From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Team Preview: Thunder

By Sam Gray

The Thunder won the title, justifying re-signing Westbrook to a massive deal, trading for George, and moving on from Carmelo; OKC took out the Rockets and the Warriors on their way to beating the Celtics, and their win over the Warriors will likely be seen by historians as the reason Durant left Golden State for Seattle.

Over the summer, fresh off a championship parade, the Thunder brought back most of their bench (minus Patrick Patterson and Wayne Ellington) and upgraded their starting five with the signing of Trevor Booker, who looks to be a perfect energy guy next to Adams (Booker put up 13.1 PPG and 8.1 RPG with the Nets last season).

The goal of the Thunder is to repeat as champs, something definitely doable in a West that lacks an unstoppable force like the Warriors.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Team Preview: T’Wolves

By Sam Gray







The T’Wolves were a massive disappointment last season as locker room drama overshadowed everything; KAT lost confidence in Thibs and Thibs was fired as a result. In his place, the T’Wolves hired former player Sam Cassell and watched Jeff Teague (mercifully) get taken in the expansion draft.



This summer, the Wolves got KAT to buy in, signed Dedmon to play the four, have Justin Holiday in the mix, and are confident 2018 first rounder Seth Patterson will continue to show improvement (Patterson in limited playtime put up 10.1 PPG with 4.6 RPG on 42% from the field and 29% from deep). With the return of DeRozan and a new system in place thanks to a coaching change, the Wolves feel last year was an aberration.

With Towns buying in long-term, the Wolves aren’t feeling insane pressure to win now but they definitely want to make the playoffs. If they finish above .500, they have good odds, but they’ll need their bench players to step up when their big stars sit.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Team Preview: Trail Blazers

By Sam Gray

The Blazers nearly snuck into the playoffs thanks to a late run, but fell short of the final seed; that failure put an end to the Lillard/McCollum era.

Over the summer, the Blazers made some tough decisions, sending McCollum to the Grizzlies in exchange for Tyreke Evans and the 12th overall pick of 2018, Clay Marks. Lillard is now alone as the star of the show in Portland and the Blazers now employ Frank Vogel as HC, a change that Portland is hoping will jolt the team back into shape.

Portland’s goal is to make the playoffs again, but with Lillard now only two years away from being a free agent — in the mega-summer of 2021 — the Blazers’ clock is ticking. Lillard wasn’t particularly happy about the moves the Blazers made but ultimately approved them; Portland will have a lot of money to play with next summer and could get Lillard some serious help if they play their cards right.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Team Preview: Warriors

By Sam Gray

The Warriors were given the best shot of every team all season long but were finally dethroned by the Thunder in seven games. Golden State’s loss set off a chain-reaction this offseason as they watched Kevin Durant return to Seattle; they got back nothing.

Over the summer, free of Durant’s cap hold, the Warriors had a bit of room to breath and re-signed Jordan Bell to a three-year deal with a significant pay raise. They renegotiated with Iggy an Shaun Livingston, freeing up cap space and avoiding the luxury tax, but the biggest looming issue is Draymond Green’s contract — Green is not planning to take a paycut and wants a max deal and the Warriors, barely above the luxury tax as it is, can’t afford to dive back into it next season without severely limiting their options.

The Warriors are aiming for a title, plain and simple, but there are many in the organization who believe this year will be the last with Curry, Thompson, and Green — Green is likely to be a free agent next summer and one of the biggest fish out there. Even if Golden State wins a title, Green could still move, and the Warriors are bracing for that possibility.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Team Preview: Wizards

By Sam Gray

The Wizards were a good team last season in year one of Wall and Boogie, but were dismantled in the playoffs again by Boston, going down 4-1 in round one.

Over the summer, the Wizards brought back Satoransky on a big deal, added in Boban Marjanovic as a key backup, and brought over eurostash player Paciani, whom the Wizards feel could be a big bench player moving forward. Washington is in the luxury tax and in year one of John Wall’s massive extension, so expect the Wizards to move on from Otto Porter if they’re suffering at the trade deadline.

The goal of the Wizards will be to get back to the postseason and get past the round one. Avoiding the Celtics would be best for that, but there’s no telling where Washington will end up from year to year, as inconsistency continues to be the only consistency this franchise has to offer.

[RMJH4]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

KD to Seattle is really gonna help you. I think you will give the Warriors a run for their money now. The West is gonna open up a lot now. And with Seattle getting a solid roster, they will cause a few upsets along the way, hopefully not to the Suns though!

[georgiafan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

great job as always with the team previews and hitting making each team seem interesting.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

great job as always with the team previews and hitting making each team seem interesting.

Thanks! The write-ups are a bit time consuming, but are a great way to keep track of all the things that have changed in just one season in the NBA. The league is constantly evolving and it's important to keep that in mind.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale





Ch. 6

It was his second season in the league and he felt like he had been validated as a player. Here he was, on his second ever opening night, and he felt like last season was longer than a year ago.

It’s different this time.

The schedule makers had given them a road game against the Kings to open the 2019-20 season, yet another snub for Phoenix — rather than allowing them to celebrate the beginning of a new season on their home floor, they sent them to Sacramento to face one of the league’s worst teams. Sure, Omar wasn’t going to complain about a cupcake in game one, but it certainly felt like the league was sleeping on them.

“OP, this place is decked out,” Brian said from beside him. The two had lockers right next to one another and Brian was geeking out over the various new things in the newest NBA arena, the Golden 1 Center. “They have Starbucks here.”

Omar just shook his head. “It’s overrated. Dunkin’ is where it’s at.”

“You’re tripping. I think your haircut shaved off a few IQ points.”

Omar pointed at Brian’s face. “And your weak-*ss goatee has made you a lot more punchable. I guarantee you’re going to get clobbered by WCS in the post.”

“You willing to bet on that?”

“You willing to lose like last year?”

Brian cringed and waved off his comment. “No, nevermind, I don’t feel like getting up at the buttcrack of dawn just to get owned by you.”

“You’re not very ambitious. You got to train like the best to be best.”

Brian cracked a grin. “My role model is Dirk, not Kobe.”

Omar press a finger against the side of his head. “Mamba mentality, baby.”

It was a new year, with new teammates, but it was the same game; to be the best, he had to beat them.

He’d start tonight.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Rapid Reaction: Suns 113, Kings 96

By Sam Gray







The Suns started the season off with a win as they went into Sacramento and dominated three out of the four quarters. Blake Griffin, in his debut as a Phoenix Sun, was exactly as advertised; the big man passed, posted, and knocked in a few deep threes to show off the wide variety of skills that made him so popular a player. Griffin finished the game as the second leading scorer with 24 points and ten boards. Omar Pope picked up where he left off as he lit into the Kings for 32 points and Malcolm Brogdon added 22 of his own (along with 10 dimes) to round out the effort in a win that should have the Phoenix faithful feeling good about the new season.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Rapid Reaction: Suns 127, Nuggets 109

By Sam Gray

The Suns moved to 12-3 while the Nuggets fell to 8-9 as Phoenix welcomed Denver to their house and treated them like a doormat; the game wasn’t initially shaping up to be a runaway, though as both teams came out and shot brick after brick. At the half, Phoenix only led by two points as the Nuggets were living off the three to make up for their terrible inside game. But in the third, after a shaky start, the Suns came alive thanks to an 8-0 run courtesy of Blake Griffin. BG started the Suns off hot after the half and OP came on from that point, treating the Nuggets defense like a revolving door. The fourth saw the Suns run away with things as the Nuggets got into foul trouble and lost their composure.

[RMJH4]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Very nice start to the season. I knew Blake would fit in and drop big numbers... But Brogdon has been fantastic. Looks like you have a legit big 3 forming now. Griffin is sharing the load with Omar, that's really gonna help. Still got that chip on the shoulder too, way to go Pope!

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Very nice start to the season. I knew Blake would fit in and drop big numbers... But Brogdon has been fantastic. Looks like you have a legit big 3 forming now. Griffin is sharing the load with Omar, that's really gonna help. Still got that chip on the shoulder too, way to go Pope!

Yeah, I really like Brogdon -- I'm a fan of big guards like him and he's absolutely DEADLY from the free throw line, the man is unconscious from there and the refs reward him for going inside.


Blake is thriving -- honestly, I feel like a great wing player would fully unlock his skillset (not a great center, like he's consistently been paired up with throughout his career). He runs the floor, gets out on the break, and just kicks tail.

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

League Update: Thanksgiving Edition

By Sam Gray

Injuries:

Early Trends:

1. The Bulls were the surprise of the league, sitting at 10-6, before news of The Finnisher’s injury that is. Now, Chicago fans everywhere are preparing themselves for another tough year — just like last season, when Victor Mack went down, the Bulls have suffered a devastating injury to an important player and some are attributing it to a curse. Whatever the case, the Bulls will need someone to step up and replace Markkanen’s production (nearly 20 PPG), else their season will quickly spiral downwards.

2. Another surprise team in the East — the Grizzlies. Memphis’ play to entice Marc Gasol to finish his career with them is paying early dividends, as the Grizzlies sit at 9-8 and sixth in the conference. Injuries to McCollum have taken the steam out of their sails of late (three straight losses) but the Grizzlies play for the gunner formerly of Portland looks better by the day.

3. Speaking of Portland, the Trail Blazers are 6-9 and desperately missing the instant offense of McCollum. Tyreke Evans hasn’t been bad (15.5 PPG), and sophomore Clay Marks is filling it up off the bench (16.1 PPG), but the Blazers clearly are missing something. As Lillard’s free agency looms (2021), Portland has to fear that a slow start this year could bury them in a brutal West — and bury their chances at re-signing their star PG.

Suns’ News:

1. Phoenix sits at 12-3, third in the West, and the trade for Blake Griffin looks to be exactly what the doctor ordered. Pope is putting in 26.7 PPG on 47% from the field and 39% from deep. Griffin is adding in 21.2 PPG on 54% from the field and 31% from deep. Brogdon — The President as he’s known to some fans — has upped his game, putting in 14.7 PPG with 8.1 APG on 48% from the field and 41% from deep. The Suns marketing team has dubbed the trio “PB and G” — a play on PB and J — and Phoenix is riding high with the best offense in the league and the fifth best point differential.

2. Brian Hammons continues to thrive as a sixth-man, despite predictions of a drop off by some experts. Many believed that Hammons’ play would suffer with the arrival of Griffin, but Coach Kidd is deploying Hammons and Griffin in some unique lineups — having one or the other play center and use their speed plus shooting to destroy opponents.

“That’s the best thing about playing here, how they’re not afraid to try weird stuff,” said Hammons. “My numbers are what they are right now, and I’m not mad about that — we’re winning and we haven’t really figured out all our little nuances yet … once we really on the same page, we’re gonna be crazy good.”

3. Speaking of Griffin, the veteran all-star has a massive 38M dollar player option to exercise in 2021 — the Suns front office, however, firmly believes that Griffin can be signed to a longer term deal before then.

“We clearly like him and his game, we want him here long-term,” said once insider. “We’ve just got to get to a number we can all live with and early signs are positive … we think we can get him to come down a bit.”

[trekfan]

Re: From the Ashes: A Phoenix Tale

Rapid Reaction: Suns 104, Jazz 82

By Sam Gray

The Suns are now 17-4, second best in the West and third overall in the NBA as the Jazz fall to 10-9 in a game that showed the Suns weren’t just about offense — they could be about defense too. Phoenix held Utah to just 36 points at the half and clamped down on both Gordon Hayward and Donovan Mitchell. Despite Hayward rediscovering his past form with Utah (averaging 22.3 PPG), the Jazz simply couldn’t keep up with the bruising pace of the Suns, who thrived in the paint and on kick-outs to their wings. Pope, Griffin, and Brogdon each performed well in a win that hammered home the idea that the Suns aren’t just a fluke team.