Trevor Ariza

[sunsfan88]

Center, No, maybe, yes, no, injured for the one year Ariza contract.

Alridge was an All Star last season and averaged like 25 and 10. Most of the NBA has trouble against him much less a much physically smaller Ariza.

 

[sunsfan88]

This signing reminds me a lot of the Dudley signing. We're asking Ariza to play a role he hasn't played much of before and hoping it works out. I don't want to see a similar situation where Ariza can't be our starting PF and Igor ends up stuck with Bender and Chriss as our only 2 real PF's.

I don’t think Dudley is a good comparison because he was brought in as a SF too and a possible replacement for Tucker.

Hedo Turkoglu would be a better comparison than Dudley.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Alridge was an All Star last season and averaged like 25 and 10. Most of the NBA has trouble against him much less a much physically smaller Ariza.

The question is not "who will stop him" but is there someone who will defend him significantly better than Ariza? The answer is probably no.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

This signing reminds me a lot of the Dudley signing. We're asking Ariza to play a role he hasn't played much of before and hoping it works out. I don't want to see a similar situation where Ariza can't be our starting PF and Igor ends up stuck with Bender and Chriss as our only 2 real PF's. Looking at the roster it's easy to see how lopsided the team is. We're loaded on the wings but lack true bigs behind Ayton. We're also missing talent at PG where we only have Okobo and Knight, which isn't saying much since one is entering the league as a 2nd round pick and the other is coming off of a serious injury. There's a lot more that could be picked apart about Knight's game but that's been said a million times already. I'd like to focus on what Ariza signing does for us this season. If he's not capable of holding down the starting 4 spot then this season could get really ugly and really quick.

With one major difference. Ariza is actually still playing at a very high level and has essentially always played on good teams.

Of course that doesn't mean that he is single handedly going to turn our defense/team around, but he can certainly help in that regard. He just has a better chance at contibuting to wins on the court than Dudley.

 

[Chaplin]

I don’t think Dudley is a good comparison because he was brought in as a SF too and a possible replacement for Tucker.

Hedo Turkoglu would be a better comparison than Dudley.

No he was not. Resigning Dudley was explicitly stated to help with the PF position. Whether you agree with that is irrelevant, that's why they brought him in originally.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I don’t think Dudley is a good comparison because he was brought in as a SF too and a possible replacement for Tucker.

Hedo Turkoglu would be a better comparison than Dudley.

There were a lot of comments about his ability to play the 4 spot when we signed him and he even reminded everyone that he'd done that well in Washington. And I never once heard anyone say he was being brought in to replace Dudley, where'd you get that?

 

[Hoop Head]

What exactly is the role of a PF in today's NBA? How much different will it be for him on this particular team? This is why discussions about positional basketball go nowhere quick.

You either have the people that are married to positions being traditional, and those that tend to think of the game as evolving. The game IS evolving, and there is no set "role" for a PF. I would think someone who experienced Channing Frye would know that.

I'm not that stuck on position basketball but it seems odd that signing Ariza has been met with a lot of praise but just a few weeks prior some of the same people thought the sky was falling because we traded for Bridges. I know the Heat pick played a role in that but there were also questions about where he'd play since we already had Jackson and Warren. The idea of starting 2 of those 3 (Bridges, Warren, Jackson) at Forwards was met with a lot more pushback than the idea of starting Ariza with Jackson/Bridges/Warren. How did adding to our log jam create a clearer picture, is more what I'm getting at.

I hope Ariza works but his signing seems questionable at this point and does remind me of the Dudley deal because of how the team is addressing it. They said openly that Dudley was signed as a stretch PF and that failed quickly when he was placed against starters.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

I'm not that stuck position basketball but it seems odd that signing Chandler has been met with a lot of praise but just a few weeks prior some of the same people thought the sky was falling because we traded for Bridges. I know the Heat pick played a role in that but there were also questions about where he'd play since we already had Jackson and Warren. The idea of starting 2 of those 3 (Bridges, Warren, Jackson) at Forwards was met with a lot more pushback than the idea of starting Ariza with Jackson/Bridges/Warren. How did adding to our log jam create a clearer picture, is more what I'm getting at.

I hope Ariza works but his signing seems questionable at this point and does remind me of the Dudley deal because of how the team is addressing it. They said openly that Dudley was signed as a stretch PF and that failed quickly when he was placed against starters.

I think a lot of that is because (for some of us) it is easier to picture Ariza playing big minutes at the 4 than the other wings on our team.

 

[Hoop Head]

I think a lot of that is because (for some of us) it is easier to picture Ariza playing big minutes at the 4 than the other wings on our team.

Glad you caught my meaning in that, my post incorrectly said "signing Chandler" instead of Ariza. Not sure how I confused those 2. I can see that reasoning though. Personally I think JJ and Warren should be capable of playing some PF for the Suns but I guess that's needed less with Ariza signing. I'm skeptical but I'm hopeful also. I don't think it was a terrible move anymore but I was really skeptical initially. I guess Ayton's play will also be telling because he is a true Center and should allow us to play a little smaller at other positions. He could guard the Anthony Davis type players while Ariza could play their C's, which was Okafor last year. I think Ariza could handle that assignment and those sort of situations when playing teams with large PF's and unskilled C's alongside them.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Glad you caught my meaning in that, my post incorrectly said "signing Chandler" instead of Ariza. Not sure how I confused those 2. I can see that reasoning though. Personally I think JJ and Warren should be capable of playing some PF for the Suns but I guess that's needed less with Ariza signing. I'm skeptical but I'm hopeful also. I don't think it was a terrible move anymore but I was really skeptical initially. I guess Ayton's play will also be telling because he is a true Center and should allow us to play a little smaller at other positions. He could guard the Anthony Davis type players while Ariza could play their C's, which was Okafor last year. I think Ariza could handle that assignment and those sort of situations when playing teams with large PF's and unskilled C's alongside them.

McD did say that Ariza is the first new face this year, but not the last. I'm hoping for a possible trade that maybe sends Warren out and a good 3&D PG in. Certainly way too early to make any conclusions on next year's roster yet as I don't think we are looking at the final roster right now.

 

[sunsfan88]

There were a lot of comments about his ability to play the 4 spot when we signed him and he even reminded everyone that he'd done that well in Washington. And I never once heard anyone say he was being brought in to replace Dudley, where'd you get that?

Assuming you mean Tucker, but there was talk among the BSOTS guys that Tucker may get traded if a contender gives them something of value that very season itself and Duds would take over his role. Just rumors and speculation of course.

 

[GatorAZ]

This signing is looking better and better with the way our young guys look. You can’t rely on 20 year olds to play winning basketball.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I'm not that stuck on position basketball but it seems odd that signing Ariza has been met with a lot of praise but just a few weeks prior some of the same people thought the sky was falling because we traded for Bridges. I know the Heat pick played a role in that but there were also questions about where he'd play since we already had Jackson and Warren. The idea of starting 2 of those 3 (Bridges, Warren, Jackson) at Forwards was met with a lot more pushback than the idea of starting Ariza with Jackson/Bridges/Warren. How did adding to our log jam create a clearer picture, is more what I'm getting at.

I hope Ariza works but his signing seems questionable at this point and does remind me of the Dudley deal because of how the team is addressing it. They said openly that Dudley was signed as a stretch PF and that failed quickly when he was placed against starters.

I don't know of anyone here who did not like picking up Bridges as a player. The primary complaint was giving up that Miami pick. Personally, I have no problem giving up the Miami pick for a player that will perform now. The secondary concern about Bridges was that he seemed to be redundant. I think we have gotten over that idea. If we look at NBA positions as Bigs, Wings and lead guards, then all those signings make sense. But the biggest issue with Ariza is that he is only a one-year deal. He is not a long term answer for this team. He is being brought in as a coach on the floor to help change the culture.

 

[Mainstreet]

I was wondering when Ariza would be eligible for a trade. It looks like it might be after December 15th.

It appears Ariza is in a similar situation as Carmelo Anthony.

Because he signed with the Rockets as a free agent this summer, Anthony is not eligible to be traded until after the Dec. 15 trade restriction. So any potential deal would be at least a month away.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/25287539/carmelo-anthony-part-ways-rockets-playing-10-games