NBA 2013-14 Tipoff

[el diablo]

Thanks for killing the dream last night 'Stroke. I was hoping after the Magic made a valiant effort against the Heat. That maybe they'd be able to rebound against Phoenix. Oh well.

[el diablo]

It's not every day that I get to watch a basketball. But what a night to watch last night. My two favorites going head to head. Magic vs. Sixers. Olidapo vs. Carter-Williams. Both registering their first triple-double. Afflalo & Davis scoring career highs. A double OT game that could've gone to triple OT. Sixers hold on to a 126-125 win. What a game!

[el diablo]

I thought this was a "tank" year for the Suns....

[Sunstroke]

Someone forgot to CC the Suns on that memo... They've really played well so far this season, even handing the Trailblazers half of their four total losses on the year. Bledsoe and Dragic look like an amazing two-PG backcourt, and Channing Frye and Markieff Morris seem to not realize that they are mediocre talents. If the Coach of the Year award was handed out today, I have a hard time imagining someone beating out Hornacek for the honors...he's been exactly what the team needed.

[Sunstroke]

Those red-hot Suns just keep on winning. We just went into the division-leading Clippers arena and kicked their asses by 19 points. Hornacek has this team playing outstanding up-tempo ball, but with a little more attention to transition defense than we had with our old run and gun squads under D'Antoni.

Phoenix, at 19-11. is sitting at the #5 spot in the Western Conference currently, and our front office is already talking about dealing one or more of our four first round picks in next year's draft to get another impact player for this season. Who would have thought we'd be in this position just a few short months ago?

GO SUNS!!

[el diablo]

Not Phoenix. Seeing as how I do have an East Coast Bias, what type of players would the Suns try to get with the potential trade of draft picks?

[Sunstroke]

Their #1 target would be a forward, either a 3 or a 4, that can score and stretch the floor. A player like Kevin Love, who isn't a free agent until 2015, would be perfect. We definitely need a forward who can shoot from range, because so much of the Suns' system in the halfcourt revolves around our two-headed PG monster, Dragic-Bledsoe, running the pick and roll.

I am not an impatient person though. Phoenix has one of the youngest rosters in the league (5th youngest), and they've already stated that they will go all-out to re-sign Bledsoe after this season. If we need to keep those first rounders and grab 3 or 4 quality forwards from this draft class, I'd be down with that as well.

[el diablo]

Have you considered Ryan Anderson? Cheaper trade value. Not a franchise corner piece. A trade partner in New Orleans that seems to not be going anywhere & would love more picks.

[Sunstroke]

Ryan Anderson could be a good fit as well, though I like Love's rebounding a lot more than Ryan's. Anderson has two years left on his current deal, averaging roughly $8.4 million per season.

If I were making a short list of players I'd like to see Phoenix take a look at, it would be:

1) Kevin Love
2) Nicolas Batum (threes, awesome defense, boards, steals and blocks. Under contract for 2 years after this season, averaging $11.5 million)
3) Trevor Ariza (threes, good defense, boards and steals. In final year of contract for Washington)
4) Ryan Anderson

Re-sign Bledsoe, sign-and-trade deal with Minny for Kevin Love, sign Ariza as a free agent this offseason, and Phoenix could be pretty damned tough next season.

[el diablo]

Sounds like someone is auditioning for the Sun's GM job. Not bad ideas at all.

Seriously in that conference, Phoenix is doing a bang up job this season. At least someone has something to cheer for besides a lottery position.

[Sunstroke]

I'm pretty happy with the job McDonough is doing as our GM...I'll stick to being a fan.

[Sunstroke]

Games like tonight make me proud as Hell of my scrappy Phoenix Suns. Playing on the road at Minnesota, down by 6 points with 1:30 left in the game. The Suns use two Markieff Morris steals and a last second game winning jumper from Gerald Green to finish on a 7-0 run and squeak out a 104-103 victory, improving our record to 21-13 on the season.

 GO SUNS!!

[el diablo]

It was a valiant season for your Suns, 'Stroke.

[Sunstroke]

^^^ Yeah, I'll give credit to the Horned Toad for an A+ coaching job.

Time to start thinking about this massively deep draft class. The Suns have the following 1st round picks

#14 (from Minnesota, top-13 protected)
#16 (from Washington, top-12 protected)
#18 (Phoenix)
#27 (from Indiana, top-14 protected)

My earliest wish list would be:

SG Nik Stauskas, Michigan
PF Adreian Payne, Mich St.
SF Jerami Grant, Syracuse
SG P.J. Hairston, NBADL