Shawn Marion wants to play for a winner...

[Erik Eleven]

Per the wiretap

If he puts his money where his mouth is, we'd better win it all, this season. I wouldn't want to see him signing with the Cavs for the LLE.

Seriously, though. How much do you guys think he means it? How much of a character guy is he? Would he take that statement all the way, or does he mean a possible outside winner that pays him a measly $10M per?

Discuss!

[dockingsched]

the more and more i hear marion and amare talk, the more i grow impressed with the job d'antoni did in phoenix.

marion, now wants to play for a winner when he had it in phoenix. lol.

amare, who is quoted in the other wiretap article, blames porter for holding him back. this is the same amare that blamed d'antoni for not practicing defense and the same amare that didn't wear recommended goggles and lost the season.

couple of idiots.

[Sedale Threatt]

He was already on a winner in Phoenix and bitched his way out of town. I wouldn't spend a dime on this guy. Way too sensitive, way too moody, way too much of a malcontent.

The quintessential Marion story: On Steve Nash's birthday, Pheonix staffers had to get a cake for Shawn as well because they were concerned he'd start pouting.

[DEEP3CL]

I agree with Sedale and dcash, Marion just want's to be paid period. I doubt if any team that's a contender blow major cash on him too much of a risk. And Amare is in a delusional state of mind, he wants to be an offensive player and that's it.

[TylersLakers]

I think he's got a good personality. I've watched the Raptors games and his interviews the past couple weeks and truly, all he cares about is winning.

At the same time, he wants money. I don't see him taking a MLE to play with a winner at all.

[RJM]

PG - Jason Kidd/Derek Fisher/Jordan Farmar
SG - Kobe Bryant/Sasha Vujacic/Shannon Brown
SF - Shawn Marion/Trevor Ariza/Luke Walton
PF - Pau Gasol/Lamar Odom/Josh Powell
C - Andrew Bynum/Pau Gasol/DJ Mbenga

70.

[That Nicka]

We already have Ariza who does what Marion does for less money... No way Buss would pay Ariza, Luke and Marion all 6 mil+ to play the same position

[pdub15]

If he wants to play for a winner he needs to do two things:

1. Lower his contract demands to around $10,000,000 per year so a winner would do a sign and trade.

2. Realize on any winning team he is most likely going to be a 3rd option. Lakers, Boston, Cavs, Magic, Nuggets, Hornets, Utah, Dallas, & Spurs all have a two guys that are their 1st and 2nd option.

Until Shawn does those 2 things than his chances of going to a legit winner is slim. I would love to pull a rabbit out of the hat and grab him but that won't happen.

[crazyeights]

^Exactly...Ariza is developing just fine. His defense, his slashing, his contortions near the basket. We don't need an old blowhard on this team. We need team players, who accept their roles. Ariza does that quite well.

[Erik Eleven]

Suspicions solidified, it seems. Something tells me he's not a total douche, though. I'm a bit surprised the replies are so one-sided.

[Jajwanda]

Only if Ariza leaves is it an option worth exploring.

Pluses:

- Off the ball play is a good fit for the triangle.
- Decent accuracy on open shots especially from the corner three.
- Defensively quite good and versatile, even against PFs unlike Ariza.
- Veteran.
- Open court ability is still devastating.

Minuses:

- Ability to take the pressure off of Kobe facilitating is negligible.
- Declining.
- Has not played up to par at SF outside of Pheonix.

The best option really is to retain Ariza, Odom, and Brown trading Farmar for maybe a young third-string SF. In the mean time draft a PG and try to trade off Morrison+cash for a cheaper contract that does not include luxury tax.

[tkb]

Sign him up. He'd be a good fit.

[magic1fan]

marion is nice but he is not really a game changer imo. he looked nice in a fast ppaced system,but he looked weak in miami and toronto imo...

[Erik Eleven]

Personally, I've never really liked his game. I especially dislike watching his awkward jump shot.

[Slava]

His J is awkward as hell but he's 10 times the better man to man defender Ariza is right now.

[larry14r]

NO WAY Marion because he's an egomanic and I don't want that here, and he doesn't fit our system.

[Dr Aki]

i wouldnt mind him here if its for anything <3M per season, MLE is outta the lakers price range

id rather chase wally szczerbiak instead if marion wants more than 3M per

[hermes]

he wants to play for a winner and be well paid for it


i'll pass

[microfib4thewin]

Marion, like Ariza sucks at halfcourt. The only differences are is Marion is a slightly better defender but will demand much more than the MLE. The Suns front office is notorious for making players feel underappreciated, but Marion constantly thinking he could impact the game as a second option is something that this team, or any other team for that matter, needs.

[milesfides]

If he comes affordable, why not?

He's a better rebounder than Ariza, a good defender, and awkward shot aside, has been overall a better shooter than either Odom or Ariza. And he's been far more consistent in his career. I don't have to mention Luke Walton.

In terms of starting small forward on this team, Marion would be a solid upgrade.

As far as attitude problems, there are guys on our own team who've been written off for having bad personalities. When a team is winning and guys are contributing, the little bitchiness of rich athletes are largely inconsequential. The dismantling of the Suns in the past couple years was due to failure as an organization to advance farther in the playoffs, not because of attitude problems of individual players. We just hear about it afterwards because teams and players love playing the blame game to avoid personal accountability.

I just care about what happens on the floor. And Marion has been durable, consistent, and productive. He's a little old at 30, turning 31, but I like his veteran experience combined with Ariza's potential.