 2.
I ran the entire article rather than just quotes from it.
BTW, I never said anything about Barbosa being rattled.
Quote:
4. Coaches may want Hill in the lineup for when Nash is out to help Dragic and give security when Dragic seems rattled.
It's pure speculation anyway. BTW, I have not worried about Barbosa being rattled, but Leandro not passing when cut off from the basket.
__________________
"I like to act decisively whenever I'm trying to get something done," Dumars said. "But I'm well aware that there has to be another team that's willing, and there has to be a good deal for both teams. Those two things will slow you down in doing a deal."
Last edited by Irish; September 20th, 2008 at 07:32 PM.
Linear Mode
