Suns News: Week 24 3/26-4/1

[ShelC]

Can someone with ESPN Insider give us a summary of this article? Pretty please.

What moves can and should the Suns make in the offseason?

Basically their belief is that the Suns should hold off on the Booker extension for a year to preserve cap space for 2019, and that any incoming coach should ask the following four questions before taking the job -

What is the commitment from ownership?
Why am I different from previous head coaches let go?
What are the expectations with the roster?
Do I have a role in personnel decisions?

They also question whether the coaching instability is to blame for the lack development of young players and state that the hiring of Watson set the franchise back a couple of years.

Also, if the Suns do want to sign a free agent in the 2018 offseason the most likely victims will be Len, Payton and Williams in order to make cap space (Unless you feel that anyone choosing to sign here next year is the real victim). But in order to have real cap space in 2018 they would have to move Chandler or Dudley without taking back any salary in return (not likely!).

Thanks!

It is getting harder and harder for Sarver to hire.

Money talks.

[Split T]

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/2295 ... irving-nba

Some thoughts on Bender:

8. Dragan Bender, dipping his toe into doing things
Smart feet and good feel are nice, but to be a productive NBA player, you actually have to, like, do stuff. Bender has spent too much of his brief NBA career not doing stuff. In early March, he became the first player since 2012 to log 36 minutes in a game and attempt one or zero shots and zero free throws.

Bender is 20. He missed almost half his rookie season. Perhaps any expectations are unfair. But at some point, the No. 4 pick in the draft -- even a 20-year-old -- has to try things. Good news: Bender is flashing a friskier handoff game -- complete with delightful play-action-fake keepers:


(Yeah, he missed. Baby steps. At least you realized Bender was on the floor.)

The fully formed version of Bender -- the one that will play for a competitive NBA team in the early 2020s -- will look something like this: a big-man fulcrum who can shoot, drive, and pass, and run the offense for snippets. He's even doing the thing where he fakes a handoff, pitches the ball to another teammate along the 3-point arc, and runs right into a pick for that player:


That is a classic Marc Gasol/Nikola Jokic/Boris Diaw move. Since early February, Bender has set almost 26 ball screens per 100 possessions, up from 18 before then, per Second Spectrum tracking data. That is partly the result of Tyson Chandler's disappearance (has anyone seen Tyson Chandler; is he in a hair salon?) but it is a legitimate version of the "player development" teams trumpet when they mothball veterans and try to lose.

The Phoenix Suns still need to decide what position Bender plays, and what sort of frontcourt partner he requires (the Bender-Marquese Chriss tandem has been a disaster) but these flashes are encouraging.

Follow the link to watch the videos included.

[Kidd Karma]

Can someone with ESPN Insider give us a summary of this article? Pretty please.

What moves can and should the Suns make in the offseason?

Basically their belief is that the Suns should hold off on the Booker extension for a year to preserve cap space for 2019, and that any incoming coach should ask the following four questions before taking the job -

What is the commitment from ownership?
Why am I different from previous head coaches let go?
What are the expectations with the roster?
Do I have a role in personnel decisions?

They also question whether the coaching instability is to blame for the lack development of young players and state that the hiring of Watson set the franchise back a couple of years.

Also, if the Suns do want to sign a free agent in the 2018 offseason the most likely victims will be Len, Payton and Williams in order to make cap space (Unless you feel that anyone choosing to sign here next year is the real victim). But in order to have real cap space in 2018 they would have to move Chandler or Dudley without taking back any salary in return (not likely!).

Thanks!

It is getting harder and harder for Sarver to hire.

No doubt, leftovers

https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2018 ... oenix-suns

[TOO]

Can someone with ESPN Insider give us a summary of this article? Pretty please.

What moves can and should the Suns make in the offseason?

Basically their belief is that the Suns should hold off on the Booker extension for a year to preserve cap space for 2019, and that any incoming coach should ask the following four questions before taking the job -

What is the commitment from ownership?
Why am I different from previous head coaches let go?
What are the expectations with the roster?
Do I have a role in personnel decisions?

They also question whether the coaching instability is to blame for the lack development of young players and state that the hiring of Watson set the franchise back a couple of years.

Also, if the Suns do want to sign a free agent in the 2018 offseason the most likely victims will be Len, Payton and Williams in order to make cap space (Unless you feel that anyone choosing to sign here next year is the real victim). But in order to have real cap space in 2018 they would have to move Chandler or Dudley without taking back any salary in return (not likely!).

Thanks!

It is getting harder and harder for Sarver to hire.

No doubt, leftovers

https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2018 ... oenix-suns

NO NO NO NO NO

[O_Gardino]

Wow, I've never read about the Kidd sagas in NJ and MIL. I guess he's the same guy he always was. No thanks.

He would be a very short term solution, anyway. There's no way he and Sarver can work together for long. But I think if you keep putting this team through coaching drama, you lose Booker.

[TOO]

Wow, I've never read about the Kidd sagas in NJ and MIL. I guess hes' te same guy he always was. No thanks.

He would be a very short term solution, anyway. There's no way he and Sarver can work together for long. But I think if you keep putting this team through coaching drama, you lose Booker.

Unless Booker is the same type of grinder personality that Kidd is, no way do I ever see them 2 working together.

[Shabazz]

I couldn't be more strongly against Kidd.

[Kidd Karma]

Wow, I've never read about the Kidd sagas in NJ and MIL. I guess hes' te same guy he always was. No thanks.

He would be a very short term solution, anyway. There's no way he and Sarver can work together for long. But I think if you keep putting this team through coaching drama, you lose Booker.

Ha, very little has changed. This is a first interview post firing



With a young group, you need a guy that can grow the kids, Kidd needs a veteran bunch....Brooklyn was way too far extreme, there was no future(2-3 years), ownership wasn't going to pay Kidd to lose for 2-3 years after the KG bunch was done. His first team in Milwaukee had vet players like Zaza, Jared Dudley and Illyasova setting the tone from Day 1 there. Shocked everyone with the playoff berth....so ownership basically lets the 3 vets go, Kidd shoots himself in the foot, by pushing for MCW over Knight...sometimes it's best to allow what worked to keep working....a blend of solid vets with kids, the vets were an extension of Kidd and they were able to get Kidd's point across to the kids.

Phoenix is not the right team for Kidd. A team like Denver would work. But then again if he keeps the same defensive scheme.....he won't have any success. His scrambling switching scheme allows way too many open 3s.

I can see a shocking playoff berth, back slide, slow start and bang you're gone.

[TOO]

I really wanna make a run at Jay Wright or Tony Bennett. Those 2 seem like they could get a paper bag to play well.

[Split T]

Jay Wright is my top guy, but with the caveat that I don't really follow potential coaches that much.

[INFORMER]

I really wanna make a run at Jay Wright or Tony Bennett. Those 2 seem like they could get a paper bag to play well.

Didn't the Suns already pursue Wright and he turned them down?

I like Tony Bennett, but I hate the style of basketball Virginia plays.

[TOO]

I really wanna make a run at Jay Wright or Tony Bennett. Those 2 seem like they could get a paper bag to play well.

Didn't the Suns already pursue Wright and he turned them down?

I like Tony Bennett, but I hate the style of basketball Virginia plays.

Money talks, so while I don't think that's the end all be all with Wright, they could offer him a godfather deal. We shall see.

As for Bennett, his teams do tend to be boring, and if you can get them playing outta their comfort zone they are beatable, but he's also a super smart, super disciplined guy, the likes of which has probably never been seen in Phoenix.

[INFORMER]

I don't disagree with any of what you say about Bennett, but Virginia's Mike Fratello Cleveland Cavaliers 1990's basketball doesn't fit with the NBA game anymore, nor does it fit with the talent the suns have nor what they can add this offseason.

So then you're banking on Bennett being to coach a brand of basketball that he hasn't had a high level of success coaching at a level he hasn't coached before. That doesn't sound like a recipe for success.

[TOO]

Fair enough. I do think Bennett is smart enough to build a system around his talent. I also don't think Phoenix will look at a defense heavy coach like that anyway.

[Split T]

https://twitter.com/sbordow/status/979835736055861248

[bajanguy008]

I really wanna make a run at Jay Wright or Tony Bennett. Those 2 seem like they could get a paper bag to play well.

Didn't the Suns already pursue Wright and he turned them down?

I like Tony Bennett, but I hate the style of basketball Virginia plays.

Money talks, so while I don't think that's the end all be all with Wright, they could offer him a godfather deal. We shall see.

As for Bennett, his teams do tend to be boring, and if you can get them playing outta their comfort zone they are beatable, but he's also a super smart, super disciplined guy, the likes of which has probably never been seen in Phoenix.

Well I guess his STYLE of "music" isn't for everyone and to call it Boring might be a lil harsh. Wouldn't Tony Bennett be a better fit for the Jazz ?? and I do have concerns about a 90yr old coach

[INFORMER]

I really wanna make a run at Jay Wright or Tony Bennett. Those 2 seem like they could get a paper bag to play well.

Didn't the Suns already pursue Wright and he turned them down?

I like Tony Bennett, but I hate the style of basketball Virginia plays.

Money talks, so while I don't think that's the end all be all with Wright, they could offer him a godfather deal. We shall see.

Does 4 years, $20 million get it done?

[Shabazz]

I really wanna make a run at Jay Wright or Tony Bennett. Those 2 seem like they could get a paper bag to play well.

Didn't the Suns already pursue Wright and he turned them down?

I like Tony Bennett, but I hate the style of basketball Virginia plays.

Money talks, so while I don't think that's the end all be all with Wright, they could offer him a godfather deal. We shall see.

Does 4 years, $20 million get it done?

It may take a Brad Stevens-type of offer.

[TOO]

https://twitter.com/sbordow/status/979835736055861248

[TOO]

I really wanna make a run at Jay Wright or Tony Bennett. Those 2 seem like they could get a paper bag to play well.

Didn't the Suns already pursue Wright and he turned them down?

I like Tony Bennett, but I hate the style of basketball Virginia plays.

Money talks, so while I don't think that's the end all be all with Wright, they could offer him a godfather deal. We shall see.

Does 4 years, $20 million get it done?

I'd heavily lean no.