Marion was an integral part of their offense AND defense. It's pretty clear after tonight's GSW game that they have no perimeter defense at all. They couldn't make a stop to save their lives. With Marion this game wouldn't have been a contest. I could even see them falling out of the playoffs...MAYBE.
I don't see them falling out of the playoffs at this moment, but I did say this when the trade was first announced. They lost a LOT defensively with Marion. And some of that was exposed tonight -- they couldn't buy a stop when they needed one. Same thing happened in their last game (Monday?) -- they couldn't buy a stop against the Arenas and Butler-less Wizards and just managed to escape with a win. I see them sliding down the standings, that's for sure.
ok. You're crazy The lost by two points to a good team and they were playing on the road infront of wild fans. They are nowhere near done. The warriors are a great offensive team and they make even the best defensive teams look silly on D.
I see both sides on this. Phoenix was getting murdered by opposing centers, and they were scared to death about having to face LA or San Antonio in the playoffs. But they are going to really miss what Marion brought them. And Shaq gets in foul trouble virtually every game when isn't sitting out with an injury.
It's not crazy. Their last two games are very telling in my opinion. Both are against teams that are not known for their defense -- the only reason the Wizards have been even mediocre defensively this season is Caron Butler and he was out -- and the Warriors are one of the worst defensive teams in the league. It remains to be seen how they do with Shaq, but minus Marion, twice in a row now, they have had trouble taking control of games down the stretch. If this trend continues, they're in serious trouble.
They have lost both their games against good teams. They almost lost both their games against losing teams, the Sonics and the Wizards.
Each day I'm feeling less negative about this trade for the Suns. It depends how healthy Shaq is and can he still force teams to double-team him 90% of the time. If so, then Nash and Amare can make opposing teams pay for it. It could make their offense unstoppable (in theory).
On the one hand, as much as I'm not a huge fan of Shaq, it's still possible he could be a real difference-maker. He could make their offense real hard to stop, and he's at least a big body on D. But Marion though... I've always said he's one of the most underrated players in the league, if not THE most underrated. He will be sorely missed. The possibility that Phoenix has taken a step back is very real.
Phoenix made two bad moves: -Trading away Marion who is the most versatile player maybe in the whole league, their best defensive player, and fit the Sun's running game perfectly. -Trading for Shaq who'll struggle with running the fast break, with being converted to defensive player, with being the 4th/5th best option on the court, and maybe with injuries too.
Yup, I have watched the Suns 4 games without Marion, the Suns are totally different team. The Suns now just dont have the feel of the old Suns. They are just slower overall and Shaq has not yet played. Even Nash looks more sluggish. Grant Hill is not a running guy like Marion. To turn the running Suns into half court Suns, that's quite a project for 2 months.
I think you misunderstood what i meant. I didn't mean that the Warriors were a good defensive team, I meant that the Warriors are such a good offensive team that they make even a good defensive team look bad. PHX was not a good defensive team with Marion but with out him they are even worse. The fact that the Warriors dropped 120 on them doesn't tell me that the suns are done because the Warriors are capable of doing that to almost every team in the and especially at home.
Good call, I think Phoenix has a better chance against LA/SA now. But teams like Houston, Dallas, Golden state will have a better chance against them. It's going to be about who matches up with who in the playoffs.
The thing is, GSW is so dangerous because they have deadeye shooters and when they're on, God help you. But this game wasn't lost because of deadeye shooting. It was because of dribble penetration by monta ellis and baron davis. PHX traded Marion, for Shaq. But Shaq will be in foul trouble every game because there's no one to protect him from penetrators drawing fouls on him. Plus Shaq isn't the shaq of old.
You cannot win a championship without a dominant Big, its been proven over and over through the years. They may struggle for a little while, but by the time the playoffs role around.................
If they don't add a perimeter defender, they will be a terrible defensive team, and they have no shot at a championship. As someone mentioned earlier, the Wizards tourched them in Phoenix without Arenas and Butler.....That is ugly. The Kobes, B-diddys, mcgradys, and Pauls of the league will destroy them come playoff time.
