George O'Brien
ASFN Icon
KTAR - Mark West Interview
Talk to the Suns
Posted: March 10, 2004
Filling in for a traveling Jerry Colangelo, Suns Assistant GM Mark West stepped up to the mic for the first time to field questions from KTAR’s Dave Burns and callers on the 620 Sportsline’s “Talk to the Suns” segment Tuesday night.
Dave Burns: Is it the quality of competition? The Suns had won three of four, but the last few games it looks like they’ve run into some real buzz saws.
Mark West: I think it s a mixed bag. Obviously playing here in the Western Conference, you’re going to run into some tough, competitive teams, but a big part of it is that we’re a young team. When we moved Stephon Marbury that we were letting a lot of talent go at that particular time and trying to address the problem through incremental steps or a quantum leap forward. The gamble was a quantum leap. Looking toward the future, we have to assess some of the players we have on the team. We know what our core three can do, but now we have to see what Maciej Lampe can do, Donnell Harvey, those kinds of guys and see what they can contribute moving forward.
Burns: When a team struggles with its aggressiveness on the floor, letting themselves be pushed around, is it more of a physical or mental thing with the Suns?
West: It’s a mental thing. We have young players. They have to learn to draw a line in the sand. They do that, but they need to do it on a consistent basis. Sometimes when you watch these guys it’s like, “Wow, these guys can compete with anybody.” But it’s a matter of going 48 minutes for 82 ballgames especially when you’re playing the in the strongest conference and the strongest teams in that conference.
Burns: Sheer experience?
West: I think so. For the most part, it’s experience. You learn not to get pushed around without pushing back. Remember with Zarko getting hit and going down by Danny Fortson earlier in the year. After awhile, he’ll know he’s going to take a hit and not shy away from that anymore and attack the basket. If they smell fear, they’ll keep coming after him in the same manner.
Burns: Helping out with the growth and development of Amaré Stoudemire… what have you done with him this year to facilitate the growth of this precocious NBA player?
West: Mostly sit down with and talk to him. He’s a very intelligent guy, a very sharp, aggressive and skilled player. It’s another degree of professionalism to first learn how to play the game using your physical abilities, but also to use your mental abilities as well. You learn the nuances of the game: when to set the pace, to turn it up and slow it down. When to be the driving force of the team vs. just being another player on the team. You have to be the catalyst. That means leadership. As he progresses with this team, he goes from great rookie to outstanding sophomore, now he’s got to be a veteran player to lead this team. That’s got to be the next step in his development.
As John Wooden said, “It’s one thing to be a great player, but it’s another thing to make your team great.” Now he has to find a way to elevate the play of the other guys around him who may not have the same physical attributes he has. If you look at great players like Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas, their talent was unquestionable. And Michael Jordan… To lift those guys around them and lift them to another level.
Caller (Peter): I wanted your opinion on Leandro Barbosa. It seems like he’s running 100 mph and running helter skelter. I think he needs to slow down. He’s not getting any assists as a point guard.
West: That’s part of the evaluation. And when you talk about evaluating players, you have to talk about developing players. We can either hope by chance he gets better and learns the game, but I think we’ve made the choice to develop and nurture him. We have to do that by giving him minutes. You learn by experience. You can only learn so much by sitting and watching. We have to allow him to make mistakes. He has to go through that process. Look at Amaré now vs. last year. He’s a much better player. He was thrown into the fire. Tom Gugliotta got hurt, he was allowed to get a lot of minutes and look at the player he is now. Give Leandro time. Point guard is the toughest position on the court. You have to manage your affairs and also everyone else’s at the same time. He’s doing a great job.
Caller (Peter): How realistic is the Yugoslavian kid coming in? Will we sign him or is it a dream?
West: We’ll sign him. The reality is there’s a great chance of him being in a Suns uniform next year. We have to make sure the reality coincides with the hype. It’s one thing to play and have great numbers over there, but it’s another to come into this league and this type of Americanized ball and see if you can be productive.
Burns: What are your impressions on learning to scout guys like Barbosa or Vujanic or Lampes and how that has changed over the last five years in the NBA?
West: If you look at the European players, they look to be great basketball players overall. They’re very fundamentally sound. Forwards, guards and centers, they can do the basic shoot, pass, dribble. Here in America, the big guys are post players. There are more big players in Europe with the fundamental skills, but they don’t possess some of the athletic ability that some of the American players possess and the intensity of some of the players here.
Caller (Amy): Do you think the NBA is in a state of decline? Guys and their tattoos… Is there an image problem?
West: As far as the players, it goes in waves. Dr J and those guys had the afros. Clyde Frazier had the really loud clothes. As far as today’s athletes, it’s a cultural thing. They listen to different kinds of music. It’s a sign of the times, and they haven’t changed all that much. The older generation when I was playing probably didn’t think we were doing things right. If you grew up watching the Suns team I played on and you see the Suns now, you probably say, “Well, they aren’t doing things the way the old Suns did them.” When I came into the league in the ‘80s, the Suns just got out of a drug scandal. Has there been one of those since then? No. There have been other problems on the court with other teams. These things have gone on for a long time. As far as a decline in the league, I think it has a lot to do with the cycling, too. We had the East-West battles whether it was the Boston Celtics and the Lakers, Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson and then it was the era of Jordan. It’s just a matter of time until the next era. Who knows? Maybe it’ll be LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. It’s something that almost has to happen with this league that’s bigger than the league itself. A classic duel type of thing.
Talk to the Suns
Posted: March 10, 2004
Filling in for a traveling Jerry Colangelo, Suns Assistant GM Mark West stepped up to the mic for the first time to field questions from KTAR’s Dave Burns and callers on the 620 Sportsline’s “Talk to the Suns” segment Tuesday night.
Dave Burns: Is it the quality of competition? The Suns had won three of four, but the last few games it looks like they’ve run into some real buzz saws.
Mark West: I think it s a mixed bag. Obviously playing here in the Western Conference, you’re going to run into some tough, competitive teams, but a big part of it is that we’re a young team. When we moved Stephon Marbury that we were letting a lot of talent go at that particular time and trying to address the problem through incremental steps or a quantum leap forward. The gamble was a quantum leap. Looking toward the future, we have to assess some of the players we have on the team. We know what our core three can do, but now we have to see what Maciej Lampe can do, Donnell Harvey, those kinds of guys and see what they can contribute moving forward.
Burns: When a team struggles with its aggressiveness on the floor, letting themselves be pushed around, is it more of a physical or mental thing with the Suns?
West: It’s a mental thing. We have young players. They have to learn to draw a line in the sand. They do that, but they need to do it on a consistent basis. Sometimes when you watch these guys it’s like, “Wow, these guys can compete with anybody.” But it’s a matter of going 48 minutes for 82 ballgames especially when you’re playing the in the strongest conference and the strongest teams in that conference.
Burns: Sheer experience?
West: I think so. For the most part, it’s experience. You learn not to get pushed around without pushing back. Remember with Zarko getting hit and going down by Danny Fortson earlier in the year. After awhile, he’ll know he’s going to take a hit and not shy away from that anymore and attack the basket. If they smell fear, they’ll keep coming after him in the same manner.
Burns: Helping out with the growth and development of Amaré Stoudemire… what have you done with him this year to facilitate the growth of this precocious NBA player?
West: Mostly sit down with and talk to him. He’s a very intelligent guy, a very sharp, aggressive and skilled player. It’s another degree of professionalism to first learn how to play the game using your physical abilities, but also to use your mental abilities as well. You learn the nuances of the game: when to set the pace, to turn it up and slow it down. When to be the driving force of the team vs. just being another player on the team. You have to be the catalyst. That means leadership. As he progresses with this team, he goes from great rookie to outstanding sophomore, now he’s got to be a veteran player to lead this team. That’s got to be the next step in his development.
As John Wooden said, “It’s one thing to be a great player, but it’s another thing to make your team great.” Now he has to find a way to elevate the play of the other guys around him who may not have the same physical attributes he has. If you look at great players like Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas, their talent was unquestionable. And Michael Jordan… To lift those guys around them and lift them to another level.
Caller (Peter): I wanted your opinion on Leandro Barbosa. It seems like he’s running 100 mph and running helter skelter. I think he needs to slow down. He’s not getting any assists as a point guard.
West: That’s part of the evaluation. And when you talk about evaluating players, you have to talk about developing players. We can either hope by chance he gets better and learns the game, but I think we’ve made the choice to develop and nurture him. We have to do that by giving him minutes. You learn by experience. You can only learn so much by sitting and watching. We have to allow him to make mistakes. He has to go through that process. Look at Amaré now vs. last year. He’s a much better player. He was thrown into the fire. Tom Gugliotta got hurt, he was allowed to get a lot of minutes and look at the player he is now. Give Leandro time. Point guard is the toughest position on the court. You have to manage your affairs and also everyone else’s at the same time. He’s doing a great job.
Caller (Peter): How realistic is the Yugoslavian kid coming in? Will we sign him or is it a dream?
West: We’ll sign him. The reality is there’s a great chance of him being in a Suns uniform next year. We have to make sure the reality coincides with the hype. It’s one thing to play and have great numbers over there, but it’s another to come into this league and this type of Americanized ball and see if you can be productive.
Burns: What are your impressions on learning to scout guys like Barbosa or Vujanic or Lampes and how that has changed over the last five years in the NBA?
West: If you look at the European players, they look to be great basketball players overall. They’re very fundamentally sound. Forwards, guards and centers, they can do the basic shoot, pass, dribble. Here in America, the big guys are post players. There are more big players in Europe with the fundamental skills, but they don’t possess some of the athletic ability that some of the American players possess and the intensity of some of the players here.
Caller (Amy): Do you think the NBA is in a state of decline? Guys and their tattoos… Is there an image problem?
West: As far as the players, it goes in waves. Dr J and those guys had the afros. Clyde Frazier had the really loud clothes. As far as today’s athletes, it’s a cultural thing. They listen to different kinds of music. It’s a sign of the times, and they haven’t changed all that much. The older generation when I was playing probably didn’t think we were doing things right. If you grew up watching the Suns team I played on and you see the Suns now, you probably say, “Well, they aren’t doing things the way the old Suns did them.” When I came into the league in the ‘80s, the Suns just got out of a drug scandal. Has there been one of those since then? No. There have been other problems on the court with other teams. These things have gone on for a long time. As far as a decline in the league, I think it has a lot to do with the cycling, too. We had the East-West battles whether it was the Boston Celtics and the Lakers, Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson and then it was the era of Jordan. It’s just a matter of time until the next era. Who knows? Maybe it’ll be LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. It’s something that almost has to happen with this league that’s bigger than the league itself. A classic duel type of thing.
