RealGM

Even though this post is really old, I will just edit it because the more I think about their decision to trade Shaq, the more I agree with it.

The teams that were already better got better, so there was no point in keeping him.

I initially disagreed with the decision to trade him, but now I agree with it.

+1 man....keep this roster, add chandler and we're effing set

Because these changes put is in a spot where we're worse but therefore have a more valuable draft pick. Which Sarver can then sell for more money...

that big foam hand helps him keep a grip on the money leaving his pocket.

And I think Amare will have an MVP-type year next season because he'll want to show he is worth a max contract.

Are people forgetting how dominant he was under D'Antoni after Shaq came to Phoenix?

He averaged TWENTY EIGHT points per game after the trade!!

Amare is the most unstoppable big-man in the NBA who is only 26 years old. He is worth a max contract, in my opinion.

They should have kept this team together one more year.

I still think Ben Wallace will fail his physical and the trade will fall through...didn't he break his leg towards the end of the season?

diesel you can waive physicals man....the trade is DONE

But the team needs Ben Wallace because of the lack of big-men on the roster.

Amare/Lopez/Amundson isn't enough...

Even though the Lakers just won the championship, I think the Suns match up very well with them...

Shaq/Amare are better than Gasol/Bynum

Hill is better than Ariza

Nash is better than Fisher

Kobe is better than Richardson

The Suns match-up very well with them and they beat the Lakers last season WITHOUT Nash/Amare and Shaq had 33 points in that game.

rsavaj wrote:+1 man....keep this roster, add chandler and we're effing set

Exactly... Go at it with Amare and Chandler that front court is 10 times better than any crap the warriors are offering...

Just play Lopez more minutes next year so the Suns don't get killed on the pick and roll play all the time because Lopez is a very good pick and roll defender.

Reduce Shaq's minutes and touches, play Lopez more, go back to seven seconds or less, and the Suns will be VERY dangerous as long as they stay healthy.

I would have liked to see this team get a full year under Gentry, but with all the dynamics at play here I fully understand why they've taken the approach they have. I don't like it though.

The Diesel wrote:But the team needs Ben Wallace because of the lack of big-men on the roster.

Amare/Lopez/Amundson isn't enough...

Even though the Lakers just won the championship, I think the Suns match up very well with them...

Shaq/Amare are better than Gasol/Bynum

Hill is better than Ariza

Nash is better than Fisher

Kobe is better than Richardson

The Suns match-up very well with them and they beat the Lakers last season WITHOUT Nash/Amare and Shaq had 33 points in that game.

Hill better than Ariza? There's a reason Ariza will make about 10 times more $ than Grant Hill next year

The only thing Ariza does better than Hill is shoot 3 pointers.

Hill is a better player.

The Diesel wrote:The only thing Ariza does better than Hill is shoot 3 pointers.

Hill is a better player.

Hill is decent, Ariza is essential... Damn i wish we could get him, can you imagine having a lock-down defender like him on ur squad who can shut down 4 positions? Kinda like a poor-mans Marion with more upside

Yeah plus the addition of Earl Clark will help. I agree with TC.

It's not fair that last season's squad was not given another year to see if it would work.
Amare was out a big chunk of the season and Barbosa went down a bit too, take into account Porters ineptitude and I don't think we have really seen what this team could have done given a whole season.

I'm just waiting for Kerr to surprise me and show me that he is not a total moron but I doubt he will be able to reconstruct the glory days of the 7 seconds or less era.

i think there was way more to the shaq trade than just getting rid of his contract. we will never know.

Personally I think we wouldve been a much-improved team but we wouldnt have gone past the Wester Conference Finals. Just too weak defensively on the PnR with Nash and Shaq at the end of the day.

You can't just say "reduce Shaq's mins". He's just too much of a personality to do that to. Like it or not he's just the type of player you have to keep happy on your team otherwise severely risk lockeroom mutiny.

When we had Kurt and Marion ... that's when we *shouldve* had the "just one more year" mentality IMO espec after how things played out in that SanAn series. While we got towelled up by some post-up players if we had single-cover (Kurt) at least it meant that they weren't getting their other players involved. Just so frustrating espec after selling the picks that he wouldn't stump up some lux tax just for one more year. I could handle selling the picks if it meant the money would be used for paying for the lux tax. But he sells the picks *and* makes that god-awful Kurt trade ...

I think this team could put up with one more bad year and completely rebuild in 2010 when they have a lot of cap space.

It would have been better to keep this team together one more year.

They would have been competitive and would have had a lot of cap space in 2010 when Shaq/Amare/Nash's contracts expire.

I don't understand the timing of this deal.

I mean, what team can stop Shaq/Amare/Hill/Richardson/Nash/Barbosa when the Suns play up-tempo?

They would have been the highest scoring team in the NBA.

The problem wouldn't have been scoring. It wouldve been defending. Hill's the only player on that list whose a good defender at the end of the day. The rest have serious short-comings.