Suns.com: Young Suns Do It Again

George O'Brien

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Young Suns Do It Again

By Joe Gilmartin, Suns.com
Posted: Jan. 18, 2004

Everyone agrees 21-year-old Leandro Barbosa has a great future. But the way he's been playing since joining 22-year-old Joe Johnson in what has to be one of the youngest starting backcourts in pro hoop history, that future may well be now.

Barbosa, a 6-3 guard with an explosive first step, is averaging right at 17 points over the last six games and has hit at least one three-pointer in each of his last nine games. He got 20 of those points and two of those threes Sunday night, and between them he and Johnson combined to outscore Portland's starting guard tandem 45-15.

To save you the trouble of doing the math, that gave Johnson 25, including nine in yet another clutch fourth period effort that he topped off with a put back of a Shawn Marion miss for the winning hoop with 18.1 seconds to play.

Marion, at 25 one of the graybeards on the Suns' Kiddie Corps, delivered one of his better lines in a career already filled with great ones with 16 rebounds and 22 points, and 21-year-old Amaré Stoudemire had 16 points before limping off with an ankle injury in the fourth period. (He will not accompany the team to Los Angeles for the Martin Luther King Day game against the Lakers).

In addition to youth, balance is one of the keys to this revamped team and willingness to share the wealth (i.e. -- the basketball) has already enriched them ---and not incidentally made them a lot more fun to watch even when they 're not playing particularly well (which candidly they really weren't in this one).

And nobody's more fun to watch than Barbosa, who is a five-speed player (fast, very fast, extremely fast, lightning fast and whoosh!). Of course, given his inexperience, youth and reckless abandon, you know he's going to make mistakes. Speaking of which, he had seven turnovers vs. the Blazers But the irrepressible Brazilian also had four steals and there are times when he seems to be wearing roller skates and everybody else on the floor is wearing snowshoes.

Coach Mike D'Antoni will be the first to tell you Barbosa has a lot of learning to do and so, for that matter, does this team. But they are getting better and better, and perhaps more importantly seem to be coming together. On a scale of one to 10, with 10 being great, beating the Blazers these days probably rates about a two. Saturday night's loss lowered their road record to 2-16, and they obligingly aided and abetted the Suns' third straight win by missing 15 of their last 16 shots from the field.

But the Suns were missing a lot of shots they usually make themselves, and as out of sync as they are, the Blazers still posed a test of the team's resolve and poise. And while it couldn't really be said they aced it, they did pass it.
 
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