Man, it will be awsome if we could clinch that 7th spot. I have this odd feeling that we might have slim chance to upset Sac King, which is a team that we can match up against with at least comapred with Dallas. 3 and half behind Utah now, one game at a time. But the Utah team is a tough in terms of experience, I dont think they will collaspse in the rest of season. As long as they play .500 ball, pretty much they are sitting on that 7th spot right now.
I just want to point out that this statement is just false. Yao would've been voted in as the backup C, and same goes for Francis as the PG/SG. But I do agree that Phoenix's talent is VERY underrated. They're having some injury problems, and in fact, we should be worried because those problems are going away. Googs just recently came back and Penny will be back within one week. Even though Penny is not half the player he WAS, right now, the player he IS, is VERY VERY VERY important to Phoenix. When he plays, Marbury is much more effective. When he plays, he handles the abll some, allowing Marbury to play off the ball some, and giving more open spaces to Marion and Stoudamire. Bo Outlaw and Joe Johnson are their BENCH players. By next Wednesday, this is how their team will look: Scott Williams/Bo Outlaw/Jake Voshkul Stoudamire/Googs/Bo Outlaw Shawn Marion/Googs/Langhi Penny/Joe Johnson/Casey Jacobsen Marbury/Penny/Joe Johnson 8-man rotation: Williams Outlaw Stoudamire Googs Marion Penny Joe Johnson Marbury That's not great, but it's quite good. The Rockets are better though, but still, Phoenix isn't bad at all. Ming Cato Griffin MoT Rice Posey Mobley Francis
Sane I agree Penny is critical to them. He is their third best offensive player overall and does a lot of things for them offensively as you say. They are a much more solid team with him--just as we are a much, much, better team with Mobley playing at a high level offensively. But whether he is just going to come back and play at a high level right away is a big question. Also, I think Tskaliades is important to them, at least as important as Googs. But they are really starting to go into the tank with only having Marion and Marbury's offense trying to carry them.
Desert Scar, You're absolutely right. Carrying the team is taking a huge toll on Marbury and Marion, and that's a good thing. About Penny, he just needs to be on the floor. He doesn't score in bunches, but what he brings is 15/5/5, and that's the glue that keeps their team together. I have to say though, no matter how healthy both teams are, if we win the final game against Phoenix, I'd pretty much lock us into the playoffs. With Mobley playing the way he's playing, our chances of winning 8th is pretty high.
