Robert Archibald

[F-Dog]

My impression from the post-trade fallout is that Robert Archibald is the only player the Suns received that they actually wanted to acquire. It seems to me that the Suns wanted Brevin Knight's contract rather than Knight himself, and they were forced to take Trybanski to make the deal work.


This is what I've pieced together on Archibald so far:

--the Suns worked him out last year, so they probably considered selecting him with their lowest draft pick, 1.22.

--he was taken by the Grizzlies in the second round, pick 2.03, #32 overall.

--the Suns kept an eye on Archibald since then--Amare couldn't remember whom Archibald was, but FJ was right there with the date and specifics of when they played against each other.

--from the other side, Jerry West did the drafting but not the scouting for Memphis last year, and Archibald got hurt at the beginning of training camp; it's possible that West still hasn't had a good opportunity to scout him.


My personal memory of Archibald is from 2001, when the AZ Wildcats had to play three Big Ten schools back-to-back-to-back in the NCAA tournament.

All of the Big Ten teams played thug basketball then, and Illinois was the thuggiest of the lot. Archibald came off the bench at center for them, and he seemed to be as much of a thug as the rest of them, no more, no less. What did distinguish him in my memory is that he scored 25 points over Loren Woods in that game, before fouling out.


Here are some comments about Archibald from Illinois fans, from another message board:

Not saying the Grizz are getting the short end of the stick, but I like what the Suns did in this trade. What stats won't show you is that Robert Archibald is one tough mother ******. I watched him grow all the way through his tenure at the University of Illinois. He goes all the way back to the Frank Williams days. He's tough and if their is one thing he will do on a consistent basis, it is rebound. He has pretty good defense to for being 6'11". He'll fit right on in with Marbury and the boys.

He certainly did start. But with the skillful Brian Cook playing similar positions, he didn't see as much starter time as he would of on another team. However, Bill Self always played Archibald for the majority of the game. Archibald just had what it took to enter the game and turn it into another direction. It's his style of play that his teamates like in him. I really liked the guy. He is the only Scottish-born NBA player. And he is a mean S.O.B. too.

Arch is one of my favorite Illini ever. He only averaged 11/6 his senior year but was one of the better centers in America, when he could avoid foul trouble. If he had been more healthy and on a less balanced, loaded team, he could've averaged 16/10. He's strong as a bull and is the ideal enforcer, but is pretty athletic for a big white guy and has great touch around the basket.

My guess is that Voskuhl and Archibald will be the two centers for the Suns when they break camp, with Trybanski and Williams starting the year on IR.

 

[F-Dog]

One other thing.

If Dermarr Johnson turns out to be the player I hope he'll be--someone with the potential to be a defensive stopper at SG, and who can hold his own on offense--then the Colangelos are going to have to dig into their wallets to re-sign him at the end of the season.

That means no MLE to use on a free agent center.


Something to think about...

 

[slinslin]

If Dermarr makes a good impression he might get something like a 2 year contract or partially guaranteed contract.

 

[F-Dog]

Originally posted by slinslin
If Dermarr makes a good impression he might get something like a 2 year contract or partially guaranteed contract.

...but anything over the minimum will have to come out of the Suns' MLE, right?

I can't think of any other way the Suns can pay Dermarr a competitive salary under the cap rules.

 

[slinslin]

Can't you over 2-year minimum contracts? And the Suns could also use a small part of the MLE to sign him to a small 2 year contract if he proves himself in the camp.

They could also negotiate a contract with a team option or whatever. I am sure the Suns will find a way to sign him to a good contract if he is good enough.

 

[elindholm]

So Archibald is basically the new Rick Robey, is that it?

 

[F-Dog]

Originally posted by elindholm
So Archibald is basically the new Rick Robey, is that it?

Robey was before my time, e.

I looked him up on Suns.com...I guess that Archibald does seem to be injury-prone...are you suggesting that Bo Outlaw = DJ or is it Big Jake?

 

[dyle_ph1]

I think you have something here... I've noticed in the interviews that the coaches always mentioned Archibald as someone who could help the team. I'm too lazy to get the quotes but I do remember his name mentioned a couple of times in a good light.