
#2 Alvan Adams vs. #3 Dick Van Arsdale
How They Got Here:
Alvan Adams: Was a first round winner against the number 7 seed Paul Silas. Adams had the lowest margin of victory in the Somebody Up There Is On Our Side Region for the first round. Adams won with 62% of the
Dick Van Arsdale: The Original Sun cruised to an easy first round victory. Van Arsdale defeated the 6 seed Neal Walk by a whopping 96%. Van Arsdale’s victory was the second highest margin of victory in the first round of the entire tournament.
The Analysis:
Greg Esposito: Van Arsdale proved in the first round that he is still a fan favorite in Phoenix. His dominating victory over Neal Walk was impressive while, Adams seemed to struggle a bit with Paul Silas.
Although Van Arsdale is the fifth highest scorer in Suns history (12,060) and third all-time in games played (685) Adams is still the better Sun. Adams ranks first in games played at 988, minutes played at 27,203, rebounds 6,937 and steals 1,289. He also ranks second in assists with 4,102.
Vince Marotta: It’s a tough matchup between former teammates. Both were beloved by fans in the early days of the Suns, and both have stayed active in the organization long after their playing days are through. It’s really a tossup.
The Picks:
Greg Esposito: Although Van Arsdale showed a strong fan following in round one, I think Adams, based on his career accomplishments as a Sun, will win by a very small margin.
Vince Marotta: Adams has a slight advantage because his career was more recent. Van Arsdale retired in 1977, while Adams played until the late 80’s. Despite that, Van Arsdale should advance since his off-court roles as interim coach, general manager and color commentator have kept him in the public eye more than Adams after-basketball roles have. The Original Sun wins by a hair.
Vote Here:
http://phoenix.fanster.com/suns/2009/03 ... n-arsdale/