Dustbuster
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As a break from the constant Amare threads, the insult threads, the thread police, and other such drivel; let's put our creative energies into examining our three PGs/Swingmen: Leandro Barbosa, Boris Diaw, and Eddie House. It is fairly certain that not all three of them will be in any kind of regular rotation. Use the pros and cons to convince who us of who will break out of this group and steal the place of being a primary backup with regular minutes in the rotation. One factor is in common with these guys: they are all cheap, with bargain rate contracts.
Leandro Barbosa:
Pros:
Cons:
Recent Experience:
Boris Diaw
Pros:
Cons:
Recent Experience:
Eddie House
Pros:
Cons:
Recent Experience:
Conclusions
It is my opinion that of these three, Leandro is most likely to have a breakout season. Although his PG skills are limited, he can keep the team running and push the ball. He doesn’t lack in ability, just in confidence, and this summer should be just what the doctor has ordered. If he can learn to use his physical tools, he has the potential to actual be a star in his own right. He also has seniority, and this will undoubtedly be a “make or break” year for him, as management will have to make some decisions regarding his future with the team. I expect him to get some extra minutes as the result of that. It also just seems like this is his time.
I do think that Diaw will get regular minutes, however, mostly because of his size and ability to play multiple positions. I full expect to see him play positions 1-4 for brief stints in “trick” lineups. He very likely will be played with Leandro on a regular basis, either in the backcourt with him or in a “point-forward” type position.
House will undoubtedly have a few games where he scores a huge amount of points in a limited amounts of time, but I also expect him to get more than a few DNP-CDs over the course of the year simply because he has less to offer overall than the other two. He was a nice pickup for the money, but I expect him to have to fight more for minutes than the other two. On the other hand, it is entirely possible that he will shoot at an exceptional clip in our system, as at the moment he is a better shooter than the other two. I would rate them, right now, 1-3 in this order.
But I would like hear your opinion on the matter!
Leandro Barbosa:
Pros:
- Could be the fastest player in the league.
- An outstanding scorer who has proven that even in an NBA atmosphere that he can rack up points very quickly.
- Great first step and ability to penetrate right to the hoop.
- Good outside shooter, although with a funky mechanic and release.
- Does have some PG abilities, although they are limited.
- Has the tools to be an outstanding defender.
- Seems like he should be able to create for himself.
- Young, with potential to improve.
Cons:
- Seems to be somewhat delicate both in mind and body.
- Not a reliable distributor at all.
- Shoot first, shoot second, shoot third.
- Although he penetrates well, he often is out of control on the penetration and either loses the ball or forces a bad shot.
- Mid range game has thus far been limited.
- Gets called for palming the ball fairly often.
- Too small to be a true SG.
- Has not in any way lived up to his defensive ability yet and is an unreliable defender, both individually and from a team perspective.
Recent Experience:
- Mostly lost from rotation when most needed during playoffs. Was mostly ineffective when given time. Seemed to take a step back in some ways in this season over the last.
- Was the undisputed leader on the Suns summer league team, and played well, although with some inconsistency. Not overly efficient in his scoring or distribution. Did make All-Review second team in Vegas.
- Was a standout in the tournament of the Americas. Was an outstanding scorer, team leader, and crunch time shooter. Much more efficient in his scoring and better in his ball distribution. Was one of the best, if not the best player in the tournament. Made his team a winner.
- All in all, this summer has been a very good one for Leandro. If he can make his summer success translate at all into NBA success he will certainly be a big part of what the Suns do this year. If he was exceptional, he could even win the starting 2-guard spot.
Boris Diaw
Pros:
- Very, very versatile player with proven ability to play multiple positions.
- Best overall athletic ability of the three.
- Great size. This compliments his ability to play multiple positions.
- Is already a good defender.
- Good ability to distribute the ball.
- Decent rebounder, shot blocker, and thief.
- Unselfish.
- Can finish well with the ball (the dunk over AK47, for example)/
- Young, with a lot of potential to grow.
Cons:
- Shooting numbers have been poor thus far in his career, particularly from deep. He’s been a SG that can’t shoot.
- Recent FT shooting has been atrocious, although all of us hope that this is an anomaly.
- Couldn’t get consistent playing time or produce well on the weakest team in the league.
- Although Boris has distributing abilities, they may not be well developed enough to actually run a team, even in a backup type role.
- Seems to be a bit fragile mentally.
- Might pass up open shots out of fear of taking them, allowing defenses to sag off of him.
Recent Experience:
- Last year had inconsistent minutes with the Hawks and didn’t do much with those that he had. Produced very poor shooting numbers, particularly from three point range. Not very impressive.
- Play with summer league team was very inconsistent. Was primary distributor most of the time, but was not consistently good at it. Played better than during the NBA regular season, however, which is to be expected. Showed flashes of much improved play.
- Like Leandro, Boris really broke out during play for his National team during the recent FIBA play. Became the leader of the team by most accounts, and did everything well – except shooting FTs. His overall shooting percentage has been absolutely exceptional, although his shooting from deep has still been pretty erratic. Has shown the ability to take over a game at this level, and create for himself offensively. He has also proven an exceptional ability to play multiple positions, having played essentially every position during this tournament and even covering centers. Has approached near triple-double level on several occasion throughout tournament play and the previous friendly matches. A very encouraging performance.
Eddie House
Pros:
- Most proven NBA experience.
- Great shooting ability, with exceptional numbers from three point range last season with Kings.
- Perhaps more defined PG abilities than other two.
- Basically does just about everything reasonably well, although primarily a catch and shoot guy.
- Veteran intangibles could make him less prone to being a headcase when shot isn’t falling or as inconsistent as other two.
- Produced very well when given a few more minutes in Charlotte last year.
- Not turnover-prone at all (averaged .5 TOs per game last year). This indicates that he doesn’t make a lot of bad decisions.
- Is still young enough to improve (27), although upside is probably far beneath other two.
Cons:
- Undersized.
- Not a true PG.
- Fairly one-dimensional.
- Has been cut repeatedly for some reason.
- Defensive abilities are debatable, but definitely not great.
- Limited upside.
- May not be good enough all around to get consistent minutes on this team.
Recent Experience:
- House probably had the best NBA season of the three this past year, although he played for three different teams throughout the season for some reason. He seemed to thrive in his role with Kings, and shot very well from the field. He hardly played in the playoffs, however.
- As a veteran, House has not participated in any other summer play.
Conclusions
It is my opinion that of these three, Leandro is most likely to have a breakout season. Although his PG skills are limited, he can keep the team running and push the ball. He doesn’t lack in ability, just in confidence, and this summer should be just what the doctor has ordered. If he can learn to use his physical tools, he has the potential to actual be a star in his own right. He also has seniority, and this will undoubtedly be a “make or break” year for him, as management will have to make some decisions regarding his future with the team. I expect him to get some extra minutes as the result of that. It also just seems like this is his time.
I do think that Diaw will get regular minutes, however, mostly because of his size and ability to play multiple positions. I full expect to see him play positions 1-4 for brief stints in “trick” lineups. He very likely will be played with Leandro on a regular basis, either in the backcourt with him or in a “point-forward” type position.
House will undoubtedly have a few games where he scores a huge amount of points in a limited amounts of time, but I also expect him to get more than a few DNP-CDs over the course of the year simply because he has less to offer overall than the other two. He was a nice pickup for the money, but I expect him to have to fight more for minutes than the other two. On the other hand, it is entirely possible that he will shoot at an exceptional clip in our system, as at the moment he is a better shooter than the other two. I would rate them, right now, 1-3 in this order.
But I would like hear your opinion on the matter!
). 
