Warriors vs Suns 3/18

[Mainstreet]

ridiculous. Casey Jacobsen and the other scrubs would have never produced and added to this team what JJ has. I bet you were one of those people who freaked when Big Jake left town. Good grief.

Unfortunately, I knew, as I believe most Suns fans, that Big Jake would not fit with the team as time progressed. However, I do think Zarko and Casey would have produced as much as McCarty and Jim Jackson have, thus far, if given the minutes. Lampe and Vroman definitely needed much more playing time to develop. It would have been nice to have had at least a couple of these players on the IL to develop and as insurance against injury.

Let me make it clear, I liked the acquisition of Jim Jackson although I think we over-payed with young talent. I'm not sure why the Suns acquired McCarty when they needed a more physical big man. Also I think the Suns gave up on Zarko way too early. I guess I just expected more consistent production out of McCarty and Jackson. Maybe I expected too much out of these players, especially Jackson.

If these players are not going to give us a quality bench, then what did the Suns accomplish by trading for them other than perhaps some money. Again our bench has been atrocious for the most part all year. Golden State's bench outscoring our bench 39-10 was ridiculous.

However, I hope McCarty and Jackson begin to play better more consistently... afterall I am a Suns fan and I want a Championship. I think I have a right to express my displeasure with the Suns' bench without the sniping remarks.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

I'm not sure why the Suns acquired McCarty when they needed a more physical big man.

They aquired McCarty because they had a trade exception that very few players worth anything fit into. He was by and far the best fit for the salary slot.

Zarko was traded because both him and his agent requested it. The Suns knew that he would have a very hard time cracking the rotation with how well we were playing. They have always tried to help players get into a situation where they can succeed if they cannot with the Suns. That is part of the reason why Phoenix has always been a hot FA destination. They tend to keep extremely good relations with players and more importantly, their agents.

 

[Mainstreet]

Thanks thegrahamcrackr for your thoughts. I really hated to see Zarko leave as he has immense upside. I still believe there must have been another player out there that fit our needs better than McCarty (no knock on McCarty). Perhaps I could be wrong. I sure hope so. Just wished the Suns had held some of their chips for the trading deadline.

I do have tremendous trust in the Suns' management and scouting. And as you aptly pointed out, there is always the bigger picture that the average fan may not see.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

Someone here put up a very extensive list of every player in the NBA that fit the exemption. McCarty was by far the best player that was actually obtainable.

They could have in theory held onto the exception to be used in another trade, although there is a year deadline IIRC. It seemed pretty clear that the Suns were not going to be doing a major shakeup before next November, so I doubt it would have been more usefull later. You are right though, they could have held onto it for this summer or something, but I really don't have an issue with the McCarty deal.

I never wanted the Suns to draft Zarko, but he surprised me early in the season. However, it was pretty clear that he needed a lot of PT to get over the injury. With the current state the suns were in, there really wasn't any opportunity for it.

Now I have been a little leary of the JJack trade, but I do not think we gave up to much. Casey did not have his option picked up, making him a UFA this summer. Now whether or not that was a bad choice, I don't want to get into. However, it is pretty clear that a team like Cleveland or Denver may go after him as a semi cheap 2 guard that can stretch defense. In other words, the chances of the Suns retaining him were not good. Jackson has shown several times why he is better than Casey, particularly with his leadership and ball handling skills. His playoff experience will also play a huge roll I hope.

I couldn't really care less about Vroman, since we have Jake still. Lampe could be the one that bites us in the ass. However, when you take off the homer glasses, would you really think so highly of him if he were on another team this entire time? I mean we saw someone who could barely rebound, and wouldnt play defense. He had a shot that looked great, but wasn't a great shooter. Not to mention his affinity for shooting it everytime he touched it. Think Medvendenko?

In other words, I think that Lampe could wind up to be nothing or something great. I think it was a good move to shore up for this year, since Lampe was very far from a sure thing.