I disagree that the Suns' backup PGs have sucked because they've been forced to try to run Nash's offense. They've sucked because they aren't NBA-caliber PGs. Barbosa, when he's healthy, is enjoying something of a rebirth in Toronto but it's in his familiar role as backup SG. Marcus Banks has, of course, done nothing. Does it really look to anyone like Dragic's skill set -- dribbling with only one hand, routinely getting himself trapped on the sideline, getting out of control on his drives to the basket, and missing half of his free throws -- would make him successful on any other NBA team?
The problem is that these current Suns have very few players who can do anything offensively without an elite PG setting them up. You have Carter and Hill and that's about it. We can blame "the system" for bringing in those players, or misguided optimism in imagining that those players could be more skilled than they are. But the failure of the second unit to find any sort of offensive rhythm is due to the weaknesses of that group of players, not their poor casting in a "system" designed for someone else.
We go back a ways on Banks. The summer he was headed our way I remember you predicted that Banks would be a flop because he sucked as a basketball player. I predicted he'd do worse here than he had with his prior team because D'Antoni would undermine his confidence. No doubt you think you were right and I think I was right - he didn't do well post D'Antoni because Mike had done his work so thoroughly. I have to admit I thought Marcus might come around on a team that valued defense because he could be a first rate defender, though he was addicted to scoring, which is never easy to fix.
I don't recall your position on Barbosa... very few of the knowledgeable people here thought he was great shakes as a PG, so I imagine you were in that camp. I remember predicting he'd fall apart at the seams under the pressure of being Nash's official backup - it was a most unpleasant thing to witness when it happened. Happily, Mike's brother put him back together psychicly and he was passable as an unofficial backup PG - when had some good ball handlers on the floor with him.
Now its true that neither of them ever looked like an NBA starting PG, but they were at their worst in this system and I believe now as I did then that they'd have done considerably better in a more structured offense - other than Phil Jackson's triangle, and you know the reason for that.
You're mostly right about Dragic's shortcomings though I take a different view of the big drops his FT and 3pt shooting. Last year showed what he's capable of and the drop is due to his being put in worse situation this year. I don't even think of that as a debatable point. Yes, it shows that Goran is fragile mentally/emotionally, just as we saw in his first year. Its worse now because he didn't get past it as many young players do. If our FO were on the ball they'd have kept Reynolds in the fold(my preference at the time) or gotten another PG because this was a definite possibility.
I do take issue with Goran driving out of control - he's certainly close to edge but he's hanging on fairly well most of the time. I hate that he hasn't improved his right hand more and that is most likely his own fault or he just isn't wired to do it. Surprisingly, he has improved his ability to wend his way amongst defenders in the half court while not getting better at avoiding traps. It could be because he's keeping the ball lower in heavy traffic and is not doing so on the perimeter. Its a small positive sign that he can continue to improve.
Dragic isn't all that important in the whole scheme. The important thing is to be able to keep Nash's minutes down around 30 in the regular season so there's hope he'll have as much as possible left for the playoffs - its always about the playoffs, IMO, unless you're rebuilding. Goran is what we have to back up Nash and the best he's done is with a set unit playing with him consistently. Hence, you go for that. I don't actually know that the offense was intentionally modified for him last year, but on general principles I think its wise.
Heck, I've kept saying since summer that if Gentry didn't keep the second unit together, insofar as possible, the result would be a big drop off in their performance, Nash's minutes would soar and the whole team would suffer. I'm certainly not going to back away from that now. Sure, there have been lots of distractions along the way but to me the direction has always been clear. There's still a chance I could be proven wrong and almost no chance I'll be proven right in believing it would make a difference what Gentry did with the second unit.
Young players are always the most interesting, especially ones with some weakness. Dudley isn't too interesting because he clearly has basketball smarts and will find his best niche. Amare was very interesting because he lacked them and the fundamentals as well. I always thought the key for him was to make a playmaker out of him - he put so much stress on a defense as soon as the ball was in his hands, other players would have to have openings. (Not to say he wouldn't be helped by work on the basics.) It would be a long term project and he'd never be a Vlade Divac but he would have been a devastating weapon at the end of a tight game. D'A seems to have a glimmer of that now but he sure didn't when it might have helped us. I ramble...
