Too Many Questions

[George O'Brien]

It strikes me that the hardest part about evaluating the Suns is they are so young. Some of the young guys are going to grow into solid or better players. Some won't. The problem is figuring out which is which.

1. Is Lampe going to become a real center? Right now Lampe is one of the team's best shooters and he is both big and mobile. But it is not clear he is even a center let alone likely to become a good one. Assuming he is a center and likely to become a good one, the second question is how long will it take?

2. Is Vujanic a point guard or a shooting guard? In Europe he is a good scorer, but he does not get a lot of assists. Can he be a real point guard. Also, how good is he going to be on defense? Will he contribute right away or take a year to become acclimated to NBA basketball.

3. Is Barbosa going to become a solid point guard or just an off the bench role player? Will he develop a mid range game? Will he become strong enough to be a solid defender rather than just a guy who makes steals.?

4. Will Jacobsen develop a mid range game? Right now Jacobsen is probably the team's best three point shooter and seems to be able to get to the basket. But his lack of a mid range shot means he rarely scores in double digits even when he plays a lot of minutes.

5. Will Carbakapa ever be a solid defender? Zarko is likely to rediscover his jump shot, but his footwork on defense makes him a liability on the outside and lack of strength limits him when playing inside. Unless his defense improves dramatically, he will not get a lot of minutes.

6. Will Dice stay healthy and return to his former skills? Dice played better than Voskuhl late in the season and should improve over the summer. But after 3 operations, the probability that he will get injured again is high. Also, will Dice become strong enough to be a starting center? Right now he isn't.

7. Will White return next season in better shape? Jahidi White was easily the team's strongest inside guy, but his lack of quickness made him especially foul prone. Also, can he improve his ball handling skills to the point of being adequate? He is actually pretty good at scoring inside if he catches the ball, but is usually a turnover waiting to happen.

8. Will Marion improve his shot selection and defensive footwork? Shawn Marion is a very talented player, but he tended to take too many jump shots (and kept shooting even when cold) and he bites on fakes too easily. Shawn is too predicatable on his attack path to the basket. Will Shawn learn to create contact on his drives to the basket? People challenge his drives because they know he won't make them foul him.

9. Is JJ going to develop into a point guard? JJ was the team's most improved player, but he had too many turnovers to be a first rate point guard. Also, he does not trigger the break all that well. If the Suns knew JJ could be a solid point guard, then the development of Barbosa and Vujanic would not matter as much; but otherwise the Suns may need a veteran PG.

10. Will Voskuhl get strong enough to be a solid center? Voskuhl is a high energy guy who really tries hard and does a nice job on the double team. But he is not strong enough to defense guys straight up. A stronger Voskuhl would be a real plus.

11. Will Stoudemire become a solid defender soon? If Amare remains inadequate as a defender, the Suns will need to get a defense oriented center. If Amare makes major strides, the Suns can afford to use guys like Lampe and Dice whose big help is their shooting.

I don't have solid answers to any of these questions. Unfortunately, the decisions about the draft and free agency will be driven by what the Suns THINK the answers are.

 

[elindholm]

For what it's worth, here are my guesses.

1. Is Lampe going to become a real center?
No.

2. Is Vujanic a point guard or a shooting guard?
Shooting guard.

3. Is Barbosa going to become a solid point guard or just an off the bench role player?
Role player.

4. Will Jacobsen develop a mid range game?
Yes, but it won't dramatically enhance his effectiveness, because he will still need too much room to get his shot off.

5. Will Carbakapa ever be a solid defender?
Yes, of perimeter players. He won't be able to defend the interior. In lineups where he is at PF or C on offense, he'll have to switch with someone on defense.

6. Will Dice stay healthy and return to his former skills?
Irrelevant, because he won't be with the Suns next year.

7. Will White return next season in better shape?
No.

8. Will Marion improve his shot selection and defensive footwork?
Yes.

9. Is JJ going to develop into a point guard?
He will develop PG skills and probably see time there, but he'll still be the starting SG.

10. Will Voskuhl get strong enough to be a solid center?
If your definition of "solid" is "able to defend O'Neal or Duncan one-on-one," then no.

11. Will Stoudemire become a solid defender soon?
Yes.

 

[Chris_Sanders]

Amazingly I pretty much agree with everything Elindholm said outside of his assessment of Vujanic...but that is only because I haven't seen him play.

 

[George O'Brien]

I think there is better than a 60-40 chance Dice will be back unless the Suns sign an above the MLE center.

If Vujanic and Barbosa are not going to be the Suns PG, it puts greater emphasis on a someone who can shoot and play the point.

I have no idea how much room Jacobsen needs to shoot mid range shots since he never takes them.

 

[Joe Mama]

Amazingly I pretty much agree with everything Elindholm said outside of his assessment of Vujanic...but that is only because I haven't seen him play.

neither has Eric or most of the rest of us. Bball was kind enough to send me a tape of the Serbia-United States game in which he started a couple of summers ago (George, send me a private message about this). He didn't look bad defensively. He can definitely handle the basketball. He made some nice passes, and he has a very quick release on his shot. But that was from a few years ago, and he wasn't one of the key players on that Serbian team.

If he plays here next year it wouldn't surprise me if he is the starting point guard. He probably isn't going to average over 4-5 assists per game, but I'm not sure the Phoenix Suns really need that from the point guard. JJ and Amare Stoudemire should really have the ball in their hands much of the time. One thing I do worry about is that the Suns need help defensively on the perimeter and at point guard specifically as much or more as they do on offense. Vujanic does not have a reputation as a good defensive player.

I'm not sure Shawn Marion's shot selection needs as much help as his shot itself. The last third of the season he appeared to be much more selective with his shots even though he would occasionally have again were to where he fell in love with the three-point shot again. It was that midrange jump shot with which he struggled. We all remember when Shawn Marion would dribble down in the open court, stop at 10-15 feet, and drill a little shot. He was money with his midrange shot. The season, for whatever reason, he lost all confidence in that shot. You could see that he looked uneasy taking it. Along with the rest of the team he also needs to improve that defense.

I wouldn't count on Jake Voskuhl getting bigger and stronger. If he's going to improve anywhere I think it will be with that midrange jump shot. Like most centers he will get more time if he shows he can hit that with any sort of consistency. This season the shot actually looked pretty good, but it didn't go in the basket very often.

Will Lampe become a real center? I think that depends on what you define as a real center. He isn't going to be a big-time shot blocker or rebounder if that's what you mean. However he may learn to hold his own on defense while becoming a great compliment to Amare Stoudemire on offense.

Joe Mama

 

[elindholm]

neither has Eric or most of the rest of us.

Hey, come on, I said I was guessing.

 

[George O'Brien]

I can be reached at obiewan@azirishmusic.com.

neither has Eric or most of the rest of us. Bball was kind enough to send me a tape of the Serbia-United States game in which he started a couple of summers ago. He didn't look bad defensively. He can definitely handle the basketball. He made some nice passes, and he has a very quick release on his shot. But that was from a few years ago, and he wasn't one of the key players on that Serbian team.

If he plays here next year it wouldn't surprise me if he is the starting point guard. He probably isn't going to average over 4-5 assists per game, but I'm not sure the Phoenix Suns really need that from the point guard. JJ and Amare Stoudemire should really have the ball in their hands much of the time. One thing I do worry about is that the Suns need help defensively on the perimeter and at point guard specifically as much or more as they do on offense. Vujanic does not have a reputation as a good defensive player.

I've noticed that Mike Bibby has averaged 5.4 assists per game this season (and 5.2 in his three years with Sacramento), yet averaged 8.1 and 8.5 apg his last two years with the Grizzlies. I think this reflects different offenses rather than a decline in his skill. It is possible that Vujanic may be a team that passes well and does not generate as many assists by the PG as others might.

I'm not sure Shawn Marion's shot selection needs as much help as his shot itself. The last third of the season he appeared to be much more selective with his shots even though he would occasionally have again were to where he fell in love with the three-point shot again. It was that midrange jump shot with which he struggled. We all remember when Shawn Marion would dribble down in the open court, stop at 10-15 feet, and drill a little shot. He was money with his midrange shot. The season, for whatever reason, he lost all confidence in that shot. You could see that he looked uneasy taking it. Along with the rest of the team he also needs to improve that defense.

That's an interesting point, but he took and missed far too many three's.

I wouldn't count on Jake Voskuhl getting bigger and stronger. If he's going to improve anywhere I think it will be with that midrange jump shot. Like most centers he will get more time if he shows he can hit that with any sort of consistency. This season the shot actually looked pretty good, but it didn't go in the basket very often.

I'm not concerned about Jake getting "bigger", but I think more work in the weight room could help him battle in the paint.

Will Lampe become a real center? I think that depends on what you define as a real center. He isn't going to be a big-time shot blocker or rebounder if that's what you mean. However he may learn to hold his own on defense while becoming a great compliment to Amare Stoudemire on offense.
Joe Mama

I certainly hope Lampe becomes a better rebounder. The Suns are not going to contend if their SF consistently outrebounds their center. If Lampe does not become a good rebounder, then Dice will continue as the Suns starting center for a while unless they sign a FA.

 

[Errntknght]

1. Is Lampe going to become a real center?
Yes, a high post center on offense and able to defend opponents centers either inside or outside. He's going to progress slowly next year because D'Antoni won't play him and our centers are no challenge to defend (in practice).

2. Is Vujanic a point guard or a shooting guard?
Combo guard.

3. Is Barbosa going to become a solid point guard or just an off the bench role player?
Role player, but a valuable one.

4. Will Jacobsen develop a mid range game?
Perhaps, but it doesn't matter because his overall game is weak. His defense is industrious but still poor - opponents offenses get him to switch at will and then take advantage of him.

5. Will Carbakapa ever be a solid defender?
No. He will be a spot player because of that. Possible he could be hidden as the middle man in a zone D.

6. Will Dice stay healthy and return to his former skills?
He'll come back to the Suns and regain about 80-85%.

7. Will White return next season in better shape?
Somewhat improved.

8. Will Marion improve his shot selection and defensive footwork?
Not much. He needs to move to the baseline where he'd be much more of a constant threat to score and grab rebounds. He could stand to set a screen now and then, too.

9. Is JJ going to develop into a point guard?
I agree with Eric.

10. Will Voskuhl get strong enough to be a solid center?
I agree with Eric again but Jake really needs to play a lot smarter - cunning would be even better - and hit the mid range J or he won't play much.

11. Will Stoudemire become a solid defender soon?
I think it'll be a gradual process. It will help him a lot if we get an assistant coach who's expertise is team D.

 

[George O'Brien]

Voskuhl

I was puzzled during training camp when it was obvious that Jake had not done any weight lifting last summer. It struck me that he could not expect to keep opposing centers out of the paint without help unless he got a long stronger, yet it did not seem that he had done anything to work on that.

I blamed some of this on FJ. FJ loved the trapping defense and Jake was great at doubling up opponents (much like Bo in that regard). The theory was that if Jake was never going to be left on an opponent one on one, there was no need for him to get stronger. Maybe D'Antoni will have a different approach.

As for Jake's shooting, I think he was pretty good with that short jumper - although not nearly as good as Dice and Lampe. To me, the problem has always been that Jake does not catch the ball very well. While not as bad as White, he fumbles the ball too often either creating turnovers or just losing the chance for an open shot. If the Suns seriously move to a high post offense, Jake is going to have to improve his ball handling and shooting or he won't play much.

 

[SirStefan32]

1. Is Lampe going to become a real center? Right now Lampe is one of the team's best shooters and he is both big and mobile. But it is not clear he is even a center let alone likely to become a good one. Assuming he is a center and likely to become a good one, the second question is how long will it take?

No.

2. Is Vujanic a point guard or a shooting guard? In Europe he is a good scorer, but he does not get a lot of assists. Can he be a real point guard. Also, how good is he going to be on defense? Will he contribute right away or take a year to become acclimated to NBA basketball.

He can be whatever the team needs him to be- he will contribute immediately, and he will be a star.

3. Is Barbosa going to become a solid point guard or just an off the bench role player? Will he develop a mid range game? Will he become strong enough to be a solid defender rather than just a guy who makes steals.?

Off the bench role player.

4. Will Jacobsen develop a mid range game? Right now Jacobsen is probably the team's best three point shooter and seems to be able to get to the basket. But his lack of a mid range shot means he rarely scores in double digits even when he plays a lot of minutes.

Not sure.

5. Will Carbakapa ever be a solid defender? Zarko is likely to rediscover his jump shot, but his footwork on defense makes him a liability on the outside and lack of strength limits him when playing inside. Unless his defense improves dramatically, he will not get a lot of minutes.

No. He might become an average defender at best.

6. Will Dice stay healthy and return to his former skills? Dice played better than Voskuhl late in the season and should improve over the summer. But after 3 operations, the probability that he will get injured again is high. Also, will Dice become strong enough to be a starting center? Right now he isn't.

No.

7. Will White return next season in better shape? Jahidi White was easily the team's strongest inside guy, but his lack of quickness made him especially foul prone. Also, can he improve his ball handling skills to the point of being adequate? He is actually pretty good at scoring inside if he catches the ball, but is usually a turnover waiting to happen.

Probably.

8. Will Marion improve his shot selection and defensive footwork? Shawn Marion is a very talented player, but he tended to take too many jump shots (and kept shooting even when cold) and he bites on fakes too easily. Shawn is too predicatable on his attack path to the basket. Will Shawn learn to create contact on his drives to the basket? People challenge his drives because they know he won't make them foul him.

NO.

9. Is JJ going to develop into a point guard? JJ was the team's most improved player, but he had too many turnovers to be a first rate point guard. Also, he does not trigger the break all that well. If the Suns knew JJ could be a solid point guard, then the development of Barbosa and Vujanic would not matter as much; but otherwise the Suns may need a veteran PG.

NO.

10. Will Voskuhl get strong enough to be a solid center? Voskuhl is a high energy guy who really tries hard and does a nice job on the double team. But he is not strong enough to defense guys straight up. A stronger Voskuhl would be a real plus.

I doubt it.

11. Will Stoudemire become a solid defender soon? If Amare remains inadequate as a defender, the Suns will need to get a defense oriented center. If Amare makes major strides, the Suns can afford to use guys like Lampe and Dice whose big help is their shooting.

[/QUOTE]

Yes, he will become a solid defender- not great, but solid.

 

[F-Dog]

Hey, it's guessing time!

1. Is Lampe going to become a real center?

Is he going to become a shot-blocking 'last line of defense'? I don't see it. He should become adequate at defending other centers in a couple of years, and he won't get much time at any other position...

2. Is Vujanic a point guard or a shooting guard?

He should be able to to a little of both, which is exactly what the Suns are looking for.

3. Is Barbosa going to become a solid point guard or just an off the bench role player? Will he develop a mid range game? Will he become strong enough to be a solid defender rather than just a guy who makes steals.?

Supposedly, he was whipping other PG prospects one-on-one before the draft, so I assume there's a little mid-range game in there that he hasn't shown yet. He should keep improving, but it's up to the Suns whether he'll start or come off the bench.

4. Will Jacobsen develop a mid range game?

At all? Yes, but it won't be anything special.

5. Will Carbakapa ever be a solid defender?

He should become a decent team defender, but he'll probably always be a liability guarding his man.

6. Will Dice stay healthy and return to his former skills?

Probably not and no chance in hell.

7. Will White return next season in better shape?

No. What you see with Jahidi is what you get.

8. Will Marion improve his shot selection and defensive footwork? Shawn Marion is a very talented player, but he tended to take too many jump shots.

He should start making those mid-range shots again, if he doesn't spend another summer in the weight room. On defense, he'll probably start changing things up a little more, but he won't lower his center of gravity or anything like that.

9. Is JJ going to develop into a point guard?

No, but he should manage to cut down his turnovers, if the Suns keep putting the ball in his hands.

10. Will Voskuhl get strong enough to be a solid center?

He's solid enough right now, as long as he gets that mid-range J down. He'll never be a stud, though.

11. Will Stoudemire become a solid defender soon?

Not soon, but eventually. It will probably take a few years, though.