Countdown Thread - 65 Days Until Preseason Opens

[Kryptonic]

That creep is the reason I'm a suns fan. Still such a disappointment.

Yea, my father-in-law dubbed him "weenie man" because of all his hamstring/groin injuries.

[Superbone]

That creep is the reason I'm a suns fan. Still such a disappointment.

Yea, my father-in-law dubbed him "weenie man" because of all his hamstring/groin injuries.

Unfortunately, some of his victims might refer to him as that for other reasons.

[Mori Chu]

[Superbone]

One of a kind.

[Superbone]

Two of kind

[Superbone]

[Superbone]

[BKinSJC]

Sure, you could go with that scrub -- but why would you, when there are pictures readily available of the Greatest Suns Player Ever, modeling the Greatest Suns Uniform Ever?

[Mori Chu]

I don't want to be here in this thread.

[Mori Chu]

Side note: Bright Side totally stole our bit! Look at this:

[Kryptonic]

Bastards…

[MightyMoog]

Those sleeved jerseys cost us a playoff berth.

[Superbone]

Those sleeved jerseys cost us a playoff berth.

Stupidest thing ever.

[3TheHardaway]

Side note: Bright Side totally stole our bit! Look at this:

Looks like the official Suns’ twitter has also decided to get in on the action:

[Superbone]

Of course, there can only be one here. Arguably the greatest Phoenix Sun of all time:

[BKinSJC]

Of course, there can only be one here. Arguably the greatest Phoenix Sun of all time:

I really hope that, after this year, that particular argument is over and there's no longer any question. All it'll take is a great regular season, great playoffs and a championship.

[Superbone]

Of course, there can only be one here. Arguably the greatest Phoenix Sun of all time:

I really hope that, after this year, that particular argument is over and there's no longer any question. All it'll take is a great regular season, great playoffs and a championship.

That's all?

[AmareIsGod]

He's already the greatest Suns player. He's been here since he came into the league and holds so many records, has been to the Finals as a Sun. Everything going forward is a cherry on top. It's not even debatable at this point. Booker is the best Phoenix Suns player ever.

[BKinSJC]

He's already the greatest Suns player. He's been here since he came into the league and holds so many records, has been to the Finals as a Sun. Everything going forward is a cherry on top. It's not even debatable at this point. Booker is the best Phoenix Suns player ever.

This is basketball; everything's debatable.

Just to make the case, quickly, for the guy who I think is still (barely) the leader in the clubhouse overall, that being Steve Nash:

Over an eight-year span starting with the 2004-05 season, with Nash as the acknowledged leader of the team and the only real constant, the Suns went 405-235 in the regular season, including 62-win and 61-win seasons. They made the playoffs five times, missing in '09 despite having a 46-36 record, and twice more with near-.500 records as Nash aged and the franchise started to sink down the Sarver-hole. They advanced to the Western Conference Finals three times (losing to the eventual champs twice), the Conference Semis once (losing to the eventual champs, and the only team to push them to more than five games in a series), and losing out in the first round once. Nash never missed a playoff game during this stretch and consistently overperformed his regular season numbers, but due at least partially to a litany of bad luck and injuries to teammates that we're all way too familiar with, the Suns never quite got over to top to make it to the finals. Still, it could be argued that his overall playoff resume with the Suns is at least equal to Book's.

During that time Nash was MVP of the league twice, first-team All-NBA three times, and second-team All-NBA twice. He led the league in total assists and assists per game five times, and shot 50/40/90 four times, barely missing it with an .899 free throw average one other season. Until Chris Paul came along and started to establish himself, Nash was the consensus best point guard in the league.

As far as Suns records, Nash is the franchise leader in total assists (fourth in assists per game, which really speaks to how many brilliant point guards have spent at least some time here), is second in 3-point shooting percentage, first in total offensive win shares. Third in total games played (Booker's not quite in the top 10 yet), sixth in minutes played (Booker's eighth and closing fast). Second to Booker in both 3-pointers made and attempted, although Book has only about 40 more makes on 600+ more attempts. It's hard to overstate just how efficient he was as a scorer, though certainly not ever a volume shooter.

Finally, I'd point out that, purely as an asset, Nash is probably one of the most valuable Phoenix Suns ever. He was a mid-first pick, 15th overall, who found himself playing behind Jason Kidd and KJ; despite the limited opportunities, he was able to develop enough to draw a first-rounder in trade from Dallas; the Suns used it to take Shawn Marion ninth overall the next year. Nash then continued to improve in Dallas, returned to the Suns as a free agent (costing nothing but the money and cap space required to sign him), and had eight mostly-stellar seasons. Then, when the tanking was going to set in hardcore, he helped arrange for a sign-and-trade to the Lakers; among the picks that came back was part of the package that led to Mikal Bridges, who in turn was the lynchpin to get Kevin Durant to the valley.

As far as Book goes, I'm glad to listen to anybody's case for him as already being the greatest Suns player ever. It's amazing that he progressed so much through the dysfunction of his first few years, and I think he's surpassed guys like Walter Davis and Tom Chambers as the most effective every-level scorer we've ever seen. He's an improving playmaker, he's starting to care about defense, he's performed really well in the playoffs overall, he's shown leadership, and he might have the respect of great players around the league moreso than anyone who's suited up for the franchise since Charles Barkley (who, by the way, might be #3 in this discussion, but to me three great years and one mediocre one just isn't long enough with the team to put him on the same level). Maybe the most exciting thing about Booker, though, is simply that he's got so much more potential in the future. He's just hitting his prime right now, he's got the full backing of the organization and his teammates, and the opportunity to make it obvious that he's the greatest Sun ever is right in front of him. I think he'll do it.

[JeremyG]

I just have to correct one historical fact: we traded away the Mikal pick for Brandon Knight, who eventually turned into (at most) Landry Shamet. It was the Goran Dragic trade that allowed us to get the Mikal pick back.