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Thomas Finishes Strong Preseason
By Jerry Brown
East Valley Tribune
Oct. 24, 2006
While Amaré Stoudemire remains a work in progress, the other Suns big man coming off a season-ending injury is showing that his hard work has already paid dividends. Kurt Thomas, who came into camp in tremendous shape, capped off a strong preseason with 20 points and nine rebounds in just 24 minutes.
But many of his Phoenix teammates continued to struggle with their shots in Monday’s 108-102 loss to Seattle at US Airways Center that gave the Suns a 4-4 record to end the preseason.
Stoudemire, after scoring just one point in 19 minutes in Sunday’s loss to the Lakers, rebounded with 13 points in 20 minutes Monday. He said that playing in all eight preseason games and not missing a practice since the team returned from Europe represented solid progress.
“I was able to finish on a good note, and I want to take that into the season,” said Stoudemire, who played extended minutes with starters like Steve Nash and Shawn Marion for the first time. “I felt more comfortable, because I’ve played with Steve and those guys before. Being with the first team was nice.”
But right now, Thomas is the starting center. And after hitting nine of 12 shots from the field against the Sonics, his recovery from a stress fracture that ended his season last February appears complete.
“I’ve felt good from the beginning,” he said. “I had a good offseason. I rested my body, got my weight down (to about 235), and I came here prepared. It took me time to adjust, but now I love this system, love playing with these guys and I know my way around the city.”
Other than 17 points and 10 rebounds from Shawn Marion and nine points off the bench from James Jones, the rest of the Suns have yet to find their groove — either individually or collectively.
SHOOTING WOES CONTINUE
The Suns averaged 102.2 points during the preseason — well below teams like Golden State (118.6), Denver (115.8), Toronto (107.0) and New York (104.5), who are admittedly emulating Phoenix’s up-tempo style. They ranked a pedestrian 14th in the NBA in 3-point shooting percentage (31.7 percent) and backed up a 4-for-23 effort in San Diego Sunday with another dismal effort (8-for-29) against the Sonics.
Marcus Banks (1-for-8, four points in 25 minutes) continued to struggle, and Steve Nash — though recording his third straight double-double with 12 points and 11 assists — missed 10 of 15 shots. Raja Bell, who came into the game shooting just 39 percent from the field in preseason, missed 4 of 5 shots in the first half before hitting 5 of 6 after intermission. He admitted it’s been on his mind.
“We’re all going to have let that go,” he said. “It can be fixed, and the time to fix it is now.”
BONUS SHOTS
As expected, the Suns sat guard Leandro Barbosa with a right toe injury that has made even walking a chore. The Suns won’t practice today, and he was hoping to be able to go Wednesday when the team begins a mini-training camp leading up to the season opener. . . .
Eric Piatkowski, out for almost two weeks with a sprained ankle, was able to get in a six-minute stint in the first half but he didn’t attempt a shot.
Thomas Finishes Strong Preseason
By Jerry Brown
East Valley Tribune
Oct. 24, 2006
While Amaré Stoudemire remains a work in progress, the other Suns big man coming off a season-ending injury is showing that his hard work has already paid dividends. Kurt Thomas, who came into camp in tremendous shape, capped off a strong preseason with 20 points and nine rebounds in just 24 minutes.
But many of his Phoenix teammates continued to struggle with their shots in Monday’s 108-102 loss to Seattle at US Airways Center that gave the Suns a 4-4 record to end the preseason.
Stoudemire, after scoring just one point in 19 minutes in Sunday’s loss to the Lakers, rebounded with 13 points in 20 minutes Monday. He said that playing in all eight preseason games and not missing a practice since the team returned from Europe represented solid progress.
“I was able to finish on a good note, and I want to take that into the season,” said Stoudemire, who played extended minutes with starters like Steve Nash and Shawn Marion for the first time. “I felt more comfortable, because I’ve played with Steve and those guys before. Being with the first team was nice.”
But right now, Thomas is the starting center. And after hitting nine of 12 shots from the field against the Sonics, his recovery from a stress fracture that ended his season last February appears complete.
“I’ve felt good from the beginning,” he said. “I had a good offseason. I rested my body, got my weight down (to about 235), and I came here prepared. It took me time to adjust, but now I love this system, love playing with these guys and I know my way around the city.”
Other than 17 points and 10 rebounds from Shawn Marion and nine points off the bench from James Jones, the rest of the Suns have yet to find their groove — either individually or collectively.
SHOOTING WOES CONTINUE
The Suns averaged 102.2 points during the preseason — well below teams like Golden State (118.6), Denver (115.8), Toronto (107.0) and New York (104.5), who are admittedly emulating Phoenix’s up-tempo style. They ranked a pedestrian 14th in the NBA in 3-point shooting percentage (31.7 percent) and backed up a 4-for-23 effort in San Diego Sunday with another dismal effort (8-for-29) against the Sonics.
Marcus Banks (1-for-8, four points in 25 minutes) continued to struggle, and Steve Nash — though recording his third straight double-double with 12 points and 11 assists — missed 10 of 15 shots. Raja Bell, who came into the game shooting just 39 percent from the field in preseason, missed 4 of 5 shots in the first half before hitting 5 of 6 after intermission. He admitted it’s been on his mind.
“We’re all going to have let that go,” he said. “It can be fixed, and the time to fix it is now.”
BONUS SHOTS
As expected, the Suns sat guard Leandro Barbosa with a right toe injury that has made even walking a chore. The Suns won’t practice today, and he was hoping to be able to go Wednesday when the team begins a mini-training camp leading up to the season opener. . . .
Eric Piatkowski, out for almost two weeks with a sprained ankle, was able to get in a six-minute stint in the first half but he didn’t attempt a shot.
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