Mello to the Knicks - RUMOR

[AzStevenCal]

This is true. But teams hoping to luck into a championship, rather than having the muscle to be favored, are prone to that.

A balanced 8- or 9-man rotation with strength in reserve has a better chance of weathering bad breaks. Unfortunately, that has not been the Suns' MO.

That's true but it's just not that simple. Even the balanced teams need luck, they just need a little less. Mike took a group of guys that in a traditional system wouldn't have been all that relevant. People rave about Joe Johnson and how stupid we were to let him go but look how much talent he's surrounded by and then tell me just what they've won. Many of our guys became stars because of this system. Without Dantoni, we'd have played better defense (probably) but Charlotte (a balanced team) plays better defense than we do every year and what have they won?

We didn't have Tim Duncan and we didn't have Michael Jordan. We didn't even have Kevin Garnett and until he was placed around several other great players he was considered one of the biggest post-season flops in the history of the game. Even as great as Kobe is, the Lakers weren't much of a post-season threat until they added one of the best centers in the league to their lineup. They were deep and balanced prior to Gasol, they just weren't good enough.

I think Dantoni did a great job for us despite the fact he also screwed up in a couple of major ways. If he'd adjusted (his philosophy) sooner to the fact that you need to go 8 or 9 deep to handle the long NBA season and you need your annual draft picks to help shore up your present in addition to preparing for the future we'd have been much better off. However, if Mike hadn't been here, I think the past several years would have played out much differently and not in a good way.

You are right, depth and balance are important but they take a back seat to stars and superstars. Without them, you can be the deepest team in the league and have the ideal positional balance but you'll still be watching the stars play in May and June. And when it's all said and done, you still need a little luck despite talent, depth and balance.

Steve

 

[BC867]

That's true but it's just not that simple. Even the balanced teams need luck, they just need a little less.

I agree with everything you said in your post, Steve.

Including what you said about balanced teams needing a little less luck . . . meaning we need a little more . . . thus reducing our odds vs. the opponent.

That's sort of been the story of the whole Suns existence, with one Cinderella appearance and one legitimate one in the Finals in all these 42+ years.

Even last season was a Cinderella season for us. A Power Forward without a Center. And now that we have a Center-in-waiting and no Power Forward, it's been a disaster.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I agree with everything you said in your post, Steve.

Including what you said about balanced teams needing a little less luck . . . meaning we need a little more . . . thus reducing our odds vs. the opponent.

That's sort of been the story of the whole Suns existence, with one Cinderella appearance and one legitimate one in the Finals in all these 42+ years.

Even last season was a Cinderella season for us. A Power Forward without a Center. And now that we have a Center-in-waiting and no Power Forward, it's been a disaster.

Agreed, and thanks for not ripping me when I started out to respond to your post and went off on several tangents.

Steve

 

[BC867]

Agreed, and thanks for not ripping me when I started out to respond to your post and went off on several tangents.

Steve

A lot of thoughts about the Suns problems are interrelated with other situations. 'Nothing wrong with including them.

Ripping someone? 'Only the couple on this board who do just that -- rip people instead of discussing and respecting their varying opinions.

But as the saying goes, "You can't reason with unreasonable people."

 

[mojorizen7]

That's true but it's just not that simple. Even the balanced teams need luck, they just need a little less.

Steve

I disagree to a certain extent,but even if i did agree......
that statement alone should be enough right there to scrap what we've been doing and adopt a 180 degree turn in terms of how they've been doing it. No?

All one has to do is look at the championship history of the game for the last 25-30 years.
Where are the 80's Denver Nuggets?
The Suns?
The Mavericks?
The Warriors?
The SacTown Kings of 10 years ago?

I'm going to go ahead and lump the current Knicks in there too.
I'll eat Pringles crow on this board and sport a Mike D'Antoni is a Genius avatar for a year if the Knicks win a championship in the next 3 years under DA's watch.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I disagree to a certain extent,but even if i did agree......
that statement alone should be enough right there to scrap what we've been doing and adopt a 180 degree turn in terms of how they've been doing it. No?

All one has to do is look at the championship history of the game for the last 25-30 years.
Where are the 80's Denver Nuggets?
The Suns?
The Mavericks?
The Warriors?
The SacTown Kings of 10 years ago?

I'm going to go ahead and lump the current Knicks in there too.
I'll eat Pringles crow on this board and sport a Mike D'Antoni is a Genius avatar for a year if the Knicks win a championship in the next 3 years under DA's watch.

I think you're safe. It's a bit like saying you'll wear a dress in public if Keanu Reeves wins an Oscar for Best Actor in the next 3 years. I think he's a better actor than he gets credit for being but he's not the best and even if he were, the odds would still be against him. Mike's system is not the best, his team isn't the most talented but even if both problems were addressed the odds would still be against him.

As for as scrapping the Phoenix Suns template though, I'm right there with you.

Steve

 

[cly2tw]

I disagree. It's harder to win in the post-season playing his style but I believe it can be done and it was just a fluke that it hasn't already been done. Add Carmelo, Chris Paul and a mobile defensive center and I think they'd have an excellent chance even in today's NBA. I'd give them an outside chance to do it in the next few years if they just add Carmelo and continue to develop their own players.

Now, if you ask me if I think it will be done, probably not. It's difficult to win an NBA championship, you need a fair amount of luck. If you're an up-tempo team that plays little to no defense, you need even more luck. I do believe that he has a better chance of getting that lucky in New York than anywhere else.

Steve

Actually, last year's Suns success would be great reminder for potential of MDA's basic system twisted with more defense and selective tempo control. If Amare had played like he's been doing for the NYK lately, Suns would have had a real chance to beat the Lakers in the WCFs. Amare proves now he can be a very good facilitator besides being a unique finisher, he'd have no problem to mesh with Melo. Given Amare's duo quality of great with or without the ball, Amare/Melo tandem might indeed be more effective than Wade/LBJ, Kobe/Gasol, or Pierce/KG.