Chris Kaman signs extension with the Clippers

ESPN reports that Clippers center, Kaman has signed a 5 year extension with his team. He has accepted the $52.5 mil offer the Clippers made. Kaman was previously offered 5/50 around ten days back but he wrote in his blog a few days back that he thought he deserved more.

True - he is part of a dying breed (not cavemen, idiot! centers) and he does infuriate me with his O rebounding while playing the Suns, but is he worth that much money? Apparently, I'm alone in thinking so. The ESPN report says that Kaman was likely to be offered a max contract next summer by many teams!

Bottom line - there is no escape for Suns fans from the 'Caveman's curse' -- we're gonna have to watch him play our team at least 4 times a year.

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Kevin Garnett to be traded?

The St. Paul Pioneer Press is reporting that the Timberwolves will try to trade Kevin Garnett by February because "his skills have reached a plateau at age 30." [link] Now that news is at once interesting and scary.

'Marion for KG' is topic that has been discussed to death but that is a scenario very unlikely, especially if the TWolves are looking to trade KG by February. Even if the Wolves like Marion, why would the Suns risk their team chemistry that deep into the season? What has me excited is the possibility of an 'Amare for KG trade' (I know I'm going to be skewered by Amare fans for this). But then, who knows how healthy/unhealthy Amare is going to be then?

The scary part : If KG agrees to a trade, that would be only to join a championship caliber team. The thought of KG joining any such team scares me shitless! Its hard enough for the Suns to try to win just the Western Conf with the new playoff seedings. Any team not called Minny is going to be scary good with KG on its roster . So....

dream on..
M

Three Suns in FOX Sports' Top 50 NBA Players List

Full Story

6. Steve Nash, Phoenix Suns, 32, 6-3, 195: 18.8 pts., 10.5 ast., .921 free throw percentage

To win the MVP two years in a row speaks volumes for a guy who led two different groups to the conference finals in two seasons. He is the best point guard in the game and by definition is unparalleled at making his teammates better. Next is actually reaching the NBA Finals.

19. Shawn Marion, Phoenix Suns, 28, 6-7, 230: 21.8 pts., 11.0 reb., 1.98 stl.

For some strange reason, Marion has become the game's most talented player that people hate to love. Maybe it's his unorthodox shot, or his occasional stinkers in the playoffs. But the fact of the matter is he played out of position last season at power forward, and his numbers should be even better this year.

21. Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix Suns, 24, 6-10, 250: 26.0 pts., 8.9 reb., 1.63 blk.

Those statistics are from two years ago because microfracture knee surgery on one knee, then arthroscopic surgery on the other, limited him to four games last season. If he comes all the way back, he's easily a top-10, or even a top-five, player. But the Suns are taking it slow and so is he. It may not be until next season that we'll know how close he'll be to his old self.

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Around the League - Thursday

Hawks' Marvin breaks hand [AJC]
"Second-year Hawks forward Marvin Williams broke the third metacarpal on his left hand in practice Thursday and will be out of for six to eight weeks."

Did someone just yell "Hooray 2007 draft !"?

LeBron high-fives Roethlisberger during game [cleveland.com]
"Among those rooting for the MVP-to-be was Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who sat in the front row at midcourt. Roethlisberger watched his good friend sail in for one driving dunk in the first quarter. And when James slipped along the baseline for a second slam 27 seconds later, Big Ben couldn't help but grin and hold out a hand for James to slap as he raced down the court."

Stern wants players to leave guns at home [ESPN]
"It's a pretty, I think, widely accepted statistic that if you carry a gun, your chances of being shot by one increase dramatically"

Phil Jackson almost ready for opener, Bryant likely to miss [FOX Sports]

LA becoming Clippers town [FOX Sports]
"It was great if we could get a win for us and our fans," Brand recalled. How about now? "We expect to get a win against anybody in the league," he said.

NBA news, 24/7 on Sirius [nba.com]
"The NBA and SIRIUS Satellite Radio, announced today a new exclusive programming lineup on NBA Radio on SIRIUS, channel 127, the first 24/7, year-round radio channel devoted to the NBA."

Friend of Jamaal Tinsley faces charges in strip-club fight [USA Today]
"A court commissioner entered a not-guilty plea to misdemeanor charges of battery, disorderly conduct and possession of marijuana on behalf of Raymel Mattocks, 29, of Brooklyn, N.Y., a friend of point guard Jamaal Tinsley, who was also at Club Rio early on October 6."


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SI answers12 questions

After the usual rhapsodies on LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, the biggest questions in the NBA were addressed in an article by Sports Illustrated (full story)

Highlights:

Will Amare's return help the Suns reach the Finals?

On paper, the return from injury of a 20-point, nine-rebound 23-year-old talent should be enough to bridge the gap from two-time conference finalist to NBA finalist.

"Amaré hasn't quite figured out defense yet; he gives up a lot on the [defensive] end. Until he -- and the Suns -- stop being so generous defensively, Phoenix will remain a Western bridesmaid."

About Cuban

"He's at every game, he's on the bench, he's screaming about every call. It's a tremendous distraction and it's got to affect the players. You don't worry about things you can't control; you're wasting your energy and misplacing your focus."

On Isiah Thomas' coaching prowess -

"I scouted Isiah a lot when he was coaching Indiana and, in all honesty, I didn't see him bring a lot to the table," says a former Central Division scout. "I never really had much of an understanding of what he was trying to do and I often had a feeling that he didn't have an understanding of it either."

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Nikoloz Tskitishvilli waived by the Knicks

Tskitishvilli a.k.a Skita has been waived by the Knicks. He was picked 5th overall in the 2002 draft by the Denver Nuggets. Skita played for Suns Coach D'Antoni when the latter coached Benetton Treviso to a championship in the Italian league. D'Antoni was a member of the Nuggets front office when Skita was recruited. Coincidence? Sorry Denver..... To think you guys could've picked Amare/Caron Butler/Prince.

Damn! I just looked through the 2002 draft for stars and all I saw were a bunch of scrubs, save for the above three. Is that one of the worst drafts ever?

btw, check out the picture of some random dude, that nba.com has on file for Skita - here

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Morning Roundup - Wednesday

- USA Today salutes Marion's versatility with its statistical analysis of each of the positions in the 2005-06 season. (full story)

- GMs' predictions for the 2006-07 season (link)
Champions : San Antonio Spurs
Eastern Conf Champs : Miami Heat
Pacific Division : Phoenix Suns
MVP : LeBron James
ROY : Brandon Roy
Best Coach : Pat Riley

Best Perimeter Defender in the NBA : Raja Bell came in 4th with 10.7% votes
Click here for rest of the predictions.

- I took a look at the 2005-06 GM survey and found a few good/stupid predictions (thanks to hindsight),
Stupid :

• Which team will be most improved in 2005-06? Golden State Warriors
• Who will win the 2005-06 MVP? (1)Tim Duncan, (2) Shaquille O'Neal ; Duncan had the worst ppg, rpg of his career last year
• Who is the best head coach in the NBA? Larry Brown
• Which head coach makes the best in-game adjustments? Larry Brown(lol. I don't know about in-game adjustments, but he sure made a few in-between game adjustments - he set a record with 42 different starting lineups)
• If you had one game to win, which current coach would you want coaching that game? Larry Brown
  

Surprisingly accurate :
What was the most underrated player acquisition? Raja Bell, Phoenix Suns
(remember how fans revolted when Raja was offered the MLE)

Other interesting predictions :
Which active player will make the best head coach someday? Steve Nash (1st both in 05-06 and 06-07)

M

OT

This video has nothing to do with the NBA but I think its plain awesome. If you like watching horses ride in cars, answer the phone and fetch beers, you will like it too.
Patches, the horse

Around the league - Tuesday

- Steve Kerr predicts that the Suns will win the Pacific Division. But the most talented roster according to him - LA Clippers. In Kerr's words "Still, from top to bottom, no one in the Pacific has a more talented roster than the Clippers."

- Can Toronto really become PHX North ?
Coach Sam Mitchell's mantra to players : "Just hurry up and shoot"
His aim : 100 shots a game! (full story)
OK, reality check : The Suns shot only 87.4 times a game last season

- Magic's giveaways this season, to lure the fans to games - Arroyo Bobbleheads, Darko fly swatters (full story)

- Second highest player on the Lakers' current payroll : Brian Grant! Yeah.. he is still paid $15 mil a year by the Lakers. (full story)

- Kirk Hinrich not likely to be extended before next summer (full story).

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ESPN Poll

ESPN is running a poll on a variety of questions ranging from the predicted number of wins to the key role player for each of the 30 NBA teams. Make sure to drop by the page and vote. (link)

I voted thus:

1) Where will the Suns finish in the Pacific Division (with Golden State, L.A. Clippers, L.A. Lakers and Sacramento)?
	First
2) Oddsmakers set the over/under on Suns wins at 55.5. How many games will they win?
	56 or more
3) Which Suns star is most significant to their success this season?
	Steve Nash
4) Which Suns role player is most significant to their success this season?
	Kurt Thomas
5) What do you expect from Amare Stoudemire?
	He strugggles for a while but eventually returns to form

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Raja Bell chronicles the pre-season

Raja Bell talks to Sam Alipour about the Suns' training camp and pre-season. Raja is one of the more well-spoken, articulate guys around and the entire piece is an excellent read. (espn)

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Pre-season impressions

KT - lean, mean fighting machine

Kurt Thomas has been one of the brightest spots on an otherwise ordinary preseason for the Suns. Last night he turned in 20 points, 9 rebounds in just 24 minutes on the floor. He was pretty out of shape and clearly couldn't keep up with the frantic pace of the Suns during his comeback attempt in the playoffs last season. This time, however, he's in excellent shape to lead the Suns back to being one the premier defenses in the league.

In Coach D'Antoni's words, "He's way ahead (of last year)". I wonder if Jenny Craig had a role in whipping KT into shape...
What was that...bad joke? Hell no! Did you know that Jenny Craig is part owner of the Suns team?? So every time you buy Suns' tickets you're putting a few pennies in Kirstie Alley's pocket.

Amare update

Amare Stoudemire played close to 20 minutes in last night's preseason loss to Seattle. He finished with 13/5 -- not bad considering how far along D'Antoni thinks he is in his comeback - halfway. When asked about Amare, this is what he had to say

"Basketball wise, he's still about halfway there. He's got a lot of rust."

IMO, its gonna be at least 2-3 months before we can expect to see the Amare of old. For now, the Suns will look to work him into the lineup with 10-15 mins a game at the start of the season. And yes, he's not going to start for a while now. Before you guys begin to freak out, you need to realize that the Suns are solid enough to put together an impressive regular season record. Amare's presence is of paramount importance only in the playoffs, when teams have time to plan for the Suns and start pounding us at the post. Till such time, Amare purely needs to work on meshing well with the team and ridding himself off the rust he's accumulated.
The Suns will work out just fine this season.

For now, the positives about Amare:

• He's being aggressive at the post. (yes, there are going to be off days like last night when he was tentative).
• He's trying to play good defense from time to time.
  

It's just the preseason!

Suns' fans also need to stop taking preseason games so seriously. The coach and the team experiment a lot in these games and one shouldn't put much stock into the game results.
Case in point: A rather intriguing defensive match up we used in the previous game against the Lakers -- Marion on Bynum, KT on Odom


My concerns

-Banks' inability so far, to man the point effectively. I feel he will get better as the season wears on...but what scares me is

-D'Antoni's impatience with reserve players and his proclivity to run Nash into the ground because his backups aren't half as effective as him. This, IMO is D'Antoni's biggest weakness as a coach. He needs to show more faith in his bench and be more committed to resting Nash. Damn! Nash is 32 and our window of opportunity for a championship lasts only as long as Nash is on the team. Preserve the MVP!

-the team's shooting. We've been abysmal from downtown and need to improve our shooting. Part of the reason could be the new ball (blast!). The vets like Bell, Nash etc. will get used to it. James Jones was 3-5 from the three point line last night, so he's OK.
Banks and Jumaine Jones are the ones who really need to get their act together.

Injury update

• Barbosa sat out last night's preseason game against Seattle with a right big toe sprain
• Piatkowski made a comeback after missing five preseason games with an ankle sprain
• Sean Marks is out with a left elbow sprain

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Nash shows off his soccer skills

I found the following videos from Nash's Charity Classic. The first video has him showing off his soccer wizardry with another soccer guy (also named Steve). This guy Nash never ceases to amaze me! If you feel emasculated at the end of the video, don't tell me you weren't warned.



Same juggling from another angle followed by Nash trying to head the ball into the hoop. Watch it. Its fun!



To make you feel better about yourself after this flurry of videos, watch the next one. Many of you must remember this from the spurs forum from late last season. Its the one with Nash's godawful expression.

Looking back at the 04-06 Suns

An awesome montage of the past 2 Suns seasons. Watch it if you like being reminded of the vintage Amare - the freakish dunks and that rejection of Timmy 'Duh'ncan. Look out at the 2:10 mark - Marion darts across the court in a millisecond to throw down a jam; that's immediately followed by Amare's block.



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Nash feels like we're gonna win one

The Suns website has an article summarizing Hoop magazine's article on Nash's life off the court. Be sure to check it out. (full story)

What I gleaned from it-

Nash's favorite Will Ferrell character : Mugatu from Zoolander

His recent non-basketball activities: batting practice with SF Giants, working out with the New York Red Bulls (MLS), deep-sea fishing (bass fishing is a sport on ESPN, right?) in the Bahamas with Suns teammates.

Quoteworthy:

“It’s about giving yourself a chance and trying to just stay with it, and keep that desire to win as big as ever, But I really feel like we’re going to win one.”

Around the league

• Marbury wants to start his own talk show (!!). NYPOST reports that Starbury has already done a bunch of demo shows, interviewing B-b-b-b-billups, Steve Franchise, Kobe 'The Elbow' Bryant (1 hr long) and has Cuban lined up for later this month. (full story)

• Paul Shirley has been released by the Timberwolves. Wonder if this means a return to blogging on ESPN for Shirley?

• High praise for Joe Johnson. (full story)

• Shaq attacks wrong target in botched raid on internet sexual predators. (true story)
  
• why : Incorrect tracing of IP address (damn the geek squad!)
• where : Bedford County, Virginia
  

• Barbosa hates the ball too

"It's that ball, man, Even when you think it feels good, it doesn't go."

We hear ya Blurbosa.


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Euroleague 101

Henry Abbott at True Hoop brings some news that is sure to interest every purple & orange blooded Phoenix Suns fan. Apparently, a concerted effort is being made by a French website to provide weekly English language coverage of the Euroleague. Remember the days when we had to scour the internet for obscure videos of Thabo Sefolosha or Sergio Rodriguez because of the Suns' purported interest in drafting them? Julien Debove of BasketSession.com promises weekly reports and player profiles that will obviate the need to watch "those old-fashioned video clips".

I read the preseason ranking of euro teams and found some of the comparisons to NBA teams pretty humorous. (text in bold italics is especially funny, text in red italics is to be smirked at)

1. CSKA Moscow (Russia)
The reigning champs are back (Papaloukas, Langdon, Coach Ettore Messina…).
NBA team look-alike : San Antonio Spurs ’05-06

2. Panathinaikos Athens (Greece)
Best frontcourt in the League (future NBA players Scola and Splitter)…and the backcourt ain’t bad either…
NBA team look-alike : Detroit Pistons ’04-05

3. Tau Vitoria (Spain)
The Spanish champs might be even better without last year studs Garbajosa & Herrmann.
NBA team look-alike : Dallas Mavericks ’04-06 (better without an MVP)

6. Olympiakos (Greece)
Big fat contracts and a big fat center (Baby Shaq).
NBA team look-alike : New York Knicks post-Ewing era (replace Baby Shaq by Jerome James)

10. Efes Pilsen (Turkey)
4 experienced Americans and a good European supporting cast.
NBA team look-alike : more Americans than the ’06-07 Toronto Raptors roster

13. Joventut Badalona (Spain)
A young and fearless squad led by 21-year old star Rudy Fernandez and S.I.X.T.E.E.N. year-old phenomenon Ricky Rubio. Imagine LeBron James playing in the NBA while a sophomore in high school. You got the picture…
NBA team look-alike : Cleveland Cavaliers ’05-07

17. Zalgiris Kaunas (Lithuania)
Has been on the downside since they won the Euroleague in 1999. Bad omen when your best player might be the owner of the team (former Blazer Arvydas Sabonis)…
NBA team look-alike : Washington Wizards ’00-01 and Charlotte Bobcats ’06-07 ???

18. Le Mans (France)
A very exciting team which likes to play up-tempo. Would be ranked much higher without an awful start in the French league…
NBA team look-alike : A Taiwanese imitation of the ’05-06 Phoenix Suns

23. Olimpija Ljubljana (Slovenia)
The Slovenian team has as much money available as a Donald Sterling tip.
NBA team look-alike : The vintage Los Angeles Clippers (before Sterling started acting like Isiah Thomas)

Thanks for the support so far!

A quick, but HUGE thanks to all of you have been reading this blog. Its good to know that some of you've liked it enough to subscribe to the RSS feeds.

Shameless request : If you guys could show your support by dropping a line in the 'comments' section, that would be Suntastic. You don't have to say you love the blog or anything, something like "damn! you stink dude" would work too (because I'll know you at least took a sniff :)

M

D'Antoni's coaching - strictly average?

Charley Rosen of FOX Sports rated the top NBA head coaches and I had to scroll all the way down the page to find D'Antoni! Maybe its my purple sunglasses but I expected D'Antoni to be atleast in the top 5. He was after all, voted Coach of the Year in 2004-05 - his first full year as NBA head coach. But well Rosen disagrees and he has his reasons, which I will get to shortly.

A quick rundown of his list:

Phi Beta Kappa - Phil Jackson, Greg Poppovich, Pat Riley

Dean's List - Jerry Sloan

Honor Roll - Rick Carlisle, Bernie Bickerstaff, Avery Johnson

Among the Elite - Lawrence Frank, Eddie Jordan, Eric Musselman, Flip Saunders, Byron Scott, Scott Skiles

A Cut Above - Mike Fratello, George Karl, Nate McMillan

Strictly Average - Mike Brown, Mike Casey, Mike D'Antoni, Mike Dunleavy, Brian Hill, Bob, Hill, Sam Mitchell, Don Nelson, Doc Rivers, Terry Stotts, Jeff Van Gundy, Mike Woodson

On Probation - Isiah Thomas

On the Verge of Flunking - Maurice Cheeks

His reason for D'Antoni's low rating -

"Is only interested in half of the game. The wrong half."

Well, can't really argue with his first sentence, but the second one? So long as the 'half' that Coach is interested in is good enough to take the Suns to back to back WCF, I will have to STRONGLY DISAGREE.
I guess its damn good to be 'wrong' in Rosen's books ;)

Back to the Suns style, Coach D'Antoni has pledged to not joke about defense this season. He has also promised to play a faster offense and better defense. Interesting combination there, though they're often pretty much mutually exclusive.

What do you say to this guys : Let's give him 10 games to get his D in place.
We don't see defense, we drop the D from his name. Hell! at least it makes typing his name easier ;)
You listening, Coach Antoni?

Gilbert's not gonna drop 50 on the Suns.....OR IS HE?

Is Gilbert still going to drop 50 on the Suns? This is part of what he had to say after he was cut from Team USA:

"I'm going to be the silent assassin this year," he said. "I can't wait to play the Suns and Portland. Against Portland, Nate McMillan, I'm going to try to score 100 in two games and against D'Antoni, I'm going to score 100 in two games. I'm going to try."

D'Antoni responded in typical fashion with his tongue in cheek style

"I saw that. I can see why he's a little upset that he didn't make the team. He shouldn't be. It's an honor to be among the top 25. But also, I'm an assistant coach. He has to understand that. But the only guy he can take it out on is me and (Portland coach) Nate McMillan. And you know what? With our defense, he has a chance to get 100. God love him. I hope he can do it. But all I can say is 100 might not be enough."

In his blog on nba.com, this is what Arenas had to say yesterday

Its hard when you’re out there doing everything that coach says and you’re one of the premier players in the NBA but you can’t get three minutes on a team that doesn’t have Kobe, Kevin Garnett, Chauncey, Jason Kidd … and you’re looking out there and you’re second guessing yourself and like, “Am I good enough? What’s going on?”

I think that’s why I got frustrated. I was frustrated I’m not playing, but it was still a team thing. So that’s when I lashed out. I sat back and I was like, “Damn.” To an extent I shouldn’t have done that, because it wasn’t their fault.

So what exactly is going to happen? Honestly, I do hope Arenas plays with a chip on his shoulder - that would make thinks really interesting. Because he will probably be guarded with the guy on our team who has a perennial chip on his shoulder - Raja Bell. That would be one hell of a match up! Don't you think?

Other points on the Arenas list:

• "We have to beat Miami. We’re 0-16 against them. Since I’ve been here, we have not won yet. I’m not counting … but yeah, we’re 0-16. " Apparently, Wade rubbed it in during the Las Vegas camp.
  

• I want politicians coming to me and asking me for advice … I know nothing about politics, but, hey. So if I can control the people in D.C., then they have to come talk to me.
• I want to set up restaurants and get into Starbucks.
  

• I ordered a Maybach, you know, the 57. It’s a one-of-one. They made it for the movie “Memoirs of a Geisha.” They made it for that movie.

And yeah, you guys do know that he recently bought himself a high-altitude tent right?

M