[Thespiralgoeson]

Once again, for the record, I'm not saying that Phoenix is necessarily better after this trade. I just don't think it's nearly is stupid as everyone else does, and there certainly is some logic to this move.

It will be interesting to see how much their perimeter defense will suffer without Marion. I imagine a backcourt of Nash/Bell/Diaw probably isn't going to stop a whole lot of penetration. And the frontline of Diaw/Amare/Shaq isn't necessarily a defensive roadblock, but I don't think it's a turnstile either. At the very least, they're not going to get thoroughly dominated on the offensive glass as they have in the past, and they can definitely block a lot of shots, and most importantly they're not depending on Amare to guard the opposing team's center.

And again, between Nash, Diaw, and Shaq, they've got probably the best passing team in the league. Shaq will still take up space down low and draw the occasional double team, and that of course opens things up for the other guys. I think that could very well offset the fact that with Marion they also lost one of their 3pt threats.

It's quite intriguing because this is a Phoenix team we haven't seen before. But better or worse, Phoenix is definitely different. They'll probably match up better with the likes of San Antonio, LA, and maybe New Orleans, and probably worse with Dallas and Denver.