We went from the most talented team (not the best atm though), with the most stocked future 1st round draft picks in the league to what we are because of $arver in a few short years. We didn't get here because $arver made mistakes because we were trying to get better, or taking a shot and getting a better older player for some youth for a run....no we got here because of $arver's other occupation philosophy took us here. Unless that changes, we better hit the lottery, and still luck out, and then some, or we'll be a perennial bottom feeder who occasionally reaches 7th-8th seed status once or twice a decade or until $arver is forced to sell WHEN his bank goes under.
So either we get lucky, or $arver changes his coddled bankster idiotic mentality, or we suck. Now if our GM can make gold bars out of lemons, despite $arver, we might have a chance, but that's a big if, and not something I'd want to put money down on happening....because it rarely happens.
As for Nash, as much as I love his play, it's over. We won't be any good next year, and we don't have cap space (nor the owner willing to if we had) to fork over for a couple of max contract guys...if there are any that are worth it and fit our style to make a run in the next year or two.
We either try to hold onto 8-12th in the west next year, if nash and gortat hold up, or we take a big swing at a Nolan Ryan fastball with a little leaguer at the plate and hope for the best.
Letting Nash retire here gives us no chance, and trading him gives one chance to alter our Clipper-esque bound future.
If we still had talent, if we held onto our picks, if we hadn't lowballed some players, had sophistry and short term thinking and instant gratification and leak patching not been employed by $arver (in tried and true bankster fashion) we COULD have taken the hit of Nash retiring here and gone for championships or at least contended. Now, thanks to $arver, we can't.
3-way deal with Wolves for Rubio and expiring filler (if any)? I love Rubio's game, and that's the guy I want. Other than him...
Try to swing deals involving (no order); Stephen Curry, Marc Gasol, LaMarcus Aldridge, Rudy Gay, Rodney Stuckey, Tyreke Evans, Andre Bargnani, Roy Hibbert, Chase Budinger, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Josh Smith, Al Horford, Wesley Matthews, Darren Collison, Jrue Holliday, Al Jefferson, Eric Gordon, John Wall, Mike Conley, Deron Williams, Derrick Favors, Rajon Rondo, JaVale McGee, D.J. Augustine, Al-Farouq Aminu, Eric Bledsoe, Danillo Gallinari, J.J. Hickson, Brook Lopez, Roy, Monta Ellis, Nicolas Batum, Jeff Green, Brandon Jennings, DeMarcus Cousins, DeAndre Jordan, Chris Paul, Noah, Kevin Love, Dorell Wright, Evan Turner, Blake Griffin (only because it's the clippers), Paul Milsap, Luol Deng, Wilson Chandler, and Michael Beasely. I'll leave to others to do the trade scenarios and salary cap fitting.
I'm not saying these guys would be great fits (the 1.4 quadrillion dollar question), but these are the guys I would be looking at potentially. That's most of the 'young' pool. (and remember, guys that might seem like they wouldn't be traded this year, might not be next year, or the offseason after that) I don't know what combination of guys we need to pickup of the above list would do the job, what combo would do it first, what combo would it ultimately the best, but there is significant talent on this list, and some of them will be available sometime, if they're not already.
The sad thing is, there's all these players, and we don't have any.
Oh yeah. Isn't it funny how $arvers Fire $ales include some of the above players? Of course not. Now we get to sell low and buy high. Like Gortat.
Can Oklahoma keep all the talent they have? Hard to say. But I'd love to pick off one or two of their young studs.
If Bynum could ever get past his injuries, and I wonder what the Suns medical staff thinks about him and his injuries, perhaps him off the scrap heap as well. But only if I liked what the medical staff said and/or close to minimum salary. Ditto Greg Oden.
Oh yeah and look for Hedo Turkoglu...his hustle, his athleticism......just kidding.
We all know we're not getting Rose, Howard, Melo, LeNero (I wouldn't want him), but if we could pry any of the above list (and there are a few others if you want slightly older players), and hopefully sign some max guys (or similar QUALITY) before we have to resign these we'd get through trades, we could have a chance. There's lots of young talent out there, even a glut, and the NBA will be turned upside down soon enough as the young players have already in most cases equaled their aging brethren, with many years to surpass ahead (it won't be many years). An asymmetrical shift is occurring, and it will be funny if the LeNero Heat can even keep up well before their 'south beach' contracts end. Will $arver act? Can he persuade NBA players like banksters sell fraudulent crap in droves? We'll see. Is it Lon Babby, or Lon Baby? We'll find out. But you can't squeeze blood from a turnip, and Pennywise, pound foolish $arver will probably screw it up, if he doesn't change the whole way he approaches running the Suns, and what metrics he judges success by.
Or else get ready for more 'be a part of remembering the past glory' advertising campaigns the next decade or so...because we sure in the hell won't have anything in the present to sell the product on. Remember Colangelo's...err...the Suns legacy and hope people don't figure out the difference.
