Pedro Gomez writes in the Arizona Republic: The only thing worse than watching the Suns roll over in recent weeks has been the laissez-faire attitude of coach Scott Skiles. His frustrated demeanor has been pathetic. Where is the fire and brimstone that pushed Skiles to become one of the NBA's toughest players?

This veritable spark plug has been reduced to a fireplug, one used by neighborhood dogs any way they please. Worse, Skiles is doing little to chase off the varmints. Both he and this venerable franchise are paying a severe price as evidenced by the small crowds.

The energy level, both from the players and coach, has been AWOL for weeks. The troubles have not been lost on upper management.

"First, it's pretty evident that I'm not very pleased with what I see," Suns chairman Jerry Colangelo said. "Secondly, my track record would indicate that when people aren't happy, things have happened."

Colangelo is willing to keep Skiles on board, but only if attitudes start changing. If not, well, the big guy's track record speaks for itself. If Colangelo thinks Skiles is rolling over, it will surely cost him. Word of mouth in the NBA is its lifeline.