2009-2010 at a Glance
Record: 54-28
Seeding: 3rd in the Western Conference
Playoff Result: Beat Portland in six games, beat San Antonio in four games, lost to LA Lakers in six games
What changed since June: Amare out, Lon Babby and clients in
The most important change to Phoenix’s roster was also the least surprising. Amare Stoudemire took the best offer and ended up being the marquee signing for the Knicks this summer. Simply put, Amare will be an awfully tough guy to replace going forward. His second half of last season in particular was impressive and gave Phoenix the dimension they needed to make the Western Conference Finals.
The rest of the off-season saw more significant arrivals than departures. Phoenix traded Leandro Barbosa to Toronto for Hedo Turkoglu and acquired Josh Childress from the Hawks who still held his rights. While there is likely nothing more to come from it, it is worth noting that both Hedo and Childress are former Babby clients. Both make the perimeter more dangerous and it should be fun to see if the Suns try Hedo at Power Forward for a very atypical system. Beyond those moves, Phoenix swapped Louis Amundson for Hakim Warrick and we’ll have to see how that shakes out.
Phoenix’s biggest strength: Steve Nash
A leader on and off the court, Steve Nash is the biggest reason why the Suns can be a legit playoff team even with Amare on the other side of the country. Beyond being what makes their offense so potent, Nash serves as the emotional leader behind a team that made it all the way to the conference finals last season. I keep on thinking that his age will catch up with him, though it might be time to institute the Bobby Cox rule: Don’t pick against him to make the playoffs until something major changes.
Phoenix’s biggest weakness: Rebounding and the interior
While Stoudemire was not the greatest rebounder in the world (not by a long shot), his absence could be filled by a combination of Channing Frye, Hedo Turkoglu, and Hakim Warrick- not exactly a Murderer’s Row on the boards. It is absolutely true that Phoenix can survive and thrive without having an elite frontcourt due to their offensive system and pace, but rebounding and D help keep a team above board when the shots aren’t falling, especially in the playoffs.
The Suns have to hope that more minutes and a greater role for Robin Lopez helps stem the tide, and it should. Robin is a talent like his brother, though they are strong in different ways. If he can take a page from hair pal Joakim Noah and focus on the hustle stuff, he can help keep this team in the game.
The Big Question: Can they replace Amare’s production?
After a season that was a success by any conceivable measure, Phoenix made considerable changes out of both necessity and whim. While the Amare of 2010 went above and beyond what many (including yours truly) expected from him for a sustained period of time, the fact of the matter remains that what he brought to the table needs to come from other people now. If the frontcourt armada can unite and combine to get close to where the team was last year, the Suns will be dangerous.
Where the team fits in:
Phoenix may be the hardest team in the NBA to calibrate at the beginning of the season. Like many in my field, I was overly skeptical of the Suns’ chances going in to the 2009-2010 season and got burned. However, this year’s team is not last year’s team with the loss of their leading scorer and rebounder. That said, teams with elite PG’s very rarely miss the playoffs. I’ll put the Suns firmly in the group of teams scrapping for the last few playoff spots and be ready for them to exceed those expectations.
Feel free to e-mail Daniel at Daniel.leroux@realgm.com or follow him on twitter @DannyLeroux