Sarver on playoffs: 'It still hurts, but time heals everything'

[azirish]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=stein_marc&page=sarver-interview

Sarver on playoffs: 'It still hurts, but time heals everything'

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By Marc Stein
ESPN.com
(Archive)

Also in Vancouver for Steve Nash's annual charity game last weekend was Suns owner Robert Sarver, who discussed a variety of topics with ESPN.com:

On surrendering two future first-round picks as part of Phoenix's payroll-slashing trade of Kurt Thomas to Seattle:
"It's hard. I went back and forth with [new Suns general manager Steve Kerr] a lot on that one.
"It's difficult, but the key for us is that we're right there, so the most important thing we can do is keep our core together for the next three years. And so we have to make some sacrifices [such as trading Thomas to save $8 million in luxury taxes]. Keeping our core together was [priority] No. 1, keeping the [2008 unprotected first-round] pick from Atlanta was No. 2 and the other picks ... trading them was something we had to do."

On the criticism he's getting for the Suns selling three first-round picks in the past two drafts before giving up two firsts in the Thomas trade:
"I'll be [called] the cheap baker all the time, but it's not true. Based on the NBA statistics that were done by [the league's] consulting firm, we're the 24th-best market in the NBA from a revenue standpoint. It's hard for us to have the second-highest payroll, but we can have the ninth- or eighth- or seventh-highest payroll because our fans really support us.
"But we have to work within those constraints. We want to be good long-term. Our goal is to have sustained success, so we have to kind of balance our budget a little bit.

"I think by and large our fans understand. Our fans pay to watch Steve and Amare [Stoudemire] and Shawn [Marion] and Leandro [Barbosa] and Raja [Bell] and Boris [Diaw]. Our core is still together and by picking up Grant, I think we're better today than we were a month ago. And that's what's important."

On whether Suns management has convinced Amare Stoudemire that he wasn't nearly traded to Atlanta on draft day to make room for Kevin Garnett:
"Yeah, because we never were talking about trading him. Things just kind of get a momentum of their own and there's a lot of [media] talk. He's fine. He knows. He knows he's not going anywhere."

On Garnett's reported interest in playing in Phoenix if he indeed finally leaves the Timberwolves:
"I think a lot of people have an interest in Phoenix with the way we play and the fact that were good and competitive. It's great to hear.
"Same with Grant Hill. He had a number of offers for a lot more money and the fact that people want to come play with us, that's something we have to use to our advantage in terms of being able to bring in one or two really good players each year at a lower price to help us because they want to be here."

On signing Hill:
"He was at the top of our list given our budget constraints. We couldn't go out and spend a lot of money, but the fact that he chose to come to Phoenix for a lot less money than he could have gotten someplace else, I'm really excited.

"He's another playmaker, he's got experience and he's complete classy guy, which everybody knows. And he feels he's got a few years left of basketball in him. He thinks he's [still] got the ability to be an All-Star."

On how much longer he expects Nash to play:
"Since he came to Phoenix, he's gotten better every year. Obviously he's not going to play forever, but I can see him playing for the next three, four years easily. I think the window's got three more years in it and maybe longer depending on whether he wants to keep playing and how he feels."

On the Suns' controversial second-round exit to San Antonio:
"I don't think about it as much [two months later], but you don't get a lot of opportunities to win a championship and that was an opportunity for us. It still hurts, but time heals everything."

 

[Cheesebeef]

"time heals everything" - tell that to all of us who are still bitter about 1976, 1993, 1994, 1995, etc. etc.

sorry Sarver, TITLES heal everything, especially to fans who aren't raking in millions of dollars.

 

[Brianellsworth]

http://www.arizonasportsfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=94129

 

[Mainstreet]

"time heals everything" - tell that to all of us who are still bitter about 1976, 1993, 1994, 1995, etc. etc.

sorry Sarver, TITLES heal everything, especially to fans who aren't raking in millions of dollars.

Your right, a Title would really soothe the wounds of not getting there. Also the
"time heals everything" quote is simply not true. It might work when I'm dead.

 

[Mulli]

Time is money.

$arver.

 

[Cheesebeef]

is it just me, or did anyone else raise an eyebrow at this comment:

"Based on the NBA statistics that were done by [the league's] consulting firm, we're the 24th-best market in the NBA from a revenue standpoint."

he's talking theoretically here to spin his decision making and saying he's not cheap. Now theoretically, we might be the 24th best market, but I remember reading we were 7th in ACTUAL REVENUE in the league. Am I wrong about that? Or does Sarver, like Kerr, think his fans are imbeciles who don't understand what's really going on?

 

[Chaplin]

is it just me, or did anyone else raise an eyebrow at this comment:

"Based on the NBA statistics that were done by [the league's] consulting firm, we're the 24th-best market in the NBA from a revenue standpoint."

he's talking theoretically here to spin his decision making and saying he's not cheap. Now theoretically, we might be the 24th best market, but I remember reading we were 7th in ACTUAL REVENUE in the league. Am I wrong about that? Or does Sarver, like Kerr, think his fans are imbeciles who don't understand what's really going on?

How is that theoretical on Sarver's part? I don't understand, he says that the consulting firm said that we are the 24th-best market in the NBA from a revenue standpoint. How is that theoretical? He didn't say, "I think..." or "In theory..."

How come if Sarver says a firm gave a certain number, it's theoretical, but if you say you got a certain number from something, it's fact?

Not trying to browbeat you cheese, I'm just trying to figure out your reasoning.

 

[Treesquid PhD]

I have doubts that Phoenix is the #24 market. no numbers just going off of feel, maybe he is using the numbers from 1974.

 

[nashman]

Get over it people he's not cheap but he not gonna take it up the ... either. Look fact, thats FACT is he is doing more than almost any other owners to keep a championship caliber team intact, geesh some will never be satisfied!

 

[hsandhu]

How is that theoretical on Sarver's part? I don't understand, he says that the consulting firm said that we are the 24th-best market in the NBA from a revenue standpoint. How is that theoretical? He didn't say, "I think..." or "In theory..."

How come if Sarver says a firm gave a certain number, it's theoretical, but if you say you got a certain number from something, it's fact?

Not trying to browbeat you cheese, I'm just trying to figure out your reasoning.

How in the hell could phx be the 24th best market, considering phx is one one of the biggest cities in the country, is a good basketball town especially at this moment with a good team, and there has to be a lot more than 6 teams in the league we are better than.

I've been a Sarver defender, but this quote almost makes me do a 180 on this guy.

 

[Chaplin]

How in the hell could phx be the 24th best market, considering phx is one one of the biggest cities in the country, is a good basketball town especially at this moment with a a good team, and there has to be a lot more than 6 teams in the league we are better than.

I've been a Sarver defender, but this quote almost makes me do a 180 on this guy.

24th does seem a bit unrealistic, but even Sarver wouldn't throw out a number that is inherently easy to disprove. As far as we're concerned, we shouldn't make him responsible--it's the consulting firm the NBA uses that provided the number, not Sarver.

 

[nashman]

Just because our team is good doesn't mean we are making money whats hard to understand? Places like NY, LA, Chic all of those places with the exception of NY has way lower payroll and sell a ton more tickets which equates to MORE MONEY. Phoenix may very well be 24th in best market sense because there are lots of things to do here people. Every suns game is not a sellout hasn't been for years, its not like that other cities!

 

[Cheesebeef]

How is that theoretical on Sarver's part? I don't understand, he says that the consulting firm said that we are the 24th-best market in the NBA from a revenue standpoint. How is that theoretical? He didn't say, "I think..." or "In theory..."

How come if Sarver says a firm gave a certain number, it's theoretical, but if you say you got a certain number from something, it's fact?

Not trying to browbeat you cheese, I'm just trying to figure out your reasoning.

I don't know either, that's why I asked the question.

 

[Maligzar]

Forbes says our valuation is #7:

http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/32/biz_06nba_Phoenix-Suns_321064.html

I think it's a little bit odd to say that the 5th largest city is the 24th best market for an NBA team. The only thing I can think of, is the fact that for the most part we are a transplant city. Very few people were raised to "eat, sleep and breath the Suns" which is much different than other parts of the country. I'd be very interested to read the report that Mr. Sarver is talking about.

"time heals everything" - tell that to all of us who are still bitter about 1976, 1993, 1994, 1995, etc. etc.

sorry Sarver, TITLES heal everything, especially to fans who aren't raking in millions of dollars.

Aren't you just setting yourself up for disappointment? Really any fan, that feels titles are the only marks of success are setting themselves up for disappointment. Only one team can win the title. I think what is more important is that year in and year out the Suns remain competitive. I just don't see how winning a title magically makes all the years we didn't win better.

The Suns have one of the greatest winning percentages in the league. We've been in the run for the title for the last 3 years. Rarely do the Suns miss the playoffs. I don't understand how all of that isn't good enough for fans. Sure I'd love to win a title, but if you're "in pain" over the fact that the Suns have never one a title, I think maybe you need to get some perspective.

Golden State won the title in 1975. I doubt anyone here thinks that they are a better organization than the Suns.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Now theoretically, we might be the 24th best market, but I remember reading we were 7th in ACTUAL REVENUE in the league. Am I wrong about that?

and Chap, when asking "Am I wrong about that?" in regards to what I remember, I'm pretty sure I'm not stating anything as fact.

 

[Chaplin]

and Chap, when asking "Am I wrong about that?" in regards to what I remember, I'm pretty sure I'm not stating anything as fact.

Maybe it's your choice in grammar. You are presenting the 7th ranking as something you read and believe, while the same can be said of Sarver and the 24th ranking. My point is that how can Sarver be wrong and you be right (and vice versa) without any kind of backup? I'm not saying you are wrong, in fact, I would think absolutely that you might be right, but I wonder if it's semantics--we might have been the 7th largest profit in the league, but when you're talking about revenue (like advertising at the arena and on tv), we may be down to 24th. Like you, I don't know either.

 

[Mainstreet]

I think this issue was brought up before, perhaps concerning the Arizona Cardinals. I can't remember the details. I think there might be some discrepancies in how a market is defined. I think saying Phoenix is only the 24th best NBA market may be limiting it and not taking into consideration large adjacent cities.

 

[azirish]

How in the hell could phx be the 24th best market, considering phx is one one of the biggest cities in the country, is a good basketball town especially at this moment with a good team, and there has to be a lot more than 6 teams in the league we are better than.

Phoenix itself is very big city (sixth in the country), but the metropolitan area is not as big as the others. If I was to guess which cities have smaller metro areas they'd be:

San Antonio
Sacramento
Charlotte
Indianapolis
Memphis
Portland

What is more important is that the Suns are able to generate good but not great revenue. Considering the populations of New York/New Jersey, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Bay Area (Warriors), the Suns are undoubtedly in a lower tier.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I just don't see how winning a title magically makes all the years we didn't win better.

I guess that's just a fundamental difference between the two of us. Getting something that you've always wanted would wash away all the years we didn't get for me.

 

[scXfreakX]

People say he doesn't spend any money, but he does. But his decisions over the last few years have been somewhat questionable. It's obvious we're in win now mode. Not in developing players mode, but then when Steve is gone, and if Marion is possibly in another city, where are our young players. I mean this could turn around the Suns to a low playoff, possibly non playoff team very quickly. And being in the western conference doesn't help.

What we need to do is stop selling our draft picks. Sarver obviously is focusing on the championship and that alone, along with the cap. But we need to spend a little money if we want a title.

I know we'll be fine in the regular season but there's good minutes that James Jones and Kurt Thomas together put out. I mean they each averaged like 18 minutes, more for KT in the playoffs. And we can't afford for Grant to take up all those minutes. So that means that our starters either play more minutes or we rely on our bench more, which is fine with me, but I doubt fine for Mike.

 

[azirish]

I may be overly optomistic (heh, its happened before ), but I think Tucker will prove to be more effective than Jones.

On offense, Jones was strictly a catch and shoot three point guy. His 37.8% for three stats were "OK" but his overall 36.8% shooting was not (just 35.6% inside the arc). He was a decent defender, but not a great one nor did he do much in the open court.

Tucker was not a very good outside shooter in college, but overall he was a quality scorer averaging 19.9 ppg his senior year (one of only two guys on his team in double figures) on 47% shooting. He's very athletic was a solid rebounder for an SF/SG. Most of all, he plays very hard all the time.

I never felt Jones brought much energy to the process. His defense was good, but not great and he never seemed to get hustle rebounds nor break away steals. Jones averaged only 6.4 ppg in 18.1 minutes, so it is not out of the question that Tucker will do as well or better in fewer minutes.

The key for Tucker is to learn to shoot the three. He did OK his Freshman year, but after than he was at PF a lot with far fewer attempts. Tucker's defense and ability to finish at the basket may make up for his limited shooting range even if his shot is not there immediately.

 

[Maligzar]

I guess that's just a fundamental difference between the two of us. Getting something that you've always wanted would wash away all the years we didn't get for me.

So looking at Golden State, would you rather be in their shoes?

 

[azirish]

IMHO, the Suns are better than anybody other than the Spurs even without KT.

 

[Nasser22]

So looking at Golden State, would you rather be in their shoes?

Winning a championship is the ultimate goal and without one all these playoff wins mean very little. Sure I'd like our situation over Golden State's, but we have a team that has failed to win one with some great opportunities. Our teams have choked away many great chances at accomplishing that goal...advancing far in the playoffs just doesn't mean too much if we never come out with a championship. Last year was a failure, '93 was also a failure as were the other years with Chuck no matter how many wins we had.

 

[Cheesebeef]

So looking at Golden State, would you rather be in their shoes?

honestly, if I was a warriors fan and had lived during that era, I probably wouldn't care that much about basketball as much. Sure, I'd still love to watch it, but once you scale the greatest heights, nothing can ever compare, thus it takes the edge off a little bit IMO and as proof, I offer up my obession with the D-Backs when they first came to town. I've always liked baseball a lot (certainly not like basketball or football) but I came to LOVE the D-Backs when we got them, flying home for games on my birthday, going to games when they'd come to SD or LA, depending on wherever I was living at the time and was pretty crushed when they would get to the playoffs and flame out or not make the playoffs, or hell, even when they endured that AWFUL three day stretch in Yankee Stadium... but once they won the series (and I payed over a grand to attend every game at home) and they gave me the biggest sports rush of my life (and one of the greatest rushes of my life period for that matter), they pretty much got a pass from me as far as everything else because I saw something I knew I'd probably never see again.

As further proof, I can remember watching the Bulls win their 2nd title during the second three-peat and I was AMAZED at how a bunch of drunken Chicago cops basically just blew it off like a regular season game.

Bottom line for me - I'd rather feel that ONE AMAZING MYSTICAL MOMENT AT THE GREATEST MOMENT OF THE SEASON than watch a bunch of relatively meaningless games and end up heartbroken every season. So, yeah, at this point, having suffered crushing heartbreak with this team for 20 years, I'd sell my soul in essence to know what it feels like watch them climb the mountain and plant their flag on top of it. Hell, I'd even welcome it because it would probably mean I wouldn't spend so much damn time on this message board.