Mike Korzemba, back when he was making rational what-ifs, did a really good piece on the Suns. I honestly think that if they got Luol Deng, who by 07 was good enough to have Kobe willing to demand a trade to play with him and also had the endurance to play that style of ball night after night, they would have won a title, even if they still lose Joe Johnson. Deng wasn't a superstar, but by god you wanted him if you could have him. He was basically a light version of Shawn Marion.
If Robert Sarver had not sold off Joe Johnson they could've been great. All because he didnt want to pay a future 7 time allstar and near hall of famer smdh
@@Ahmeezy1 He already has a case for top 5, and even if he's not he's super close. 2 rings would give him a really good case for top 3, and no question he'd be top 5. He has 2 MVPs, don't forget that. Only 2 other PGs can say they've won multiple MVP awards
Great analysis, but a lot of things left out. Can’t blame you, though, so many failures. Impossible to cover them in one video. A few things come to mind: Not resigning Tim Thomas for the MLE and drafting either Rondo or Steve Blake. Thomas was an amazing fit at stretch 4 for them when the team was in desperate need of bigs. Instead they signed Marcus Banks to the MLE to fill the backup PG need. Underwhelming probably overstates his contribution to the team. Trading Kurt Thomas plus 1st round draft picks in a salary dump. He was their best low post defender and had an amazing midrange jumper. They acquired no usable talent in return. You hit on the Deng draft/trade, but let’s look at by the numbers. They traded the #9 pick one year for the next year’s #21 pick. They didn’t expect the Bulls to over-achieve, but they did. Even bean-counters like Sarver would have to call that a stupid move. Now to make matters worse for us Suns fans is that the drafts, trades, and free agent signings have consistently failed. Drafting Bender and Jackson? Trading for Brandon Knight and then giving him a stupid contract? Acquiring an overpaid Tyler Johnson? Successful franchises don’t do that kind of nonsense.
They won the 2007 championship in my mind. A league official by the name of Stu Jackson had the power to overrule the decision to keep Stoudamire and Diaw out of game 6. Despite the obvious reality that they had left the bench in order to de escalate the situation, he decided to uphold the suspension, stating that "it's not a matter of fairness, it's a matter of correctness". How can you uphold a rule that goes against its own purpose?
For sure. Nash was one of the only players that put fear in my heart when he pulled up from deep. I always expected him to hit that shot. It’s still unbelievable that they never won it all.
Great synopsis man! The only thing I would have added to this, was the KG trade that never happened, because the Suns wouldn't pull the trigger (KG wanted to come here too!).
Heeeeeeeeeey Tucker you forgot something remember when Sarver lowball Channing Frye oh was that down the line oh well I thought you going in to Xs and Os but you gave an excellent explanation why that team organizationally fell like a brick keep up the good work!
I appreciate this video. I started watching basketball in 05 and the first game I ever watched was a Suns vs rockets game and for some reason I chose the Suns to be my life long franchise. I don't like sarver but it's not as bad as the clippers were. Or the king's were, or the Knicks are. Like it's bad but my God it could be so much worse.
Kanye of the North my kings were unbearable when the Maloofs were the owners.. our current owner has me kind of skeptical as well but anything is an upgrade over the previous
I remember the way that people used to say that Phoenix couldn't win a championship with their style of basketball. Now they are saying that you can't win a championship any other way. Both are wrong. It is not the bigger or the smaller team, or the better offense or defense that wins championships. It's the better TEAM.
The SSOL (seven seconds or less) offense, which ironically enough, spelled backwards equals LOSS. D’Antoni is a genius tho and it will be a crime if he never wins a ring as a head coach. Steve Kerr & the Steph/Klay Warriors definitely took not only pages but almost the whole playbook from MDA. If CP3 doesn’t get hurt, Houston wins it all in 2018 and that would’ve been one of the greatest accomplishments in NBA history.
@@ericsmusic5927 They overpaid Middleton and that's a fact, but i think they had no choice, other teams where willing to give him a big contract as well, and you have to consider that they have to give Giannis the max in 2021, not sure if the Bucks can afford that much, they'll prob end up trading Bledsoe to pay Giannis (they've got 2 picks for Brogdon who weren't going to sign so that's something) as long as they lock Giannis it'll be good
This just in - Phoenix trade next years 1st round pick for the possibility of a 2021 3rd round pick , a new recycling system and an all paid all inclusive uber eats subscription for only the owners that have more than a 51% stake in the franchise
I always thought drafting Andre Iguodala instead of Deng would've perfect for the Suns. But keeping the pick/Deng is even better than trading it anyway like they did.
one of those spurs matchups was rigged in playoffs by one of the worst refs ever if that series was called fairly the suns beat the spurs and move on to beat the cavs in the finals
The most important and the most underlook aspect of the team is the front office. Players and teams may come and go but as the team have a competent front office, the team will succeed in the long run. Look at the Boston Celtic's front office and you know what I mean.
When it comes to boris diaw, I've always said his game dried up when the ink on his contract extension dried up. The end of the sun's as a successful franchise was marion being traded. Any team that loses one if it's big 3 without a proper replacemeny is doomed.
Something to keep in mind on the Shaq deal is that it was originally for Kevin Garnett but that fell through in the final hour as he ended up going to Boston....
The Nash-Stoudemire-Marion Suns were the only fun team from that era. In general, the NBA from 1999 to 2008 or so was the low point in the last 40 years of the league. Pace was way down, scoring efficiency was down, and the game was dominated by inefficient iso players chucking contested midrange fadeaways. The Suns were the precursor to the Warriors and what we think of as the contemporary pace-and-space style of play.
all the picks you mentioned were players they didnt draft cuz they already agreed to trade the picks but couldnt make it official. So they picked them for the other teams. Had they not traded them They would of drafted other players.
Their problem was their coach and that terrible owner...Robert Sarver should be forced to sell the team by the commissioner. He has ruined what couldve been a dynasty.
I disagree with 80% of this video... the Suns lost because the Suns lost. Poor execution defensively, predictable offense, and a superstar in Nash who dropped the ball and didn't show up in key moments. The owner and GM made mistakes but for the most part, the front office excelled at their job. People just make excuses for that team
I hear you, but I keep going back to that 04-05 team... they had 5 really good players in/entering their prime (and 3 of them were still young enough to significantly improve over the following few years) and lost in 5 games to the eventual champion Spurs in the conference finals (a series in which their 4 losses were by an average of 6.5 points per game). If they kept that group together and stayed healthy, they would’ve made the finals and probably won a title sometime between 05-09... you also can’t discount the impact of simply giving away 4 really good draft picks over a 2 year span right in the middle of this team’s peak (Deng, Robinson, Gortat, and Rondo)
What they needed was a shot creator. In the playoffs, they actually play defense and key in on you. Joe Johnson could have filled in the role of closer and shot creator that could get a bucket despite circumstances.
well let me tell you why first off they didn't re-sign Joe Johnson at the beginning of the year. where they would have got them for a bargain. we knew he was a badass. the next year Amar'e stoudemire gets hurt they trade q pathetic move after pathetic sell their draft pics. I knew watching that team the new regime was for the fuck this team up forever
Skip to the present - same issues. Owner, General Manager, Head Coach and Coaching Staff lack a sense of cohesion - no overriding philosophy that was central to the Mike D’Antoni 7-Seconds or Less System. Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, Mikal Bridges, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Ricky Rubio look like a 14th place Team in the Western Conference ahead of the Memphis Grizzlies. 🤓🏀 Thanks Tucker. The Fall of the Phoenix Suns - back into the ashes.
