Some nicknames and titles are flattering, others aren't. Take the slogan often attached to the Phoenix Suns, which is both complimentary and cryptic:
"The Best Franchise Without A Championship."
That, in a nutshell, explains the Suns.
They've had great players. They had an excellent president for decades in Jerry Colangelo, who ran a model franchise. Few teams have ever played a more entertaining style of basketball, which was especially fluid in Mike D'Antoni's time.
They captivated Phoenix before the other professional sports discovered the once-booming city, and still are considered the No. 1 attraction in town. Yes, for the most part, it's been all good for the Suns, with one rather noticeable flaw: No NBA title to show for it.
With the franchise now facing some serious issues, you wonder if a title shot is drifting into the distance like an Arizona sunset.
Amar'e Stoudemire could be leaving, either by the Feb. 18 trade deadline or at season's end. Steve Nash, two-time MVP, turns 36 on Sunday. The Suns have a losing record after starting the season 14-3. And the financial future of the club is murky because the recession has sucker-punched the Phoenix area harder than others.
In the past, whenever the Suns found themselves in a bind, they worked out of it. Quickly. They're the fourth-winningest team in NBA history and never had a lengthy bad stretch. In their last 21 seasons, they've had just four losing ones. They always found a Tom Chambers or a Kevin Johnson or a Charles Barkley or a Nash to build around.
But what about this time, with a rebuilding process that's almost certain to come?
"Our down time in the past was always very short," said Colangelo, whose role now is more of a consultant. "But that was then, this is now. You can't say for sure, one way or another. Only time will tell."
Once December hit, and the losing began, and the uncertainty over Stoudemire flared, the Suns officially began a transition phase from contender to rebuilder. Actually, their last push for a title happened two seasons ago when they traded for Shaquille O'Neal. That brief experiment was a last-ditch attempt to salvage something from the Nash-Stoudemire era before Stoudemire could escape the final year of his contract. In some ways, he already seems checked out mentally, after being benched in the fourth quarter last week and admittedly getting distracted by trade talk.
That will leave Nash as the team's only star. Although he's aggressively delaying the aging process, eventually wear and tear (and the Suns' burden) will take their toll. The Suns fit the profile of a franchise teetering on the brink of mediocrity, which could happen before season's end.
And then the responsibility shifts to ownership and management. In the past, under the direction of Colangelo and flushed with funds, the Suns remade themselves in a snap.
They signed Chambers in 1988, swung a deal for KJ and drafted Dan Majerle to become winners. Then they traded for Barkley and went to the NBA Finals. When the Barkley ride was over, they grabbed Jason Kidd. They dealt Kidd to New Jersey for Stephon Marbury, who they traded to the Knicks to open up cap room. They signed Nash and drafted Stoudemire to fuel another run.
If Robert Horry didn't ram Nash into the scorer's table in an overheated Spurs-Suns playoff series, then maybe the long-awaited championship would've been secured.
Point is, for a long time the Suns were a choice destination, helped by the weather, a designer arena, the chance to play with great players and the reputation built by Colangelo. It's a hard act to follow because Robert Sarver and Steve Kerr -- the current owner and general manager -- aren't working with the same built-in advantages.
Sarver seems reluctant to dig deep and flirt with the luxury tax, and has shown no desire to re-sign Stoudemire. Given the real-estate crash and the ripple effect, the Valley isn't overloaded with millionaire season-ticket holders as before. And Phoenix was never a corporate city loaded with luxury-suite-buying Fortune 500 companies anyway.
"We're facing a new-world economy," said Colangelo. "These are very difficult economic times. Professional sports are no different than any other business venture right now. It's not just (Sarver). Everyone's lost their share of wealth. Franchise values have been affected. The Suns have to be very judicious in their decision-making going forward."
They've already begun developing players for the future, giving looks to Goran Dragic, Louis Amundson and Jared Dudley -- none of whom are budding stars. Stoudemire carries little trade value right now; he won't fetch a great player in return, and no team will trade for him unless they're certain they can re-sign him. The time to trade Stoudemire was last summer, but apparently the Suns weren't getting quality offers then, either.
As for a championship, well, that will be the mission the next time the Suns are re-invented. Whenever that will be.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment