All Suns Team

[ProdigalSun]

Well the doldrums of summer are here and there isn't much going on in the world of basketball these days. So I decided to come up with my All Suns team. Who would be on yours?

PG- Kevin Johnson - Steve Nash
SG- Walter Davis- Jeff Hornacek
SF- Shawn Marion - Dan Majerle
PF- Charles Barkley- Tom Chambers
C- Amare Stoudemire - Alvin Adams

 

[AzStevenCal]

My 15 man roster:

Jason Kidd/Kevin Johnson/Steve Nash
Paul Westphal/Walter Davis/Dan Majerle
Shawn Marion/Larry Nance/Maurice Lucas
Charles Barkley/Tom Chambers/Connie Hawkins
Neal Walk/Amare Stoudemire/Alvan Adams

Steve

 

[Mainstreet]

My 15 man roster:

Jason Kidd/Kevin Johnson/Steve Nash
Paul Westphal/Walter Davis/Dan Majerle
Shawn Marion/Larry Nance/Maurice Lucas
Charles Barkley/Tom Chambers/Connie Hawkins
Neal Walk/Amare Stoudemire/Alvan Adams

Steve

I'm not sure if you are clustering the players by position but Maurice Lucas was a PF.

It's sad the Suns still look weak at the center position.

 

[Finito]

All good list. But no way I would put Nash ahead of KJ or Jason Kidd.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I'm not sure if you are clustering the players by position but Maurice Lucas was a PF.

It's sad the Suns still look weak at the center position.

I took liberties with my 15 man roster but I'm comfortable that the positions are well covered, especially if you bring it forward to today's game.

Steve

 

[Mainstreet]

All good list. But no way I would put Nash ahead of KJ or Jason Kidd.

So you would put a two time MVP third on your list? I am a huge KJ fan, maybe my favorite Suns player, but it's hard to put him in front of Nash. Kidd did not play all that well for the Suns.

 

[AzStevenCal]

So you would put a two time MVP third on your list? I am a huge KJ fan, maybe my favorite Suns player, but it's hard to put him in front of Nash. Kidd did not play all that well for the Suns.

I'm really surprised you feel this way. Kidd was tremendous for us IMO. If we'd had a better national reputation I really don't think Nash would have been our first MVP. I think Nash had a better career for us but for a single season, I think Kidd was probably our best point guard or at least right there with KJ at his best.

Steve

 

[Mainstreet]

I took liberties with my 15 man roster but I'm comfortable that the positions are well covered, especially if you bring it forward to today's game.

Steve

I like your 15 man roster but the Suns would still get punished at the center position except for perhaps Neal Walk.

 

[ProdigalSun]

I took liberties with my 15 man roster but I'm comfortable that the positions are well covered, especially if you bring it forward to today's game.

Steve

I like your list as well. It would be interesting if we could "bring it forward in time". Is that team good enough to win it all today?

 

[ProdigalSun]

I'm really surprised you feel this way. Kidd was tremendous for us IMO. If we'd had a better national reputation I really don't think Nash would have been our first MVP. I think Nash had a better career for us but for a single season, I think Kidd was probably our best point guard or at least right there with KJ at his best.

Steve

Kidd was great. His time here will always be tarnished by the "french fry" incident though

 

[Mainstreet]

I'm really surprised you feel this way. Kidd was tremendous for us IMO. If we'd had a better national reputation I really don't think Nash would have been our first MVP. I think Nash had a better career for us but for a single season, I think Kidd was probably our best point guard or at least right there with KJ at his best.

Steve

I still like KJ over Kidd. As I remember, Kidd played his best basketball after he left the Suns.

 

[BC867]

I like your list as well. It would be interesting if we could "bring it forward in time". Is that team good enough to win it all today?

In all honesty, even by picking and choosing the best Suns rotation from among the past 4+ decades . . . win it all today? No!

Unless we had them all in their prime.

PG - Nash or KJ or Kidd
SG - Westphal or Davis
SF - Davis or Nance or Marion
PF - Lucas or Chambers
C - Shaq or Walk

Coached by Cotton

But that is dreaming.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I still like KJ over Kidd. As I remember, Kidd played his best basketball after he left the Suns.

Nationally it was probably viewed that way but he had a tremendous season for us at a time when we weren't very relevant. His first year in Jersey he gets credit for being a legit MVP contender but IMO he played no better for them than he had for us. He had the benefit of playing in the East which both put him in the limelight and allowed him to face lesser competition. The West was pretty dominant at that time.

Steve

 

[AzStevenCal]

In all honesty, even by picking and choosing the best Suns rotation from among the past 4+ decades . . . win it all today? No!

Unless we had them all in their prime.

PG - Nash or KJ or Kidd
SG - Westphal or Davis
SF - Davis or Nance or Marion
PF - Lucas or Chambers
C - Shaq or Walk

Coached by Cotton

But that is dreaming.

You're kidding right? That team I listed would walk away with it all in today's NBA, easily. Now, if you let all the other teams bring their best to the contest that's a different story. I suspect we'd be middle of the pack if it were best against best.

Steve

 

[Battle of Evermore]

I have been around for most of the 43 years. Connie Hawkins was amazing in his 1st couple of years with the song. I could not leave Dennis Johnson off the team. Nash had a longer career than KJ but when KJ was good and healthy he could take over games. If I had to take one I would take KJ over Nash. However they were both great and its comparing apples and oranges

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

KJ had 3 straight 20-10 season and the 4th season he missed it by .3 PPG. That includes a 20-12 and 22-11 season. Just going off of numbers alone it is hard to argue that a healthy KJ in his prime isn't the best Suns PG of all time.

 

[Phrazbit]

PG - Nash or KJ or Kidd
SG - Westphal or Davis
SF - Davis or Nance or Marion
PF - Lucas or Chambers
C - Shaq or Walk

Coached by Cotton

You're really leaving Barkley off?


I always struggle with how to approach these. It feels disingenuous to plop guys on "my" list who I was not old enough to see play. My earliest Suns memories are very late 80s, when I was 9 and 10 years old.

So with that in mind I'd go with:

KJ/Nash
Horny/Bell (I know others were better... but man did I like Raja)
Majerle/Marion
Barkley/Chambers
Amare/Danny Schayes


And my all-LEAST favorite lineup:

G-Sam Cassell
G-Starbury
F-Sleazley
F-Horry
C-John "Hot Rod" Williams

 

[Folster]

KJ had 3 straight 20-10 season and the 4th season he missed it by .3 PPG. That includes a 20-12 and 22-11 season. Just going off of numbers alone it is hard to argue that a healthy KJ in his prime isn't the best Suns PG of all time.

KJ was incredible and he would simply shred Kidd and Nash. He was lightning quick and had a mid-range jumper that was automatic. It's too bad our training staff wasn't as good back then as it is now.

KJ
Davis
Marion
Barkley
Stoudemire

 

[Suns_fan69]

As much as I love KJ, I think Kidd takes it overall because of his defense. In his prime anyways, he was quick enough to handle most pgs and big/strong enough to handle SGs.

 

[BC867]

You're really leaving Barkley off?

Oops. Brain fart. My bad. As well as DJ.

 

[JS22]

PG: Johnson / Nash
SG: Davis / Majerle
SF: Marion / Hill
PF: Barkley / Amare
C: Gortat / O'neal

Mind you, I was old enough to start following the Suns in the very late 80's.

Yes, Hill and O'neal are purposely on the list.

O'neal is on the list because the Suns have an atrocious history of REAL centers. And O'neal was actually pretty decent here.

 

[t0rchy]

Nash
Johnson
Barkley
Stoudemire
O'Neal


This would be my starting five. Shaq was way better with us, than most people say in my opinion. By the way: If you put Marion in this list, you can't leave out Nash. The Matrix was a product of Nash's Genius. Just watch his Game with the Heat and Mavs...

 

[Phrazbit]

Marion was an athletic freak, guys like him dont age gracefully (and he has managed better than most), but his ability to out leap guys for rebounds and out run everyone in transition has faded.

The dude was averaging 20-10 with stinking Marbury as his point guard, its hard to claim he was a product of Nash. Yeah, Nash made him even better but he did so with everyone.

 

[Finito]

So you would put a two time MVP third on your list? I am a huge KJ fan, maybe my favorite Suns player, but it's hard to put him in front of Nash. Kidd did not play all that well for the Suns.

Yes I would, KJ would eat Steve Nash with ease. think a better Tony Parker and we all seen how helpless Nash was against San Antonio. Nash was a real nice player but my god was he one sided.

 

[BC867]

Nash
Johnson
Barkley
Stoudemire
O'Neal

This would be my starting five.

The flaw is that you have two Point Guards, two Power Forwards and a Center.

That would not be a balanced starting/closing lineup (especially on defense) over the course of a season.