Okay - I have been the lead captain on the trade Marion bandwagon so i will make my point about this and be done with it.
Let me start by saying this about Marion: Many of us were shocked and dismayed when we selected Shawn 9th over Corey Maggette. I thought this was a mistake. You thought this was a mistake. Dick Vitale thought this was a mistake. The Suns must be given all the credit in the world for that pick. Marion is probably the best ‘second jumper’ in the NBA. His jump shot has been refined enough where its passable. His length causes many steals and he is on of the top five players at finishing on the break. He rebounds unlike any other guy his size. I LOVE Shawn Marion. I just wish he was on his rookie contract still. Here’s why you trade him -
$$$$$$$: You see here is the problem with paying a Super utility player 16 million a year. That money, in this salary cap age, is reserved for players who you can build around. The current system in the NBA in order to stay below the luxury tax is have a superstar – a superstar lite a good third option and then role players. Those first three players and especially those first two HAVE to be players who you can lean on when others get injured. They have to be carry the team in some way. Shawn cannot do this. Think about it for a second. What characteristic defines Shawn’s excellent play in Phoenix. Well for 8/10’s of his time here he has had the best PG in the league on his team. This can’t be overstated enough. Jason Kidd and Nash just make players better. Especially guys like Shawn who you can’t just give the ball to and get out of the way. Shawn played well when Steph was here but he was clearly the third best player behind Steph and Amare. Do you remember after we traded Steph to NY who our best player was. Good ol’ Joe Johnson.
Ok so we have established that he cant create his own shot. And at 16 million, that’s real expensive for a role player. Think about this – guys like Wade, Lebron, and Kobe will make 16 million a year (under the new CBA) – do you think those guys would have just a little more impact than Shawn does on team success. Of course. But his salary isn’t the only reason I think we should trade him while his value is high….
He is replaceable: Honestly guys. Igoudala, Richard Jefferson, Desmond Mason, JR Smith and maybe even a guy like Stromile Swift would get close to Marion’s production on this team. Marion is an athletic freak at the three, but there are a lot of those in the league. And the ones that make 16 million are the ones who have a jump shot.
He complains too much: If Marion just cashed his check, did his thing with the obscene numbers, and that was enough, I would be less against trading him. But damn he is constantly whining. That’s got to wear on the other guys when they are obviously concerned with W’s. I just don’t get it. He plays in Phoenix. He is on a championship type team. He makes crazy money. He plays with the perfect PG in the perfect system for his skills. He is a consistent all-star and has made all NBA a couple times? Whats wrong with this picture? Are you kidding me? Should’nt we just trade him to Milwaukee and give him a taste of life on the other side (Desmond Mason = Shawn Marion lite)
He doesn’t fit into D’Antoni’s system: How many times you think Shawn has missed a wide open jumper or a three and D’Antoni has thought….”Man a guy like Kyle Korver would have hit that shot” The point is Mike likes shooters. Especially at the three position. He would let the 4 and 5 do all the dirty work inside if he had a three who could shoot. Why do you think he moved Marion to the PF anyway. His system doesn’t work if the three can’t shoot…
His value is as high as it will get: I think we could use him in a package for a superstar. I think we could trade him and get back a young stud. I think a lot of teams are Shawn Marion away from being really good. Taking on his contract will be a problem but that thing has to be running out soon right? Couldn’t be more than three years (This contract has been never ending in my mind…..). When he gets older (like in a couple years) his value plummets without his insane athleticism. Lets get something for him before he turns into old Shawn Marion
He doesn’t play THAT good of defense: I always felt he played great perimeter defense and I was telling everyone he would be the x-factor in the Dallas series because he was Nowitzki’s match-up nightmare. Just put Shawn on him and let it be. Well Nowitzki absolutely killed us and when he didn’t it seemed like TT was guarding him. Say what you want about Howard needing to be guarded but if Dirk is what makes that team go – Shawn should be on him. When we were up 77-70 in Game 5, That should have been Shawn’s call to arms right there. No way Nowitzki should go off like that for 50 points…..but he did.
He can be game planned out. See here’s the dirty little secret about Shawn. He makes 16 million a year, but if a opposing coach decides to game plan for him, he can be rendered completely useless. Shawn gets all these points and rebounds because – Well why the hell would you worry about Marion when Nash, Amare, and even Diaw are so much more important to the game plan? But when he is focused on (see 2005 WCF) he is a non factor. That’s why he is so damn inconsistent in the playoffs. Because coaching and defense are heightend and they take him out of the game plan. Conversely look at a guy like Wade. You think the Mavs were game planning for him? Yeah I would guess so. But he still gets his 42 and 13. That’s what superstars do. And if you are making 16 million – like it or not you are in the superstar tax bracket.
So do I want to get rid of Shawn for nothing? Hell no. But it’s a confluence of factors here. He is IMO our fifth most important player to team success. (Nash, Amare, Diaw and Bell are ahead of him) He makes a TON of money (More than all those guys I think) He has inflated trade value (as all Suns do which is an added benefit to D’Antoni;’s system) and he gripes WAY to much. And I mean way to much. We can’t go three months without some Shawn Marion bitching and whining comments. And I can’t for the life of me understand it. Everyone gets on Sprewell fro saying he can’t feed his family. Well Shawn can feed his family, is a NBA star, plays for a winner and still whines? What will happen if things go south. Do you have confidence Marion will be the team leader to right the ship? I don’t…..
I want to win next year. Depending on the package, I’m not sure we can get in return for the ‘06-‘07 what Marion will give us so I am not saying we SHOULD trade him. It’s not my money though. If it was up to me, I would just keep adding salary. But we live in the real world and we know Sarver’s limitations. And Marion is an expensive luxury to have. So while I understand why many Suns fans don’t want to trade him and think it will hurt the team (which for next season is likely as they would probably take back young players and cap space) you have to consider the alternative. Marion is our most replaceable/ expensive asset. Sooner or later it will come to a head. Would you rather trade Diaw or Amare? I don’t think so………
), as he's the perfect role player behind Nash and Amare. It just sucks that he makes the money he makes; if he made $8M a year, this discussion would be moot.
