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A Festivus for the Rest of Us!
Posted By: Jeramie McPeek
December 15, 2006 9:17 PM
Pull out the aluminum pole and gather your family around. Festivus is only a week away, which means it’s time for the Airing of Grievances. And in the words of Frank Costanza:
“I’ve got a lot of problems with you people!”
"I got a lot of problems with you people!"Who are the “you people” I’m talking about? Well, there are more than a few yous out there that qualify from China to Canada to right here in Phoenix, Arizona.
You see, the first balloting returns in 2007 NBA All-Star voting were released on Thursday and our Phoenix Suns are nowhere to be found. At least not among the Western Conference starters, if balloting had ended today.
Steve Nash ranks the highest among the Suns’ six candidates with 432,083 votes, but trails the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (720,375) and the Rockets’ Tracy McGrady (668,130) by a healthy margin.
Now don’t get me wrong, Kobe is an incredibly talented player, even if I’m far from a fan.
And McGrady is a solid all-around player, himself. One, who I once lobbied then-Suns GM Bryan Colangelo to acquire back in May of 2004.
[Quick side story: the Suns were considering an offer from Orlando at the time, as the Magic were looking to move Mac. Considering it so seriously, even, that I was asked to create images in PhotoShop of McGrady in a Suns uniform at one point, just in case a trade was completed. Thankfully, BC and Co. voted the deal down, and went after a guy named Nash on the free-agent market instead.]
But McGrady is far from the All-Superstar he was at his best in 2002-03, when he led the league in scoring with 32-plus points a game. While Nash, on the flip side, has only gotten better and better, AND BETTER, by the year.
Tell me how “you” could vote for any guard in the West or any player in the league, for that matter, over the reigning, back-to-back Most Valuable Player?! One who has stepped up his unique game for the third straight season, averaging 20 points and almost 12 assists a night for one of the top teams in the league?!
Then there is the Matrix, who is averaging 20-plus points, 9.6 boards, a couple of assists, a couple of steals and a couple of blocks, while shooting 52 percent from the floor AND playing defense on everyone from Baron Davis at the point to Dirk Nowtizki in the middle. And yet Mr. Versatile, Mr. Vegas – home of this year’s All-Star extravaganza – checks in at only… long pause for dramatic effect… seventh among Western Conference forwards. That’s right, read it again, seventh! Actually, that absurd a fact probably calls for seven exclamation points!!!!!!!
Of course, it can be argued that the forward spot in the West is the deepest position in the league, what with Dirk, Tim Duncan, KG, Elton Brand, Carlos Boozer, Lamar Odom and the ever-improving Carmelo Anthony joining Marion on the ballot. But Shane Battier? Yes sir, Rockets forward Shane Battier, with his 8.7 ppg and 4.1 rpg averages, has actually received twice the amount of fan votes than the Suns’ all-everything veteran.
“Really?! No way!” coach Mike D’Antoni said in shock before Friday night’s win over the Warriors, the Suns’ 13th straight win, I might add. “Oh wait, he plays for Houston. That’s the Chinese vote. They’re voting for everybody in Houston. I can tell you, if he was still in Memphis, he wouldn’t have those votes.”
This is not a knock on Battier. The former Duke Blue Devil is a pro’s pro. He’s a hard worker and a valuable role player that just about any coach in the league would love to have on his team, including D’Antoni. But c’mon!
I have no problem with fans in China or Houston voting for Yao Ming as the starting center in the West. The 7-6 giant is having a career year and deserves the starting nod, even over our second place Amaré Stoudemire. At least this season he does. But I’m sorry, McGrady and Battier do not deserve their votes over Nash and Marion.
“It’s not fair,” agreed D’Antoni, who has a shot of coaching the West team this year, if the Suns can grab the top record out West in the coming weeks. “But the coaches will take care of it.”
Yes, I’m sure the Western Conference coaches will even the playing field and select Steve, Shawn and STAT to this year’s All-Star squad. But our guys deserve to be in the starting lineup, darn it. And I think we need to step up and help them get there!
First off, I’m calling on all Canadians to stand and be counted. Cast your votes for the best basketball player to ever come out of your country, and while you’re at it, cast votes for his teammates, too. Hey, if the fans in China can do it, we can, too, right? Or, I mean, you can, too.
Next I’m calling on all “you” fans in Phoenix, Glendale, Scottsdale, Peoria… all “you” Suns fans around the country, heck, around the globe, to mobilize and make a determined effort to vote for our guys each and every day!
Vote Here:
http://www.nba.com/webAction?actionId=surveyInitialize&target=/allstar2007/asb/eng/sweeps.jsp&surveyId=1251
Click again to vote tomorrow. Come back and cast that vote again the next day and the day after the next day after tomorrow. Forward this blog to your family and friends, your neighbors and co-workers, and encourage them to vote, too.
Suns.com welcomed more than 500,000 unique visitors to our site in the month of November alone. If each one of those visitors had voted just twice in the last couple of weeks – let alone daily – Nash, Marion and even Stoudemire, would be the leading vote getters at their positions! Impressive to think about, right?
It may sound unrealistic, but I think we can do it. Together, we can win the Feats of Strength, and proudly declare:
“It’s a Festivus Miracle!”
http://suns.marqui.com/blog/suns01_12150602.aspx
Posted By: Jeramie McPeek
December 15, 2006 9:17 PM
Pull out the aluminum pole and gather your family around. Festivus is only a week away, which means it’s time for the Airing of Grievances. And in the words of Frank Costanza:
“I’ve got a lot of problems with you people!”
"I got a lot of problems with you people!"Who are the “you people” I’m talking about? Well, there are more than a few yous out there that qualify from China to Canada to right here in Phoenix, Arizona.
You see, the first balloting returns in 2007 NBA All-Star voting were released on Thursday and our Phoenix Suns are nowhere to be found. At least not among the Western Conference starters, if balloting had ended today.
Steve Nash ranks the highest among the Suns’ six candidates with 432,083 votes, but trails the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (720,375) and the Rockets’ Tracy McGrady (668,130) by a healthy margin.
Now don’t get me wrong, Kobe is an incredibly talented player, even if I’m far from a fan.
And McGrady is a solid all-around player, himself. One, who I once lobbied then-Suns GM Bryan Colangelo to acquire back in May of 2004.
[Quick side story: the Suns were considering an offer from Orlando at the time, as the Magic were looking to move Mac. Considering it so seriously, even, that I was asked to create images in PhotoShop of McGrady in a Suns uniform at one point, just in case a trade was completed. Thankfully, BC and Co. voted the deal down, and went after a guy named Nash on the free-agent market instead.]
But McGrady is far from the All-Superstar he was at his best in 2002-03, when he led the league in scoring with 32-plus points a game. While Nash, on the flip side, has only gotten better and better, AND BETTER, by the year.
Tell me how “you” could vote for any guard in the West or any player in the league, for that matter, over the reigning, back-to-back Most Valuable Player?! One who has stepped up his unique game for the third straight season, averaging 20 points and almost 12 assists a night for one of the top teams in the league?!
Then there is the Matrix, who is averaging 20-plus points, 9.6 boards, a couple of assists, a couple of steals and a couple of blocks, while shooting 52 percent from the floor AND playing defense on everyone from Baron Davis at the point to Dirk Nowtizki in the middle. And yet Mr. Versatile, Mr. Vegas – home of this year’s All-Star extravaganza – checks in at only… long pause for dramatic effect… seventh among Western Conference forwards. That’s right, read it again, seventh! Actually, that absurd a fact probably calls for seven exclamation points!!!!!!!
Of course, it can be argued that the forward spot in the West is the deepest position in the league, what with Dirk, Tim Duncan, KG, Elton Brand, Carlos Boozer, Lamar Odom and the ever-improving Carmelo Anthony joining Marion on the ballot. But Shane Battier? Yes sir, Rockets forward Shane Battier, with his 8.7 ppg and 4.1 rpg averages, has actually received twice the amount of fan votes than the Suns’ all-everything veteran.
“Really?! No way!” coach Mike D’Antoni said in shock before Friday night’s win over the Warriors, the Suns’ 13th straight win, I might add. “Oh wait, he plays for Houston. That’s the Chinese vote. They’re voting for everybody in Houston. I can tell you, if he was still in Memphis, he wouldn’t have those votes.”
This is not a knock on Battier. The former Duke Blue Devil is a pro’s pro. He’s a hard worker and a valuable role player that just about any coach in the league would love to have on his team, including D’Antoni. But c’mon!
I have no problem with fans in China or Houston voting for Yao Ming as the starting center in the West. The 7-6 giant is having a career year and deserves the starting nod, even over our second place Amaré Stoudemire. At least this season he does. But I’m sorry, McGrady and Battier do not deserve their votes over Nash and Marion.
“It’s not fair,” agreed D’Antoni, who has a shot of coaching the West team this year, if the Suns can grab the top record out West in the coming weeks. “But the coaches will take care of it.”
Yes, I’m sure the Western Conference coaches will even the playing field and select Steve, Shawn and STAT to this year’s All-Star squad. But our guys deserve to be in the starting lineup, darn it. And I think we need to step up and help them get there!
First off, I’m calling on all Canadians to stand and be counted. Cast your votes for the best basketball player to ever come out of your country, and while you’re at it, cast votes for his teammates, too. Hey, if the fans in China can do it, we can, too, right? Or, I mean, you can, too.
Next I’m calling on all “you” fans in Phoenix, Glendale, Scottsdale, Peoria… all “you” Suns fans around the country, heck, around the globe, to mobilize and make a determined effort to vote for our guys each and every day!
Vote Here:
http://www.nba.com/webAction?actionId=surveyInitialize&target=/allstar2007/asb/eng/sweeps.jsp&surveyId=1251
Click again to vote tomorrow. Come back and cast that vote again the next day and the day after the next day after tomorrow. Forward this blog to your family and friends, your neighbors and co-workers, and encourage them to vote, too.
Suns.com welcomed more than 500,000 unique visitors to our site in the month of November alone. If each one of those visitors had voted just twice in the last couple of weeks – let alone daily – Nash, Marion and even Stoudemire, would be the leading vote getters at their positions! Impressive to think about, right?
It may sound unrealistic, but I think we can do it. Together, we can win the Feats of Strength, and proudly declare:
“It’s a Festivus Miracle!”
http://suns.marqui.com/blog/suns01_12150602.aspx
