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Originally Posted by Dtownsfinest
I'm referring to this comment:
"Steve Nash has taken this Suns team as far as they can go. He did it for us, and now he's doing it in Phoenix."
Its hard for me to consider this team finished when they don't have the most dominant big man in the game. Don't you think he's a factor in their success? I think next season is the real test for the Suns. For what they're really made of. This year its hard to tell without Amare.
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Dtown, I think the Suns and the NBA may well have seen the last of the 2005 vintage Stoudamire. Looks more and more like he will be fortunate to be 70% of the player he was last year, and that it could take him a year or so to get back to that level.
He may have to change his entire approach to the game and develop a very different skill set. He may have the discipline and perseverance to do that successfully, assuming his rehab allows it. But he may not. And will Nash be playing at the same level when/(if) Stoudamire gets back?
Had an odd sense of deja vu today watching Nash, playing all out, giving it his best, and coming up a little bit short. He's a great, great player. Fun to watch--more fun now for me, because his lack of defense isn't as bothersome on the Suns, and he's playing in a system that totally maxes his strengths, and minimizes his weaknesses. Felt bad for him today. To be honest, I think Nash may be too nice a guy. I don't think Nash has the same sort of nasty, competitive streak in him that a player like Kobe or MJ does; the kind of anti-social competitive nature that makes a player enjoy beating an opponent just for the sake of expressing dominance. Nash strikes me as a guy who loves playing his sport for the sake of sport; for the sheer joy of performing at a high level. And even if talent were equal (and let's face it, they're not), when it gets down to do-or-die, anti-social competitive streaks confer an advantage.
Would have loved for him to be able to stay with the Mavericks providing a top-flight offensive threat off the bench. I find myself wondering during Mavs games how many dunks Diop would get off Nash feeds.
But I don't think the Mavs would have transitioned as successfully to the level of defensive team that they are if Nash had stayed as a starter. Don't know that they'd have strengthened their interior with Dampier, don't know that Dirk would have become as assertive as he is.
Comparing the trajectories of the 02 and 04 Mavs with those of the 05 and 06 Suns may involve some coincidence. But it may also suggest that a one-dimensional style of play can be high-risk, high-reward; thiat it isn't durable; that playoff calibre opponents figure out how to exploit it.