The 2016 Offseason Thread

[LukasBMW]

I love our team and I love the direction we are heading in, BUT a lot...I mean A LOT needs to go right for us to make the playoffs.

We are super super thin on the frontline when you consider our rookies are going to need to grow at a slow pace. We need Alex Len to have a breakout season and we need solid contributions from both Dudley and Chandler.

If Chandler or Dudley gets hurt for an extended period of time and Alex Len does not improve, then it will be basically impossible for us to compete for a playoff spot even if Bledsoe/Knight/Booker play out of their minds.

[bigfoot]

I love our team and I love the direction we are heading in, BUT a lot...I mean A LOT needs to go right for us to make the playoffs.

We are super super thin on the frontline when you consider our rookies are going to need to grow at a slow pace. We need Alex Len to have a breakout season and we need solid contributions from both Dudley and Chandler.

If Chandler or Dudley gets hurt for an extended period of time and Alex Len does not improve, then it will be basically impossible for us to compete for a playoff spot even if Bledsoe/Knight/Booker play out of their minds.

The Suns were playing pretty decent (competing) at the end of the season with Len at PF and Chandler at C. If something happens to Dudley we would still have Warren, Tucker, or Len who could start at PF. Honestly there is a lot of versatility in our team

Ulis 1
Knight 1 - 2
Bledsoe 1 - 2
Barbosa 1 - 2
Booker 1 - 3
Tucker 2 - 4
Dudley 2 - 4
Warren 3 - 4
Bender 3 - 4 (5?)
Chriss 3 - 4
Len 4 - 5
Chandler 5
Williams 5

not to mention Jenkins (2) or Goodwin (6).

[saintEscaton]

I love our team and I love the direction we are heading in, BUT a lot...I mean A LOT needs to go right for us to make the playoffs.

We are super super thin on the frontline when you consider our rookies are going to need to grow at a slow pace. We need Alex Len to have a breakout season and we need solid contributions from both Dudley and Chandler.

If Chandler or Dudley gets hurt for an extended period of time and Alex Len does not improve, then it will be basically impossible for us to compete for a playoff spot even if Bledsoe/Knight/Booker play out of their minds.

The Suns were playing pretty decent (competing) at the end of the season with Len at PF and Chandler at C. If something happens to Dudley we would still have Warren, Tucker, or Len who could start at PF. Honestly there is a lot of versatility in our team

Ulis 1
Knight 1 - 2
Bledsoe 1 - 2
Barbosa 1 - 2
Booker 1 - 3
Tucker 2 - 4
Dudley 2 - 4
Warren 3 - 4
Bender 3 - 4 (5?)
Chriss 3 - 4
Len 4 - 5
Chandler 5
Williams 5

not to mention Jenkins (2) or Goodwin (6).

The Twin Towers frontcourt had an abysmal offensive rating: 92 points per 100 possessions, 4.1 points worse than the last placed 76ers. It was really just Watson trying to experiment with "high low action"

[LukasBMW]

We are going to be a jump shooting team again next year.

Yes, this is the direction the NBA is going, but as Cotton always used to say: "You live by the 3, you die by the 3."

Cotton was right. High percentage shots still win games, especially playoff games.

[NavLDO]

Well Embiid wasn't even close to participating in SL and he just got cleared for light 5 on 5 scrimmages, they need insurance beyond this year and thats what Jah provide. if they aren't willing to pony up to retain Noel I doubt they would for Len an inferior prospect so its basically a rental. Also that frontcourt pairing is a spacing nightmare, maybe TJ could alleviate it a lil if his outside stroke is for real. Noel is not nearly as effective playing out of position covering Jah's behind away from the rim. He is already an All-NBA level anchor at center

http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=jbo5uag

Maybe this is a bit more palatable; I was just basing my reasoning off of an article I read stating that the Sixers seem more inclined to trade Okafor than Embiid OR Holmes. So, to make the money work, we'd take on Landry and we'd need something in return for Len, so we could always just take Kaun instead, and send them Goodwin.

This way, they keep Okafor AND Embiid (but again according to this article, http://www.ibtimes.com/nba-trade-rumors-philadelphia-76ers-admit-logjam-okafor-noel-embiid-2391671 , they seem more inclined to trade Okafor and Noel than Holmes and Noel. Honestly, I'd rather have Holmes, but assuming what your thoughts on the matter are true, they can keep Holmes, Okafor and Embiid, and only trade Noel). We just would not trade Len, the superior prospect. It would still leave us with Len and Chandler, and Noel, Grant, Landry, and Stauskas, which is a line-up I like better anyway.

Bledsoe/Barbosa/Ulis
Booker/Stuaskas/Jenkins
Warren/Grant/Tucker/(Bender)
Noel/Dudley/Landry/Chriss/(Bender)
Len/Chandler/Williams

That's 17, so we'd either have to NOT re-sign Jenkins and Williams, or find a trade partner to take Chandler and Tucker and bring back only one player, and send Chriss to D-League...IDK, whatever works. I like this better, anyway, because it doesn't cause nearly the spacing issue Okafor would present since Len has a bit of range, and again, Len is better than Okafor and more versatile, anyways.

[TeamTragic]

I love our team and I love the direction we are heading in, BUT a lot...I mean A LOT needs to go right for us to make the playoffs.

We are super super thin on the frontline when you consider our rookies are going to need to grow at a slow pace. We need Alex Len to have a breakout season and we need solid contributions from both Dudley and Chandler.

If Chandler or Dudley gets hurt for an extended period of time and Alex Len does not improve, then it will be basically impossible for us to compete for a playoff spot even if Bledsoe/Knight/Booker play out of their minds.

[NavLDO]

I love our team and I love the direction we are heading in, BUT a lot...I mean A LOT needs to go right for us to make the playoffs.

We are super super thin on the frontline when you consider our rookies are going to need to grow at a slow pace. We need Alex Len to have a breakout season and we need solid contributions from both Dudley and Chandler.

If Chandler or Dudley gets hurt for an extended period of time and Alex Len does not improve, then it will be basically impossible for us to compete for a playoff spot even if Bledsoe/Knight/Booker play out of their minds.

Remember, Len was a failed experiment by Horny, the last 32 games Len was actually very good. He was just still taking too many 10-16 and 16ft+ range shots that hurt his efficiency AND hurt his defensive prowess. Return Len back to what he does best for a majority of the time, and we'll likely see more of those 14 Dbl-Dbls we saw from him in his last 32 games vs 5 Dbl-Dbls from his first 46 games. Len improved the second Watson took over, and I believe he'll use Len more towards his strengths.

If Watson employs Len properly, which I believe he'll have more freedom to do with our roster construct now and a healthy Warren and addition of Duds (regardless of how you feel about Dudley at PF, he's still better defensively at PF than Mirza was, and Leuer hardly got any minutes after Horny left), then I see no reason why anyone should worry about Len and his performance. Len took too much flak for his game than he deserved last season; you'd think we were starting some bench-level Center with some of the comments made about his game. Again, it was Horny, coupled with Warren's injury, that led to a perceived drop in his performance, which to me, was flatly unwarranted. And once Chriss and/or Bender get into their game at PF, that will only further help our cause.

[Zelaznyrules]

That's 16, so have no idea how we would unclutter that...maybe assign Chriss to DL?? IDK, but I do know that a starting lineup of:

Bledsoe/Booker/Warren/Noel/Okafor

...would be a playoff squad, and if Okafor can't play with Noel due to spacing, then we just make sure that Noel plays with Chandler, and Okafor with Grant or Bender or Dudley, or something like that, but I think both teams benefit in that the Sixers get a Combo-Guard, a Center with range in Len, and a pick, and even if Embiid still isn't healthy, the Sixers likely have a playoff squad with some combo of Bayless or Knight, Knight or Saric, Simmons or Saric, Covington or Holmes, and Embiid or Len.

And again, we just put the best 5 out there, but could you imagine turning Knight and Len into Stauskas, Grant, Noel and Okafor, with Chriss, Bender, and Ulis as our rookies...ADDED to our core of Bledsoe, Booker, and Warren??? Yeah, too good to be true, but I'd happily trade one of the Heat picks, maybe even both, to secure that quattro of young talent in Noel, Okafor, Stauskas, and Grant. I know Stauskas has been somewhat of a disappointment (33% 3PT shooter/81.6% FT%/50% TS%/46% eFG%), but remember this--he's played one season with the Kings (where NBA talent goes to die) and one season with the Sixers (where dead NBA talent goes after death...to hell). Put him around guys like Bledsoe, Warren, and Booker, and he can only improve.

I don't see a down side for either team--Sixers unclutter their front-court, get a darn good pick or two, and while WE may not like Knight all that well, the kid does have talent, and they get Len as well with a pick or two.

OK, somebody bring me back down to earth and explain why this would be bad for us or the Sixers, or both...yeah we lose picks and Len (ok, saintEscaton, stop your 'happy-dance', this is only rosterbation here... ), but in return for Noel, Okafor, and Grant (who I really like a lot, if you couldn't tell, but I wouldn't cry over Covington, instead, either), I'm all about it!

I don't know enough about Philly's needs but I think it would be a bad move for us. And I can't see us winning anything but the lottery with that lineup. Maybe if we moved Bledsoe and Warren and replaced them with Ulis and a 3 and D small forward we could possibly make it work but Eric needs space to drive and there is no combination of those guys that gives him enough space IMO. Bledsoe's offensive game is just so limited if there are no driving lanes. But I'm very much not a fan of Okafor so I'd be hard pressed to vote yes no matter who we put around him.

I just don't see the need to make a big move. I don't see a feasible target out there that makes it worthwhile. I'm not big on tanking but I'd rather build around the players we have and if things don't work out well we get to add another major piece next draft. I have serious doubts about Chriss despite having high hopes for him. But regardless, I think we have to play it out and see what he can become, at least for a season or two. If the opportunity to trade for a quality forward comes along, maybe I'd take it but I don't see the advantage of pursuing a 90's style big man in a game that has left them behind.

If we could actually make that deal without giving up both of the Miami picks, I'd probably do it but not because it builds a better team. It would just be a big step up in overall talent. But we'd need to move some of those pieces right away before we damaged their stats and reputation by playing for what would be a very poor team (IMO).

[Zelaznyrules]

I love our team and I love the direction we are heading in, BUT a lot...I mean A LOT needs to go right for us to make the playoffs.

We are super super thin on the frontline when you consider our rookies are going to need to grow at a slow pace. We need Alex Len to have a breakout season and we need solid contributions from both Dudley and Chandler.

If Chandler or Dudley gets hurt for an extended period of time and Alex Len does not improve, then it will be basically impossible for us to compete for a playoff spot even if Bledsoe/Knight/Booker play out of their minds.

Remember, Len was a failed experiment by Horny, the last 32 games Len was actually very good. He was just still taking too many 10-16 and 16ft+ range shots that hurt his efficiency AND hurt his defensive prowess. Return Len back to what he does best for a majority of the time, and we'll likely see more of those 14 Dbl-Dbls we saw from him in his last 32 games vs 5 Dbl-Dbls from his first 46 games. Len improved the second Watson took over, and I believe he'll use Len more towards his strengths.

If Watson employs Len properly, which I believe he'll have more freedom to do with our roster construct now and a healthy Warren and addition of Duds (regardless of how you feel about Dudley at PF, he's still better defensively at PF than Mirza was, and Leuer hardly got any minutes after Horny left), then I see no reason why anyone should worry about Len and his performance. Len took too much flak for his game than he deserved last season; you'd think we were starting some bench-level Center with some of the comments made about his game. Again, it was Horny, coupled with Warren's injury, that led to a perceived drop in his performance, which to me, was flatly unwarranted. And once Chriss and/or Bender get into their game at PF, that will only further help our cause.

That's not how I'd write the history of Jeff, Len and Watson. There were a lot of things I'd lay at Hornacek's doorstep but Len's performance isn't one of them. Alex struggled with injuries almost the entire time Jeff had him. Once Jeff was fired Len continued to struggle until his hand got a little better. He averaged fewer than 8 points per in his first 5 games following Jeff's firing and it seemed to me his defense took a dive with the way Watson used him.

I realize Watson moved him to the forward spot in order to get them both minutes but I don't see how it's called a success from any other angle. And IIRC Len couldn't even buy a basket from the 3 to 10 foot range as the season closed out, it wasn't just his long jumpers that weren't falling. AFAIC, he showed far more promise before moving to forward spot then he did under Earl. I still think he can be a good player in this league but I never again want to see him at forward unless we can pair him with a hybrid of Channing Frye and Dikembe Mutombo.

[AtheJ415]

People on here talking about playoffs. The best move for this franchise is to tank to a top 7 pick or so.

We need to trade Tucker and Chandler. Bledsoe may be too good to keep us that bad if he's healthy all year. But that would be the best move.

Draft a PG, SF, or C of those available in the top 7 of this next draft and our cast of youngsters looks amazing

[Zelaznyrules]

People on here talking about playoffs. The best move for this franchise is to tank to a top 7 pick or so.

We need to trade Tucker and Chandler. Bledsoe may be too good to keep us that bad if he's healthy all year. But that would be the best move.

Draft a PG, SF, or C of those available in the top 7 of this next draft and our cast of youngsters looks amazing

I just don't see any reason to tank unless you simply mean don't go chasing a big trade. I think our best move is to try to win but with the emphasis on developing the younger players. If someone wants Archie or PJ, trade them for whatever you can get. If someone REALLY wants Chandler and is willing to step up with a good offer, I'd trade him too but I don't see a reason to dump him. He can still help Len and even as a backup he's not really overpaid in today's market.

The Knight situation is a little tricky. I don't want to give him away but I would like to find someone that will give us good value for him. I don't see that happening though unless he gets major minutes and does something with them for a few months. If we go into the season with our roster mostly intact minus Knight I suspect we'll end up drafting somewhere around the 7th spot anyway. But if we keep Knight until the break and he plays up to his potential, we might find ourselves in a playoff race. And if that happens Sarver might insist on us keeping him for that playoff race.

Despite what I said though, if we had motivated buyers for Bledsoe, Knight, Tucker, Goodwin and Chandler, it would be almost impossible to say no to a clean sweep IMO. At least, impossible from a fan's perspective. An owner might find it very easy to say no to adding maybe 9 or 10 first round picks for those 5 players.

[JMac1]

I really believe the Suns are going to start the season with an eye on the playoffs. Our situation is so much more positive this year than last without the distraction of the Morri and the players not responding to Horny. Vegas has the Suns and Nets as the worst two teams in the league. That gives fuel to the players.

I don't see a league worst team with Bledsoe back and Dudley replacing the malcontent Kief. Remember that Kief played absolutely horrible last year until Watson took over. Before Bledsoe was injured and while Kief was playing poorly the Suns went 12-19. Booker wasn't playing any substantial minutes either.

Add in a healthy Chandler, Knight, and our new acquisitions in Barbosa, Ulis, Bender, and Chriss plus Alan Williams emergence and we should be very competitive if everyone stays healthy. The team chemistry should be infinitely better than last year. Factoring in all these changes I really don't think playing .500 ball is unrealistic.

So in the case of competing for the playoffs, Bender and Chriss fight for minutes at the backup PF spot. That competition is a good thing. One of them will earn 15-20 minutes per game while Dudley plays 28-30. It's likely both will get an opportunity in the game depending on how they are playing and the match ups.

In the unlikely event we are horrible after 40 games then we can look to move some vets (Bledsoe, Knight, Tucker, Dudley, Chandler, and Barbs) at the trade deadline and give the rooks more burn.

The Suns are hated by the media, if and when we win the Pacific, that means we beat out four teams from California, two being from LA and one from SF/Oak two huge NBA markets. They could care less about us. 2nd worst team in the league? Ridiculous.

Bledsoe, Barbosa, Dudley, Chandler, Knight, and Booker are all solid players, then you add in PJ. I wonder what the over/under win total is in Vegas, that will tell you what they really think. We are definitely better than the LAL.

[asudevil]

People on here talking about playoffs. The best move for this franchise is to tank to a top 7 pick or so.

We need to trade Tucker and Chandler. Bledsoe may be too good to keep us that bad if he's healthy all year. But that would be the best move.

Draft a PG, SF, or C of those available in the top 7 of this next draft and our cast of youngsters looks amazing

SAC/HOU/NO/BKN/LAL are easily worse than us based on true team skill.
And there are other teams who are HUGE question marks: ATL/DAL/WAS/NY

A healthy Suns team is not a BAD team. Last season with a healthy roster we would have probably won 33-35 games....possibly more. And this offseason we added quality vets like Duds/Barbosa. And we've pushed ourselves past a couple of additions-by-subtractions in Morris/Horny. I believe that Watson could be that difference-maker for us. With players who will PLAY for him, you'll likely see much more fight in this team.

IMO a HEALTHY Suns: 38/44

EAST:
BOS - 0/2
BKN - 2/0
NY - 2/0
PHI - 1/1
TOR - 0/2
CHI - 0/2
CLE - 0/2
DET - 1/1
IND - 0/2
ATL - 2/0
CHA - 0/2
MIA - 2/0
ORL - 1/1
WAS - 1/1
TOTAL: 13/17

PACIFIC:
GS - 0/4
LAC - 1/3
LAL - 3/1
SAC - 3/1
TOTAL: 7/9

REST OF WEST:
DAL: - 2/1
HOU - 2/1
MEM - 1/2
NO - 2/1
SAS - 1/2
DEN - 3/0
MIN - 1/2
OKC - 1/2
POR - 1/2
UTH - 1/2
TOTAL: 15/15

Since out of the rest of the West we play an additional 6 games against random teams i think a 3/3 record is statistically fair.
And if last season is an indication of record then we are the 10th worst team.
GS/MEM/LAC/SAS/POR/OKC/UTH/MIN are my picks for the playoffs with us at #9. I think we'll go 10/23 against those teams.

But we've been hit with the injury bug BIG in the past 2 years or so.....so pessimistic me would mark us down to 30/52 at worst...which would peg us at #7/#8 at the end of the season if luck does us wrong.

[NTB]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/TonyWarrenJr/status/754172383674638336[/tweet]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/wilsonchandler/status/754174157546332160[/tweet]

[Joe Pong]

I really believe the Suns are going to start the season with an eye on the playoffs. Our situation is so much more positive this year than last without the distraction of the Morri and the players not responding to Horny. Vegas has the Suns and Nets as the worst two teams in the league. That gives fuel to the players.

I don't see a league worst team with Bledsoe back and Dudley replacing the malcontent Kief. Remember that Kief played absolutely horrible last year until Watson took over. Before Bledsoe was injured and while Kief was playing poorly the Suns went 12-19. Booker wasn't playing any substantial minutes either.

Add in a healthy Chandler, Knight, and our new acquisitions in Barbosa, Ulis, Bender, and Chriss plus Alan Williams emergence and we should be very competitive if everyone stays healthy. The team chemistry should be infinitely better than last year. Factoring in all these changes I really don't think playing .500 ball is unrealistic.

So in the case of competing for the playoffs, Bender and Chriss fight for minutes at the backup PF spot. That competition is a good thing. One of them will earn 15-20 minutes per game while Dudley plays 28-30. It's likely both will get an opportunity in the game depending on how they are playing and the match ups.

In the unlikely event we are horrible after 40 games then we can look to move some vets (Bledsoe, Knight, Tucker, Dudley, Chandler, and Barbs) at the trade deadline and give the rooks more burn.

The Suns are hated by the media, if and when we win the Pacific, that means we beat out four teams from California, two being from LA and one from SF/Oak two huge NBA markets. They could care less about us. 2nd worst team in the league? Ridiculous.

Bledsoe, Barbosa, Dudley, Chandler, Knight, and Booker are all solid players, then you add in PJ. I wonder what the over/under win total is in Vegas, that will tell you what they really think. We are definitely better than the LAL.

I think you're a classic case of a fan overrating their teams own players. There isn't a player on the team who is more than a marginal starter. It's a team full of role players and guys who should be coming off the bench for at a decent team.

[bwgood77]

People on here talking about playoffs. The best move for this franchise is to tank to a top 7 pick or so.

We need to trade Tucker and Chandler. Bledsoe may be too good to keep us that bad if he's healthy all year. But that would be the best move.

Draft a PG, SF, or C of those available in the top 7 of this next draft and our cast of youngsters looks amazing

I think it's best to get a high pick too, but I wouldn't call it tanking. We are going to try, and perhaps be pretty competitive at times, but due to the nature of the west and the increasing strength of the east, we will be hard pressed to be much better than bottom 7 by default. In the west I expect us to be better than the Lakers and that's the only one I'd count as a sure bet. Depending on health of other western teams, I think it will be tough to be better than all of the following: Denver, New Orleans, Sacramento and maybe Dallas. We MIGHT be better than two or three of those, but I wouldn't count on it. But at the very best, we are better than those 4.

Same with the east. We will probably be better than Philly and Brooklyn. And we MIGHT be better than NY, Milwaukee and Orlando. My guess is probably 1 of the latter 3, MAYBE 2.

So by my guess, that puts us almost for sure better than three teams, and probably better than 2 or 3 more. At the very best, 7 more, but that be really unlikely. So I think we finish between 4th worst and 11th worst, but probably closer to 4th, which puts us at 6th or 7th worst. Unless we play lights out for some reason, but we just don't have enough talent to. And that's fine. We are young, and will probably add another player. Few teams will have max cap space next summer, so maybe we can add someone else that is a big quality player and make a trade. I expect some sort of trade of a vet or two anyway, and possibly Knight.

I'm not pessimistic about this season and think it will be fun to watch. But 5th to 7th worst is my guess, and that will be exceeding expectations of most everyone outside of the Suns team and maybe many Suns fans.

[JMac1]

I really believe the Suns are going to start the season with an eye on the playoffs. Our situation is so much more positive this year than last without the distraction of the Morri and the players not responding to Horny. Vegas has the Suns and Nets as the worst two teams in the league. That gives fuel to the players.

I don't see a league worst team with Bledsoe back and Dudley replacing the malcontent Kief. Remember that Kief played absolutely horrible last year until Watson took over. Before Bledsoe was injured and while Kief was playing poorly the Suns went 12-19. Booker wasn't playing any substantial minutes either.

Add in a healthy Chandler, Knight, and our new acquisitions in Barbosa, Ulis, Bender, and Chriss plus Alan Williams emergence and we should be very competitive if everyone stays healthy. The team chemistry should be infinitely better than last year. Factoring in all these changes I really don't think playing .500 ball is unrealistic.

So in the case of competing for the playoffs, Bender and Chriss fight for minutes at the backup PF spot. That competition is a good thing. One of them will earn 15-20 minutes per game while Dudley plays 28-30. It's likely both will get an opportunity in the game depending on how they are playing and the match ups.

In the unlikely event we are horrible after 40 games then we can look to move some vets (Bledsoe, Knight, Tucker, Dudley, Chandler, and Barbs) at the trade deadline and give the rooks more burn.

The Suns are hated by the media, if and when we win the Pacific, that means we beat out four teams from California, two being from LA and one from SF/Oak two huge NBA markets. They could care less about us. 2nd worst team in the league? Ridiculous.

Bledsoe, Barbosa, Dudley, Chandler, Knight, and Booker are all solid players, then you add in PJ. I wonder what the over/under win total is in Vegas, that will tell you what they really think. We are definitely better than the LAL.

I think you're a classic case of a fan overrating their teams own players. There isn't a player on the team who is more than a marginal starter. It's a team full of role players and guys who should be coming off the bench for at a decent team.

I think you are a classic example of not understanding a post

I think you are a troll

What does saying the Suns aren't media darlings have to do with overrating the Suns? Saying we aren't the worst team in the league and better than Lakers is overrating the Suns

But you saying Bledsoe, Booker, Knight, PJ, Chandler are all bench players on a decent team is ok?

I guess you must be talking about GS being a decent team

[JMac1]

People on here talking about playoffs. The best move for this franchise is to tank to a top 7 pick or so.

We need to trade Tucker and Chandler. Bledsoe may be too good to keep us that bad if he's healthy all year. But that would be the best move.

Draft a PG, SF, or C of those available in the top 7 of this next draft and our cast of youngsters looks amazing

I think it's best to get a high pick too, but I wouldn't call it tanking. We are going to try, and perhaps be pretty competitive at times, but due to the nature of the west and the increasing strength of the east, we will be hard pressed to be much better than bottom 7 by default. In the west I expect us to be better than the Lakers and that's the only one I'd count as a sure bet. Depending on health of other western teams, I think it will be tough to be better than all of the following: Denver, New Orleans, Sacramento and maybe Dallas. We MIGHT be better than two or three of those, but I wouldn't count on it. But at the very best, we are better than those 4.

Same with the east. We will probably be better than Philly and Brooklyn. And we MIGHT be better than NY, Milwaukee and Orlando. My guess is probably 1 of the latter 3, MAYBE 2.

So by my guess, that puts us almost for sure better than three teams, and probably better than 2 or 3 more. At the very best, 7 more, but that be really unlikely. So I think we finish between 4th worst and 11th worst, but probably closer to 4th, which puts us at 6th or 7th worst. Unless we play lights out for some reason, but we just don't have enough talent to. And that's fine. We are young, and will probably add another player. Few teams will have max cap space next summer, so maybe we can add someone else that is a big quality player and make a trade. I expect some sort of trade of a vet or two anyway, and possibly Knight.

I'm not pessimistic about this season and think it will be fun to watch. But 5th to 7th worst is my guess, and that will be exceeding expectations of most everyone outside of the Suns team and maybe many Suns fans.

The unknown variables are Bledsoe's health, Booker's emergence, and the subtraction of the Morri twins. If Booker wasn't a fluke and Bledsoe stays healthy, contrary to the ballboy's post, you added two very good players to your roster.

Also Barbosa coming off of the bench versus Archie, Dudley's shooting threes at a higher rate than PJ, and what Chandler will be showing up to most games? The uninterested one or the 27 Reb one. I wouldn't be surprised one way or the other.

I think the rooks playing will hurt us more than anything and they should get plenty of PT, so that should rack up some losses for us.

I can't wait to see Bledsoe, Booker, and Knight all on the floor at once with Dudley and (3pt making) Bender playing small ball or Chriss starting the offense off with Bledsoe running the Pick and Roll Good luck with that. Don't mention defense, because as Chris Tucker says I don't give a ****!

[bwgood77]

The Suns are hated by the media, if and when we win the Pacific, that means we beat out four teams from California, two being from LA and one from SF/Oak two huge NBA markets. They could care less about us. 2nd worst team in the league? Ridiculous.

Bledsoe, Barbosa, Dudley, Chandler, Knight, and Booker are all solid players, then you add in PJ. I wonder what the over/under win total is in Vegas, that will tell you what they really think. We are definitely better than the LAL.

I think you're a classic case of a fan overrating their teams own players. There isn't a player on the team who is more than a marginal starter. It's a team full of role players and guys who should be coming off the bench for at a decent team.

I think you are a classic example of not understanding a post

I think you are a troll

What does saying the Suns aren't media darlings have to do with overrating the Suns? Saying we aren't the worst team in the league and better than Lakers is overrating the Suns

But you saying Bledsoe, Booker, Knight, PJ, Chandler are all bench players on a decent team is ok?

I guess you must be talking about GS being a decent team

Warning for calling someone a troll who obviously isn't and using excessive emoticons implying someone does not understand you when they obviously did. The media and vegas doesn't think we are going to be very good because we simply don't have players who are better than marginal starters other than Bledsoe and probably Booker. Booker is coming along nicely but he still is a one way player. But that is two players. Knight is a terrible pg, and is not ideal as a SG. Chandler is over the hill. Is Tucker a great starter? Dudley is a bench player on most every team in the league.

[Frank Lee]

Pong with the 'Paddle'

Wood with a frank take on reality.

and JMac JMac-ing