The Commish
youknowhatimsayin?
John Hollinger of ESPN breaks down the 10 worst moves made by teams in the offseason. It's an insider article so I'm not able to post all of it but guess who checks in at #1?
1. Phoenix signs Marcus Banks
To be No. 1, you have to do something really special. In this case, it's not just that Banks has played worse than anyone expected -- but that the deal has had so many ancillary negative impacts. The Suns signed Banks because they thought he could help them get more rest for Steve Nash and keep him fresh for the postseason, but because Banks hasn't been able to get the job done, Nash is averaging a career-high 36.0 minutes per game.
They signed him instead of using their first-round pick to get a developing point guard (say, Rajon Rondo or Marcus Williams or Kyle Lowry) because they wanted somebody who could provide immediate help. But Banks is out of the rotation and has slim prospects of returning anytime soon, and I'm guessing Rondo could do pregame drills and cheer from the bench just as well as Banks does.
And because the Suns gave Banks a five-year, $21 million deal rather than inking a younger player to a rookie contract, they're looking at some tricky financial sledding. When extensions for Boris Diaw and Leandro Barbosa kick in next year, the Suns will be way over the luxury tax threshold unless they can work out a trade for one of their big men (Diaw, Kurt Thomas, Amare Stoudemire or Shawn Marion). Thus, the signing of Banks may indirectly cost the Suns the services of a vastly superior player next season.
Adding insult to injury, it turns out the backup point guard solution was in-house the entire time. Barbosa has taken to the spot much better than in the past and established himself as Nash's primary backup. So the Suns spent all that money for a player they didn't even need. It's a credit to the other moves they've made in recent years that they might win the title anyway.
1. Phoenix signs Marcus Banks
To be No. 1, you have to do something really special. In this case, it's not just that Banks has played worse than anyone expected -- but that the deal has had so many ancillary negative impacts. The Suns signed Banks because they thought he could help them get more rest for Steve Nash and keep him fresh for the postseason, but because Banks hasn't been able to get the job done, Nash is averaging a career-high 36.0 minutes per game.
They signed him instead of using their first-round pick to get a developing point guard (say, Rajon Rondo or Marcus Williams or Kyle Lowry) because they wanted somebody who could provide immediate help. But Banks is out of the rotation and has slim prospects of returning anytime soon, and I'm guessing Rondo could do pregame drills and cheer from the bench just as well as Banks does.
And because the Suns gave Banks a five-year, $21 million deal rather than inking a younger player to a rookie contract, they're looking at some tricky financial sledding. When extensions for Boris Diaw and Leandro Barbosa kick in next year, the Suns will be way over the luxury tax threshold unless they can work out a trade for one of their big men (Diaw, Kurt Thomas, Amare Stoudemire or Shawn Marion). Thus, the signing of Banks may indirectly cost the Suns the services of a vastly superior player next season.
Adding insult to injury, it turns out the backup point guard solution was in-house the entire time. Barbosa has taken to the spot much better than in the past and established himself as Nash's primary backup. So the Suns spent all that money for a player they didn't even need. It's a credit to the other moves they've made in recent years that they might win the title anyway.
