Closed Door Meeting Held After Loss to Bulls

[Frank Lee]

Hmmm... seems to me, if there was a rotational/minutes discussion, it would not have to include Nash and Hill in a closed door dome of silence method...nor any coaching changes.


I gotta think these guys were discussing player changes. If Amare has been quietly offered, one would think there would be multiple offers. There's really nobody else these guys can deal that would give a significant impact or change. Shaq isn't going anywhere, nor Nash or Hill. Barbo doesn't have a high enough contract price to get enough help....

That leaves Standing Tall And Tame on the block.

The front orfice is in desparation mode. If offers are in the works, why wouldn't this bungling bunch seek the approval of both Nash and Hill on who they would like to play with ?

[JohnVancouver]

If they are smart, the will bring in a PF that can play D, rebound, shoot outside so Shaq can operate inside. A guy that does not need the ball that much. And get some other pieces or draft picks in exchange.


--- How many people read that and saw Kurt Thomas?

However, this will affect our PnR with amare and nash. Yes, it has not been as prevalent, but it limits nash even more depending on the type of player we bring in.

I personally think Amare should have the ball more, but it is not happening. Diaw might have been the right PF on this team then Amare. I hate to lose him, but I think shaq or Amare has to go if this team wants a chance.

--- Yup, bizarrely, looks like trading Amar'e instead of Diaw would have been the right move. My first option would be to trade Shaq and tell Amar'e we traded a HOF player because you're the future of this team. Now we need you to step up. Bill Sharman made Wilt the captain of the Laker's back in the day for just that reason - he got the big guy on board with his plan by appealing to his vanity. Stat needs the same kind of psych treatment. Yeah, I know a guy making millions playing a game shouldn't need to be coddled and coaxed into doing his job but we all know that stars require special treatment. There are any number of directors in Hollywood who get work in large part because they are adept at dealing with star egos and insecurities and getting the best performance from them. The NBA is no diferent.

Perversely, the better Shaq plays the worse it is for this team. The offense has become so Shaq-centric that when he has a crap game like today, we have nothing else to go to.

[mkot]

I wish Kerr would just call out this dumbass like how he called out MIkeD in front of the media, but of course he's going to "talk" to his coach behind closed door this time because he''s his buddy. Porter got Kerr's full support from day 1. He mentioned "pieces not fitting", not "the coaching is a bad fit" after the meeting, so chances are Porter will stay and the players will get punished. We can go on a nasty losing streak and Porter will still be the coach.

I hope I'm reading it wrong...

[JohnVancouver]

chances are Porter will stay and the players will get punished. We can go on a nasty losing streak and Porter will still be the coach.

I hope I'm reading it wrong...

--- No, I think that pretty much nails it.

[visions]

I think what the team desperately needs is to either bring in a veteran, highly respected coach, or failing that, trade Shaq.

Last season, when Shaq came to the team, it was clear he had a lot of respect for Mike D and kept going on about stuff like "I don't want to mess up the chemistry" or "I just want to compliment the team" or "I know this isn't my team" etc etc.
Then this season with TP in charge, Shaq has totally changed his tune and made it clear that he is the focus of the team now and the only way to win is by giving him the ball. Nash and Amare's games have suffered tremendously because of this and team has become completely one-dimensional.

I wonder if Shaq's change in attitude is because he has no respect for TP and figures he can influence his decisions because he is still somewhat of a rookie coach or if TP is actually scared of Shaq and is just pandering to him. Or maybe it's just that TP has no imagination when it comes to coaching and figures Shaq is the only option.
Either way, I can't believe Kerr hasn't made TP change his offensive schemes yet...unless Kerr is also blind to just how bad and one dimensional the Suns have become.

If they could bring in a veteran coach, Shaq might accept a lesser role on offense for the benefit of the team. Otherwise they will have to trade Shaq which will force TP abandon his terrible excuse for an offense.

Actually with Kerr's unwavering support for TP I am wondering if he still thinks TP is on the right track despite the fact that almost all the players (except Shaq) are not able to play this way or are underperforming because of it.
It's much easier to change a coach than all the players...although the way things have gone so far it seems like Kerr & Sarver would rather keep changing players to suit TP and supposed "system" he has to make the Suns a defensive force.
What makes this all even worse is that the Suns were actually better on defense under Mike D........

At the end of the day, this team will never be a defensive force and I think they are better off playing run 'n gun and trying to outscore their opponents like they used to under Mike D. Yes they might just get dumped out of the playoffs by those damn Spurs again but at least they would be in the playoffs. Right now they're going nowhere fast.

It's a sad state of affairs how far the the Suns have fallen in such a short space of time.

[|||-Abaddon-|||]

^^^ This team is not one dimensional offensively...We score in bunches....

If anything, its good to have solid post options when you have a jump shooting team, and its clear our offense isnt the problem.

We dont play defense.
We dont have a go-to guy in the clutch.

[Phoenix Suns]

Anyone hear rumours about Shaq being shopped? Probally not true but could be possibly, wonder what the Suns could get for him and who would want him?

[eljayyyyyyyyyy]

If they are smart, the will bring in a PF that can play D, rebound, shoot outside so Shaq can operate inside. A guy that does not need the ball that much. And get some other pieces or draft picks in exchange.


--- How many people read that and saw Kurt Thomas?

However, this will affect our PnR with amare and nash. Yes, it has not been as prevalent, but it limits nash even more depending on the type of player we bring in.

I personally think Amare should have the ball more, but it is not happening. Diaw might have been the right PF on this team then Amare. I hate to lose him, but I think shaq or Amare has to go if this team wants a chance.

--- Yup, bizarrely, looks like trading Amar'e instead of Diaw would have been the right move. My first option would be to trade Shaq and tell Amar'e we traded a HOF player because you're the future of this team. Now we need you to step up. Bill Sharman made Wilt the captain of the Laker's back in the day for just that reason - he got the big guy on board with his plan by appealing to his vanity. Stat needs the same kind of psych treatment. Yeah, I know a guy making millions playing a game shouldn't need to be coddled and coaxed into doing his job but we all know that stars require special treatment. There are any number of directors in Hollywood who get work in large part because they are adept at dealing with star egos and insecurities and getting the best performance from them. The NBA is no diferent.

Perversely, the better Shaq plays the worse it is for this team. The offense has become so Shaq-centric that when he has a crap game like today, we have nothing else to go to.

not only would diaw possibly putting up better numbers if he was still here but we probably couldve got the bench we wanted trading amare and nash would still have his buddy bell here.

[visions]

^^^ This team is not one dimensional offensively...We score in bunches....

If anything, its good to have solid post options when you have a jump shooting team, and its clear our offense isnt the problem.

We dont play defense.
We dont have a go-to guy in the clutch.

What I meant by one dimensional is 90% of the time it seems like every play starts off with Shaq getting the ball deep in the paint and then he looks to score or pass. Half the time Shaq is being fronted or double teamed but TP calls for him to get the ball anyway so Nash, Barbosa, Hill etc. have to try and force it into him and this leads to turnovers.

Giving the ball to Shaq everytime also creates another huge problem of the rest of the team just standing around waiting for something to happen on offense which I think in turn leads to lazy defense cos the players aren't moving around enough and getting into the game. Not getting into the offense may not give them any incentive to try on defense.

I know that's unprofessional but it's also human nature.

[lilfishi22]

not only would diaw possibly putting up better numbers if he was still here but we probably couldve got the bench we wanted trading amare and nash would still have his buddy bell here.

In terms of being the glue that keeps the team together offensively I think Diaw would've made a bigger impact on that respect. If we had gotten rid of Amare, I could definitely see Diaw putting up his Bobcats numbers right now. His scoring wouldn't need to be phenomenal but with the extra time he gets on the court I think he could easily put up 14-6-6, those numbers could probably all be higher but seeing he'll be playing in Porter's "system,' i think those numbers are capped.

[raff]

Wow.

It's hard to add to what's already been said. Too bad that Porter has so many front office buddies, because if this was any other team in the league, he would be out of here. Either way, its not such a great time to be a Suns fan.