Phoenix vs. SA - Conf. Finals

Mr. S£im Citrus

Doryphore of KingsFans.com
Staff member
BigWaxer said:
Well this proves yet again that Defense is the only real thing that matters. The Suns were basically us 3 years ago...
We were nothing like the Suns three years ago; they more closely resemble the recent Dallas teams, except that Stoudemire is a much better player than Nowitzki.
 
Bricklayer said:
Uh...sure. ;)

Might want to take a look at the standings this season and the incredible youth of that squad. They're going to be around for a long time, and have 3-4 years here to find a Nash replacement.

Meanwhile, we're rebuilding. Doubt they are losing much sleep over us until/unless we magically come up with our own Amare.
They are going to have trouble keeping all that youth. Nash, Q, and Marion are already paid really well, 10, 7 and 13 a year I believe right now. JJ will probally get around 8 to 10. Let's say 9 and Amare is definitely getting max money. Thats 13+10+7+9+13 (this is a low estimate), 52 million with the starting lineup. They won't be able to keep the whole team, it just won't happen. They also lost some of there youth with the JJ trade which I definitely think helped them this year. With Marion and Amare they will still contend, but arguably one of there most important pieces JJ is going to be hard to keep on top of that. And we haven't even got to there bench :). You can't win without a decent bench, and if they have that kind of cap for there starting lineup, they'll have a similar bench.
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
bigbadred00 said:
They are going to have trouble keeping all that youth. Nash, Q, and Marion are already paid really well, 10, 7 and 13 a year I believe right now. JJ will probally get around 8 to 10. Let's say 9 and Amare is definitely getting max money. Thats 13+10+7+9+13 (this is a low estimate), 52 million with the starting lineup. They won't be able to keep the whole team, it just won't happen. They also lost some of there youth with the JJ trade which I definitely think helped them this year. With Marion and Amare they will still contend, but arguably one of there most important pieces JJ is going to be hard to keep on top of that. And we haven't even got to there bench :). You can't win without a decent bench, and if they have that kind of cap for there starting lineup, they'll have a similar bench.
I think that's more wishful thinking than anything else. Why CAN'T they keep everybody? They just won 60+ with a 5 man team and a random bench, and under your estimate they can keep all 5 stars for about $52 mil. Sounds pretty reasonable to me -- those guys can run all day + play nearly 40min a night apiece. Then sit back and spend your spare time looking for the right mix of cheap roleplayers to put you over the top. Most great teams have badly skewed salary structures, and very few have even 5 guys worth paying big $$$.
 
I'm saying Suns will offer him 8-9 but he'll probally get high balled by some other team and most players at his age (23) are looking for $ rather than wins, maybe he's different but they would be out of the ordinary rather than ordinary. I think they might be able to keep them, but it's tough. What team has succeeded with such structure. I'm pretty sure the WCF wasn't there Ultimate Goal and without a proper bench you can't win in the WCF. Yes from nothing to something is impressive, but I'm pretty sure they want more and to get more is going to take something. Honestly what do good role players make these days? Dampier makes 7 a year :). All I'm saying is there is a chance the team won't remain together but it definitely could, not that they will break the team up.

Again, if they do keep EVERYONE, can they beat the Spurs. The Spurs are only a couple of years older, and as we've seen are a better team. The quote on quote core has only been together for 3 years and this is there 2nd finals which is pretty sick. Another thing which is proven over and over again is you can't win without any D, and noone on that starting lineup plays excellent D except maybe Marion versus all but 7 foot power forwards.
 
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Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
bigbadred00 said:
I'm saying Suns will offer him 8-9 but he'll probally get high balled by some other team and most players at his age (23) are looking for $ rather than wins, maybe he's different but they would be out of the ordinary rather than ordinary. I think they might be able to keep them, but it's tough. What team has succeeded with such structure. I'm pretty sure the WCF wasn't there Ultimate Goal and without a proper bench you can't win in the WCF. Yes from nothing to something is impressive, but I'm pretty sure they want more and to get more is going to take something. Honestly what do good role players make these days? Dampier makes 7 a year :). All I'm saying is there is a chance the team won't remain together but it definitely could, not that they will break the team up.

Again, if they do keep EVERYONE, can they beat the Spurs. The Spurs are only a couple of years older, and as we've seen are a better team. The quote on quote core has only been together for 3 years and this is there 2nd finals which is pretty sick. Another thing which is proven over and over again is you can't win without any D, and noone on that starting lineup plays excellent D except maybe Marion versus all but 7 foot power forwards.
This was the Suns very first trip to the playoffs as a unit. Amare is 22. I think they have a lot of growth to look forward to. Who knows where it leads, but it would have been like us thrwoing up our hands and disbanding the team in '01 after gettign swept by the Lakers. Not the way it works. They've got the moneybags new owner, most exciting team in the league. They aren't going to start auctioning off key members of that squad after all of one extremely successful playoff run (in one year together they've managed as many WCF appearances as we have in the entire Sacto era).

As an aside, Detroit pays 7 guys (if you count Darko). Miami pays exactly 2. San Antonio only pays 5, and that's if you're counting Barry. If Phoenix ends up paying 5 and filling ouot the roster ala Miami or the Lakers or Bulls dynasties, they'll be just fine. They have all the offensive talent they'll ever need, and just need to add some Mark Madsens around the edges to take care fo some dirty work.
 
They need alot more than a bunch of dirty work players. They need starters who can play DEFENSE. They have scorers and ones that cannot take shots as seen by Marion this series who was terrible when defended by a great defender (ALA Peja by Hassell last year). Did I say they will start auctioning off there players. If something works other teams want a part of it. Joe Johnson is definitely part of that and arguably one of there most valuable pieces (2nd highest 3 Pt % is the league). There are other teams in the league with a lot of money as well. My question to you, is he worth Max money. What if a team offers JJ max money, will the Suns ever match that. In theory they would then have 3 max players and a 10+ million dollar player after next season. That will never happen Sir. 2 Max is understandable, but 4 close to max players, and they aren't the Knicks. And how has the Knicks spending spree faired anyway.

The Kings had a great core of bench players in the past, the Maloofs have the money, did they spend it on the bench? What happened to our bench from the past and now our older core? It was either traded or let go cause of financial reasons and we have quote on quote rich and interested owners. I never said that the Suns WOULDN'T or COULDN'T resign all there players and succeed but this isn't MLB, there is a more serious cap and a fine system. Yes the Suns could keep that core, but would it win titles? Maybe. I'd honest like to a see a team win without any defence. I'd bet you a lot of money it won't happen in the near future. Sadly for our team's sake, defense wins titles, the Kings nor the Suns and most of the teams in the league play any D.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
I agree with loopymitch...

How can you root for someone else in the same conference as the Kings? Unless I missed something, the Kings were eliminated from the playoffs in the first round. It's not about the Kings vs. the Spurs.

With me, it's about watching the game I love played VERY well by the San Antonio Spurs. I can only hope the Kings can get back to the point where they can compete with the Spurs at their level...

The only teams in the conference I don't root for are from Los Angeles and Dallas.
 
Totally agree with VF and I always root for the west.
For one thing if an eastern team wins that makes us look even worse.
Who did the Spurs beat in round 2? The team that beat us, another reason to cheer them on
I just really don't like eastern teams. The only way I'll root for them is like if VF said they play the LAL or mavs who I always want to lose.
 
i'm cheering for players I find interesting, I like Wade although I'm not exactly sure about his chances. Detroit if focused is really tough to beat. I don't care for Shaq, but unlike Kobe who I abhor, I don't find a lot of problems with the Diesel since he's no longer on the Lakers. Kobe it'd hate on any team in the league, even the Kings. I've thought since early season that it was the Spurs season to lose. I'm usually not good with predictions but I picked UNC-Illinois. And I thought it was going to be Spurs-Detroit before the playoffs started. Let's see how good of a predictor I am..........hopefully it won't be Detroit-SA. Although they both play excellent ball, it would be a rather boring Series. I'd love to see Wade on the main stage again proving that Kobe is replacable although great in his own right.
 
bigbadred00 said:
. Although they both play excellent ball, it would be a rather boring Series.
i'm not one to think that the pistons/spurs would be a boring sereis. they're very similar and i think it could go 7. as long as it's competitive i think it will be exciting. now a boring championship series would be the one in 2002 when the lakers swept the nets. i think that series had the lowest ratings in NBA history.
 
other than Duncan and I guess Manu, but really there would be no Superstar level player in the finals. your right nets-lakers and really net-spurs were pretty much jokes. while they would not be boring to that level, i would still rather see Miami-SA, Shaq-Duncan, Wade-Manu matchup then the Duncan-Wallaces and the Manu, Parker-RIP, Chauncey matchup, but that's just me. Shaq-Duncan is usually make it interesting.
 
Well I guess I dont root for someone in my conference because I start rooting for Detroit from day 1 of round 1 and the same for the Kings and I just dont feel right rooting for a team in their conference. Its almost like fair-weather fanning it but o well. Im with detroit again this year and who knows... they were supposed to beat the heat with a healthy shaq and he looks pretty good and they arent going to be expected to beat the spurs but they werent supposed to beat the lakers eaither. Cant wait till the finals. Either matchup is going to be interesting.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
Bibby_Is_Clutch said:
Well I guess I dont root for someone in my conference because I start rooting for Detroit from day 1 of round 1 and the same for the Kings and I just dont feel right rooting for a team in their conference. Its almost like fair-weather fanning it but o well.
Fair-weather fanning? EXCUSE ME?

I have been a fan of basketball for much longer than you've been alive. I'm not going to stop watching because my team isn't in the playoffs. Until recently, my team was NEVER in the playoffs. I admire the San Antonio Spurs because they play excellent basketball. I'm rooting for them to go all the way because they play excellent basketball AND because my team is vacationing somewhere far away from the playoffs.

If you like Detroit, fine...no problem. If you can't root for another team in the Western conference, fine..no problem there either. There's no reason, however, to act as though anyone who disagrees with you is somehow inferior as a fan.
 
kingsfannPDX said:
i'm not one to think that the pistons/spurs would be a boring sereis. they're very similar and i think it could go 7. as long as it's competitive i think it will be exciting. now a boring championship series would be the one in 2002 when the lakers swept the nets. i think that series had the lowest ratings in NBA history.
Nope...that would be the finals of 2003 - Spurs vs. Nets..if any either team broke 70 points it was a miracle!
 
VF21 said:
Fair-weather fanning? EXCUSE ME?

I have been a fan of basketball for much longer than you've been alive. I'm not going to stop watching because my team isn't in the playoffs. Until recently, my team was NEVER in the playoffs. I admire the San Antonio Spurs because they play excellent basketball. I'm rooting for them to go all the way because they play excellent basketball AND because my team is vacationing somewhere far away from the playoffs.

If you like Detroit, fine...no problem. If you can't root for another team in the Western conference, fine..no problem there either. There's no reason, however, to act as though anyone who disagrees with you is somehow inferior as a fan.
To each his/her own, but I thought the use of "fair-weather fanning" wasn't necessarily meant to imply someone cheering for the Spurs was an inferior fan, but just a fan with motives that the poster didn't understand. Glass is half full instead of half empty?
 
hoopsfan said:
Nope...that would be the finals of 2003 - Spurs vs. Nets..if any either team broke 70 points it was a miracle!
I can still recall KMart bricking 15 foot jumper after 15 foot jumper in the last game --- I think he shot something like 5 for 23 or something.
 

Mr. S£im Citrus

Doryphore of KingsFans.com
Staff member
4cwebb said:
I can still recall KMart bricking 15 foot jumper after 15 foot jumper in the last game --- I think he shot something like 5 for 23 or something.
Which I found to be especially ironic since, if I remember correctly, he had publically called out Keith Van Horn just prior to the Finals.
 
hoopsfan said:
I thought he called KVH out in game 3 of the finals. ?...then proceede to be an embarrassment in game 4.
I think you're referring to the Nets vs. Lakers finals, which may have been the finals when KMart called out KVH (I can't recall for certain).

I was referring to the Nets vs. Spurs finals when KMart couldn't hit a shot in the game in which the Spurs wrapped up the title, but even though he wasn't hitting, he just kept shooting. Regardless, it just shows that KMart was (and is) a man who can talk the talk, but can't walk the walk, so to speak. Nuggets were (and are) suckers for paying him as much as they did.

Edit: thinking back, KMart may have called out KVH after the Nets were swept by the Lakers and he had 30+ empty points in the final game (game 4, obviously). He hadn't really done that the entire series, but had a big game 4 in trying to avoid the sweep, and apparently he felt that some of his teammates (pasty boy KVH champion among them) had already conceded the series.
 
King4Life said:
my predictions before Game 6 of the Dallas vs. Phoenix series were ..

------------------------------------------------------------
here it goes ...

Spurs will beat the Suns in 5/6 games.

Pistons will beat the Heat in 5/6 games.

That creates the match-up between the two best defensive teams in the league. Larry Brown and Gregg Popovich are two of the best coaches in the league. Both teams have a great defender on the team in Tayshaun Prince and Bruce Bowen. There's quickness displayed by the backcourt of both teams. Parker is quick as is Hamilton. Ben and Rasheed Wallace will attempt to take Duncan out of his game in the series. Detroit's defense in the paint is tough, but it will be interesting to see what Manu Ginobili does. He doesn't care if there is a brick wall in front of the basket. He's relentless and fearless and will drive to the hoop no matter what. The Pistons may take Parker out of the paint like the Lakers did last year. Still, I'm pulling for the Spurs and think they can pull it off.

NBA Finals

Spurs beat the Pistons in 6 games to win the championship.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Normally I'm wrong, but I actually think I will get it right atleast until the Finals. I think the Spurs will be the underdogs considering Detroit has the right defense in place to stop the strength of the Spurs which is Tim Duncan and the drives to the basket by Parker and Ginobili. I wouldn't be surprised if Detroit wins, but some way I think San Antonio will take it.

I was a game off on the Detroit/Miami series, but overall it's going as I expected. However, I underestimated Miami. They were a lot tougher than I thought and gave a valiant effort. There were two factors that affected this series. Dwyane Wade's injury was the most important and the second was the Larry Brown speculation. It would have been great if there were no injuries and distractions, but oh well.

I'm happy to see Detroit and San Antonio in the Finals. They are two teams that don't get much attention from the media. I could care less what the ratings are cause this series on paper looks to be more interesting than previous years. The Lakers were always expected to win. The Nets were never a threat even when they went up against the Spurs. The Lakers were expected to dominate the Pistons, but they were demoralized in 5 games. The series looks to be more intense (defensively) and pits the 2003 Champs vs. 2004 Champs to determine the 2005 Champs. The Spurs are like the nice/quiet guys who play defense and the Pistons are the meaner/vocal guys who play defense. Student (Gregg Popavich) goes up against Teacher (Larry Brown). I can't wait.
 
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King4Life said:
my predictions before Game 6 of the Dallas vs. Phoenix series were ..

------------------------------------------------------------
here it goes ...

Spurs will beat the Suns in 5/6 games.

Pistons will beat the Heat in 5/6 games.

That creates the match-up between the two best defensive teams in the league. Larry Brown and Gregg Popovich are two of the best coaches in the league. Both teams have a great defender on the team in Tayshaun Prince and Bruce Bowen. There's quickness displayed by the backcourt of both teams. Parker is quick as is Hamilton. Ben and Rasheed Wallace will attempt to take Duncan out of his game in the series. Detroit's defense in the paint is tough, but it will be interesting to see what Manu Ginobili does. He doesn't care if there is a brick wall in front of the basket. He's relentless and fearless and will drive to the hoop no matter what. The Pistons may take Parker out of the paint like the Lakers did last year. Still, I'm pulling for the Spurs and think they can pull it off.

NBA Finals

Spurs beat the Pistons in 6 games to win the championship.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Normally I'm wrong, but I actually think I will get it right atleast until the Finals. I think the Spurs will be the underdogs considering Detroit has the right defense in place to stop the strength of the Spurs which is Tim Duncan and the drives to the basket by Parker and Ginobili. I wouldn't be surprised if Detroit wins, but some way I think San Antonio will take it.


woohoo SPURS !! ..

here's two things to remember ..


"He who crows loudest may end up eating the most crow."

"He who leaves before the bell tolls may not be there when the story unfolds."

screw the Tim Duncan haters ...he put it all on the line ...he was there when his team needed him most ...Ginobili was clutch in the Finals AND the Olympics...Horry got his sixth ring ...overall great effort by the champs...and thankfully Popovich avoided a huge coaching blunder by finally putting Bowen on Billips ...if that would have been done earlier we may not have had a Game 7...that adjustment should have been made at least after Game 4 ...GO SPURS ...the 2003 Champions beat the 2004 Champions ...as I said Detroit vs. San Antonio was the best possible match up for the Finals and I was right ....great fight by the resilient Detroit Pistons ....Larry Brown is a hell of a coach ...but the better team won ...man what a series, what a season ..