2011-12 Phoenix Suns Predictions
Written by Jack Jones
The Phoenix Suns are in transition mode right now. They have seen numerous key players come and go over the last several year. The Suns are certainly having a hard time recovering from the loss of Amare Stoudemire, who is now with the New York Knicks.
Phoenix is coming off a 40-42 season. That was good enough for second place in the Pacific division, which isn’t saying much considering it’s one of the worst in the league. The Suns failed to make the playoffs last year and they have a long way to go if they want to return to the postseason.
The one staple for this team has been Steve Nash, who remains one of the most exciting players to watch in the league today. Nash averaged 14.7 points while leading the league in assists (11.4) last season even without Stoudemire. It was the third-highest assist average of Nash’s career.
The Suns did make some moves this offseason. They brought in free agents Ronnie Price (Jazz), Shannon Brown (Lakers) and Sebastian Telfair (Timberwolves) while also re-signing Grant Hill. Phoenix drafted Markieff Morris as well. Brown will give them a big spark off the bench, just as he did in L.A. In Morris, they have a physical defender and rebounded who can stretch the floor.
Phoenix did part ways with Vince Carter, who left in free agency to join the Dallas Mavericks. They may also be without backup point guard Aaron Brooks as he elected to sign with a China team during the lockout. Zabian Dowdell and Gani Lawal were waived as well. I believe their offseason moves have made them a better team, though not enough to make significant improvement.
Hill finally managed to stay healthy last year and played a big role on this team. The small forward averaged 13.2 points and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 48.4 percent from the floor. C Channing Frye was perhaps their most valuable player, averaging 12.7 points and 6.7 rebounds while connecting on 39.0 percent from 3-point range. When they needed a basket down the stretch of games, Frye delivered.
Accompanying Nash, Hill and Frye in the starting lineup will likely be SF Mickael Pietrus and C Marcin Gortat. Pietrus is certainly replaceable after averaging just 7.2 points and 2.2 rebounds while playing in only 57 games. Gortat had a breakout year, averaging 10.2 points and 7.9 rebounds.
Other players expected to play key roles are SF Jared Dudley, C Robin Lopez, and PF Hakim Warrick. With the additiosn of Brown, Telfair, Price and Morris, Phoenix is going to have some real nice depth this season. They should be able to run teams to death, which is something they have to try and use to their advantage night in and night out.
Western Conference Prediction: 4th Pacific Division – I have the Suns pretty much neck-and-neck with the Golden State Warriors in the Pacific Division. I like the overall depth on this team, which should help them ware down opponents. They were 4th in the league in scoring last year (105.0), but just 29th in scoring defense (105.9). Morris will help give them some toughness defensively, but this is going to be a soft unit as a whole at this end of the floor. Phoenix will be an exciting team to watch, but they won’t be able to come up with key stops down the stretch of games. That is something that has always haunted them since Nash came on board, and it will prevent them from making the playoffs this year.
If you enjoyed this read from expert handicapper Jack Jones, then you may also be interested in his overall 2011-12 NBA predictions article.
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