Front Page
News
Opinions
Videos
Podcasts
Photos
Subscribe
Get the ThrillOf: Magic | Knicks | Mavericks | Nuggets | Jazz | Lakers | Heat | Rockets | SuperSonics | Spurs | Indians | Chiefs | Orioles | NBA | Hawks | Tiger Woods | Michelle Wie | Roger Federer | Flames | Cowboys | and more...
# 5 Blogger
Phoenix Suns
Phoenix Suns (suns.marqui.com) has great Phoenix Suns news, photos, videos and more
Friday, Sep 5
Appreciating the Under-Appreciated
Eddie Johnson: In the Suns’ magical late-1980s revival, EJ has become the Forgotten Man when compared with more famous names, like Tom Chambers (about whom more later) and Kevin Johnson. But what people forget is that the whole revival thing started with Eddie. He got to Phoenix before TC a...
Tuesday, Aug 26
Why I Dig Sean Singletary
The Suns acquired rookie point guard Sean Singletary from the Rockets in a trade for D.J. Strawberry. Here’s why I like the addition, reasons listed alphabetically: Sean Singletary played summer ball for the Kings before going to the Rockets in a trade, but he hopes to find a home in Phoenix.
Monday, Aug 18
Tucker Back From Summer League, Ready to Roll
Speaking of which, the season is just around the corner. Guys like Amaré, DJ and Boris Diaw are already working out with me at the arena. Also, I spoke to Grant Hill this week, who said he’ll be joining us shortly. It feels good to see the guys out there preparing and to know that they’re dedicated....
Wednesday, Jul 23
Opinion: Welcome, Matt!
Step Four, commit to Alando Tucker and DJ Strawberry. With Coach Porter’s stated mission to give playing time to more players, these guys are ticketed for bigger roles. And after watching them in the Summer League, I’m ready to see them take those roles on. Tucker can flat fill it up, remindin...
Saturday, Jul 19
Suns Eclipsed by Knicks
Another great thing about Vegas is seeing players or coaches you have crossed paths with over the years. Today I saw Albuquerque Thunderbirds Head Coach Jeff Ruland. The T-Birds are the Suns' former D-League affiliate that both Tucker and Strawberry played for this past season.
Friday, Jul 18
First Impresssions
Tell the young players attempting to make the Suns' roster that the summer is the time for relaxing. Or tell the new coaching staff, who is trying to piece together their first team in the Valley of the Sun. Or how about second-year men DJ Strawberry and Alando Tucker? Both are looking to build...
Saturday, Jun 28
Kerr Discusses the 2008 Phoenix Suns Draft
As free agency unfolds, we will have a team participating in the Las Vegas summer league from July 11th to 19th. Igor Kokoskov and Dan Majerle will coach the team, which will feature Robin, DJ Strawberry and Alando Tucker. We're excited to see Robin for the first time, and we think DJ and Aland...
Friday, Jun 27
Life with Lopez as a Phoenix Sun
Robin Lopez had his first press conference as a Phoenix Sun on Friday and topics during the press conference ranged from why he was glad he was in Phoenix to how being a twin helped him in his life to what types of movies he likes. One thing we can be assured of, life with Lopez won't be boring.
Beechen Draft Night Diary
5:17 PM: The Clippers just made their pick at number 7, and it wasn’t me. I’m almost halfway home to the Suns at number 15, baby! Hey, is it warm in here, or is it me? 5:59 PM: The Suns are on the clock! The Suns are on the clock! What's Lopez so angry about? He got picked before Beechen!
Phoenix Suns Draft Night Blog
Overall, I think the Suns had a pretty good draft. According to Steve Kerr, the Suns got the guys they wanted to get. Robin Lopez is the type of big guy the Suns will need in the next few years. He’ll be able to learn from Shaq and hopefully will become a good part of the Suns rotation.
Monday, Jun 23
He's Still Got the Touch
Thunder" Dan Majerle has spent the past several years as a Phoenix Suns broadcaster. But one thing he hasn't lost during the time spent sitting in the broadcast booth is his shooting touch. Dan Majerle still has the shooting touch. Daniel Banks/Suns.com)
Wednesday, Jun 18
Catching a Draft
In 1996, the Suns held the 15th pick in the first round. Turmoil and unrest shook the club. They were coming off a .500 season and first-round exit to Houston in the playoffs. Charles Barkley was helping to force an off-season trade with controversial comments about the organization. Somethin...
Tuesday, Jun 17
My Private Suns Workout
When I got to US Airways Center, the Suns continued the subterfuge, just in case there were any nosy NBA reporters lurking around. The team brass pretended they had no idea I’d be coming. In fact, they pretended they’d never heard of me. They carried the act so far, I actually waited in the arena...
Monday, Jun 9
Porter, Kerr Ready to Lead the Suns into the Future
John Kerr was more of a genial emcee and raconteur extraordinaire than coach, Jerry Colangelo was an executive pinch hitter, Butch Van Breda Kolff was a last minute desperation choice with baggage, John MacLeod and Cotton Fitzsimmons had zero NBA experience of any kind the day they were...
A Different Angle on Suns Coach Terry Porter
It’s official. Terry Porter is the new Phoenix Suns coach. During the press conference, a lot of the questions you would expect were asked and you could probably rattle off what most of the answers were, as well. That’s just what happens in a "presser".
Tuesday, May 27
Kerr Answers Your Questions
Hi Suns fans. Thanks for the many emails you've sent this month, and for your intense passion for our team. Obviously things didn't go as planned in the playoffs this season, but we're hard at work preparing for next year. Signing Grant Hill as a free agent and trading for Shaq were just two of t...
Wednesday, May 14
Opinion: Suns Hop on Coaching Carousel
2. Tom Thibodeau. He’s the hot name among assistant coaches right now, and for good reason. The Suns wanted him last year to replace Marc Iavaroni as the defensive guru of the coaching staff. Instead, he went to Boston and turned them into one of the best defensive teams in the league. He’s proven...
Sunday, May 11
The Divorce is Final
So the divorce is finally official. Mike D’Antoni gets $24 million in alimony and Steve Kerr gets custody of the Phoenix Suns. Coach Mike D'Antoni will spend next season in New York after he couldn't help bring a title to Phoenix over the past several seasons. NBAE Photos)
Thursday, May 1
Season Wrap-Up
As far as whether or not I’ll continue to watch the playoffs, I’m a basketball head so I will definitely be watching. I’ve got a couple friends here and there on different teams so I'll be watching and rooting for them. Plus it allows me to continue learning and bettering my game, which I’m all f...
Wednesday, Apr 30
The Bitter End
Another all-too-short postseason exit after another 50-plus win regular season – a regular season that also happened to feature a franchise-altering trade, another pair of All-Star appearances – all en route to a fourth straight playoff berth. Of course, that’s little solace for a tea...
Phoenix Suns vs San Antonio Spurs - Game 5
I’ve got confidence in my veterans, though. These guys have been through the wars, and stepped up big in big moments over the years. The dynamic duo was in Dallas when the Suns won Game 6 of the 2005 semis to advance to the Conference Finals, and were in LA when the Suns won Game 6 in overtime in 200...
Tuesday, Apr 29
Top 10 Reasons Why the Suns Will Win Game 5
1. Hot Hands: The Suns players are hot. In the first three games of the series, the usual suspects, Amaré Stoudemire, Steve Nash and Shaquille O’Neal all were able to contribute offensively, while some of the other players didn’t produce as much as expected. However, going into Game 5, Gorda...
Monday, Apr 28
A Fine Line Between Success and Failure in the Playoffs
NBAE Photos) After being counted out of the series by most, the Suns kept their season alive with a superb game four performance! What happened?! They looked like the Suns Team we have all come to love. The Suns had two players step-up, big time! Raja Bell had his best game of the season, scori...
Sunday, Apr 27
In Game 4, Boris Diaw's Initials Stand for "Big Difference"
Diaw, who historically plays better as a starter than off the bench, was in the lineup because a groin injury sidelined Grant Hill, and he came within two assists of a triple double. But the thing that distinguishes this Boris from the Boris Badenough who has drawn more ire from Suns fans tha...
Phoenix Suns vs San Antonio Spurs - Game 4
Also, Boris Diaw had 10 points and Leandro Barbosa added eight in the first half. If two out the three players (Diaw, Bell, LB) score 15 or more points, the Suns are 17-2. So with the combination of Bell scoring over 20 and Diaw having scored over 15, the Suns have a double-whammy. Go Suns!
Saturday, Apr 26
Can the Suns Reverse the Curse?
Suns Head Coach Mike D’Antoni said he didn’t have any answers after Game 3. He said that he hasn’t seen a team play that well and that perfectly-played game has left the Suns down 3-0 to their nemesis. So while San Antonio is the first team in the 2008 NBA Playoffs to take a 3-0 advantage, where do...
Suns' Loss Causes Groans Around Planet Orange
Tony Parker was especially magnificent, and not just because of his playoff career-high 41 points and 12 assists. An even bigger problem than those numbers for the Suns was their complete inability to stop him from going anywhere he wanted to with the ball at any time.
Phoenix Suns vs San Antonio Spurs - Game 3
Leandro Barbosa is going to start in place of Grant Hill, who is laboring with a strained groin. Coach Mike D’Antoni considered starting Boris Diaw, but if one of his bigs got tired, he wanted to be able to sub in Boris to provide some relief.
Thursday, Apr 24
Opinion: Two Down
The Suns had all of their big men in foul trouble in Game 1, and still they were right there. Tim Duncan riddled them for forty points and fifteen rebounds, and still, the Suns were right there. In front of a hostile crowd and facing years of playoff heartbreak, the Suns were right there. And they...
Wednesday, Apr 23
What Went Wrong in Game 2?
But for the Suns, Grant Hill never got involved, scoring 0 points in nearly 20 minutes. Boris Diaw was out of synch and Leandro Barbosa, who usually is an energy boost as the second-leading bench player in the league, registered 0 points. Besides Boris for a few minutes, no one besides Shaq, S...
Phoenix Suns vs San Antonio Spurs - Game 2
Who will find the weakness in their armor? I'm hoping Grant Hill has a little "Magic" left in him tonight... Saturday, April 22, 2008 7:00 pm Dan Hilton There are three minutes left in the 1st quarter and the Suns are up 26-12. Amare Stoudemire only has one foul and Shaq has none.
Monday, Apr 21
The Big What If
The playoff history of the Phoenix Suns is an entertaining, yet ultimately unfulfilling tale. While their rivals in San Antonio and Los Angeles have celebrated numerous championships, the Suns have an empty trophy case and have redefined the sentiment “what might have been.”
Saturday, Apr 19
Home Again
Daniel Banks) In my introductory blog for Suns.com, I explained that I spent the past four seasons working for the San Antonio Spurs before making the switch last summer. I admit it wasn't an easy thing watching the Suns and Spurs play each other during the regular season. I was like a mother wa...
Phoenix Suns vs. San Antonio Spurs - Game 1
Well, the Suns are back out and Linton Johnson has joined me on the bench. I told him that our fans on PlanetOrange.net were excited when the Suns re-signed him for the postseason. Brian Skinner) shouldn’t have gotten two free throws with that goatee. He should have to forfeit one of the free thr...
Suns-Spurs Rivalry is a Long-Standing Tradition
Finley was a rookie with the Suns that season, while I was in the early stages of being an NBA fan. The Suns were the most entertaining team in the league that 1995-96 season, boasting a great combination of veterans (Barkley, Johnson) and rising, young stars (Finley, Wesley Person).
Suns/Spurs Set to Square Off
So we have the featured bout of the night. In the orange corner, the challenger, scoring more points than Brad Pitt on a first date… the Phoenix Suns. And in the silver corner, the champion, hated by grandmothers and puppies everywhere, the San Antonio Spurs…
Shaq, Ejections and the Playoffs
Don't get me wrong. Obviously you want to play, but having a Hall of Fame center in there, a guy with over 26,000 points, it's going to create some mismatches interior-wise. We have some great spot-up shooters like Leandro Barbosa, Raja Bell and Steve Nash. Those are guys who can knock down thr...
Friday, Apr 18
Getting Ready for the Playoffs
Hey guys, I wanted to make sure I checked back in, as I’m sure these next few weeks will be hectic to say the least. We closed out the regular season last night with a victory over the Portland Trail Blazers and getting the opportunity to contribute was a great way to close out the 2007-08 campai...
Thursday, Apr 17
Keys to Beating the Spurs
Well, this is what we've all been waiting for - the playoffs. Unlike the past few seasons though, we're not in a position to look very far ahead. After what has arguably been the most competitive conference race in the history of the NBA, the West's matchups look positively scary.
Suns Find Their First Round Opponent in the Playoffs
The Suns could hardly have asked for anything more on the final (finally!!!) day of the regular season. Oh, they could have hoped a combination of circumstances would give them the home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, but that was the longest of long shots anyway.
Wednesday, Apr 16
Playoffs 2008: Let the Beard Begin!
It’s really much more of a tradition in sports like football, baseball and hockey. Every year, once the regular season ends and the “second season” begins, hardy warriors on teams that remain in the hunt opt to not shave their whiskers until their team either wins it all or is eliminated.
Tuesday, Apr 15
Playoff Cheat Sheet… Anyone Have One?
Phoenix could face Houston to start the playoffs, and could open here at US Airways Center against the Rockets this weekend. That’s if Phoenix, Houston and Utah all win on Wednesday, finishing in a three-way tie at 55-27, in which case the Suns would win the tie-breaker with the best winnin...
Suns Win But Still No Closer to Knowing First Round Opponent
Fortunately, they still had nobody who could cover Amare, even a less than 100 percent Amare. The best they could do was foul him and he hit 7 of 9 free throws and scored 11 his 28 points to lead the charge. Leandro Barbosa sealed the deal with a three-point shot and then another basket, plus a key...
Monday, Apr 14
With Two Games Left, Playoff Opponent Still Unknown
The current standings show the Suns with the 6th seed where they are slated to play the San Antonio Spurs. But there are still several games left and the Lakers, Hornets and Spurs are all within 1.5 games of each other. Any one of them could move to the 3rd seed before the season is over.
Thursday, Apr 10
Suns Win Over Spurs Bucks All Trends
Over the past week, we've discussed several different topics: back-to-backs, the Spurs record over the Suns, the way San Antonio has held Phoenix to the 2nd fewest points of the season. Yet all of those trends were kicked to the ground last night.
Wednesday, Apr 9
Suns Beat Memphis, Head to San Antonio
Playing the Spurs is always an interesting experience - especially when it is this close to the playoffs. Emotions seem to run a little higher and fans of both teams are on edge (check out the comments under Bob Adlhoch's blog if you need proof). But this is the most fun part of the year, I thin...
Memphis Mania and Why I Hate the Spurs
Speaking of draft day trades, one that I’m sure the Suns regret was in 1974 when they sent a 3rd round pick out of tiny Eastern Michigan to the San Antonio Spurs. His name was George Gervin. And except for the night Charles Barkley turned out the lights at the old Hemisphere Arena with a rainbow o...
Tuesday, Apr 1
Opinion: By the Numbers - Phoenix Suns vs Denver Nuggets, Part 1
With the second of a back-to-back game this evening, tonight’s game should be an interesting one. Phoenix is 8-7 on the back end of back-to-back games this season and they have allowed an average of107 points in those games while also scoring an average of 107 points per game. The Suns are 23-...
Thursday, Mar 27
Playoff Musings and the 9-Game Road Trip
Tough loss last night in Boston, no doubt about it. After playing the first half to a draw, the Suns came out sloppy in the 3rd quarter (3 turnovers in the first minute plus), shots didn’t fall and the route was on. Having seen both of the Eastern Conference favorites this week, Steve Nash was as...
Monday, Mar 17
Send/Receive 2: Kerr Answers Fan E-Mail
Question: With Marion gone, how do you expect to defend all-star caliber guards such as Kobe or Carmelo? Raja Bell can not shoulder the load by himself and the Suns were in the bottom half of the NBA in defense even with Marion. Why not give some of he rookies (DJ Strawberry or call up Alondo Tuc...
Thursday, Feb 21
Despite Loss, Suns Have a Lot to Look Forward To
Shaquille O'Neal made his first points memorable on Wednesday night. NBAE Photos) In fact, by the time the playoffs roll around I wouldn’t be surprised if these were the two best teams in the league. And should they meet in any round it would be a series for the ages.
By the Numbers: Phoenix Suns vs Los Angeles Lakers
When the Suns win, their opponents average 42.3 rebounds per game. When they lose opponents average 41.8 rebounds. So there’s not too much difference in the actual number of rebounds the Suns’ opponents get per game. What matters instead is the plus/minus of rebounds the Suns get in wins and lo...
Friday, Feb 15
Shaq 2.0
It's just good to have a shot of energy on the team and around town. Now, the real question is this: What are we going to call Shaq? Marion was the Matrix. Diaw is 3D. Barbosa is the Brazilian Blur. Stoudamire is STAT (or Hellboy if you ask Barkley.) And Steve Nash is, um, Steve Nash.
Thursday, Feb 7
Opinion: Everything Is Going To Be Okay
Is this trade an admission that the Suns’ style of play doesn’t work? No. My hoops-savvy pal Kenji reminded me that the 1972 Lakers, which won the NBA title and set the record for consecutive wins, was very much a running team, and they did it with a center, Wilt, who was not fast. Further, the Sh...
The Shaq Attack: 15 Years Later
Suns broadcaster Tom Chambers, an All-Star forward at the time, just laughs when remembering the surprising result of Shaq’s slam. Suns VP of Facility Management Alvan Adams had been retired for five years at the time, but probably felt as though he was the one who had been dunked on.
Thursday, Jan 24
Tom's Top 5
Many of you have probably seen the USA Today series on NBA franchises and their Top 5 Players of All-Time lists. They recently published the Suns Top 5 as determined by a USA Today panel, a fan vote and my esteemed colleague, Eddie Johnson.
Wednesday, Jan 23
Phoenix Suns Mid-Season Report
Well, we've officially passed the halfway point of the season, and our team finds itself in a familiar position: atop the Western Conference standings. Along with Boris Diaw and Brian Skinner, DJ Strawberry's extended minutes have helped the Suns to the top of the Western Conference sta...
Wednesday, Jan 16
Back to the Future - Behind the scenes of the Suns’ 40th anniversary broadcast
Game open / First Quarter – There was a short “tease” segment in which Tom Leander’s voice explained the course the broadcast would be taking over some great old highlights from the Madhouse on McDowell. David Hughes, who produced the broadcast with me, did a fantastic job of putting tog...
Thursday, Dec 27
The Christmas Miracle
No, the miracle wasn’t the Lakers beating the Suns. Much as I despise them, these Lakers are too good for any of their victories to count as miracles. Kobe Bryant is willingly sharing the ball and getting his points, the team is playing with a lot of confidence, and the rest of the Western Confe...
Thursday, Dec 20
Gameday Countdown
For example, last night I worked until about 1:30am and then today in Dallas I woke-up and immediately hit the internet(okay, after grabbing a 3 shot grande gingerbread latte at the downstairs Starbucks!). The best sites for hoop junkies are "Hoops Hype", ESPN.com NBA, NBA.com and of cours...
