Phoenix Suns 2008-2009 NBA Season Preview

The Phoenix Suns have done a lot of great things over the course of the past four years; changing the entire thought of game speed, the use of multi-position players on the floor and the lack of a "true" center in game play are all on the Suns' resume. On the other hand, with each passing season, they have failed to win a championship or even appear in a Finals matchup, for all of their talent. Whether it was the idiocy of acquiring and then not playing point guards to lower Steve Nash's minutes or really inconvenient injuries and suspensions to key players like Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw, or simple whimpering and whining of All-Star glue guys like Shawn Marion, Phoenix has not lived up, but with age playing heavily in the equation, they have to make the most of their time.

The three seniors of the team in Shaquille "The Big Cactus" O'Neal, Grant Hill and Nash are going to be needed for their collective ability to be healthy and produce in a long season. Shaq must fully commit to his conditioning, not that he's a fat man, as commonly and stupidly as it's written and said. It's really that a man with as much muscle, height and girth needs to be able to function properly from start to finish. If he were a smaller man, like Charles Barkley, who famously played his way into shape during regular seasons, his frequency of injury wouldn't be a factor, but Shaq is not that man. His guile and willingness to guard the basket and compliment S.T.A.T. (Stoudemire) will be his primary objective.

Hill needs to simply come off of the bench and be the reserve point guard that he was meant to be. He has always been a ballhandler first and everything else second, even during his high-scoring years in Detroit. The craziness in playing Leandrinho Barbosa, a natural two-guard, as a point guard is one reason that the Suns haven't advanced. Hill presents size and skill matchups that really create problems for team on both ends of the floor, not unlike what Scottie Pippen would do playing as the Chicago Bulls' de facto point guard. Keeping Hill on the bench will keep him fresh, which is a bonus for the Suns.

All Nash really has to do is keeping playing his game, but he needs to be more vocal in keeping his minutes low. Though wiry-strong, No. 15 has a history of wearing down late in the season, because his teams are just that good to be playing in April and May. He has to rein himself in, if head coach Terry Porter doesn't, and look for his spots, not unlike Michael Jordan did in the last three years with the Bulls (many fourth quarters had him sitting on the bench with iced knees). Nashy need to take this approach and if need be, tutor any of the young guys (like rookie Goran Dragic) that would be filling out his minutes at the point guard spot.

For the rest of the team, only a brief summary is necessary:

Barbosa just needs to keep shooting;

Matt Barnes, the new guy from the Golden State Warriors, will do wonderful in Hill's place in the starting lineup at the small forward, and he'll also be great playing anything from point guard to power forward;

Raja Bell will do much better now having more competent swingmen as teammates to back him up, and the lowering of his minutes to keep him fresh wouldn't be a bad idea, either;

Diaw (pronounced "JAW", not "dee-OW") must stay in shape and improve his perimeter shooting, while the Suns' coaching staff must also remember that he, too, is a natural 6'9" point guard at their disposal;

Robin Lopez, the former Stanford twin brother of Brook (for the New Jersey Nets) may be one of the X-factors in bringing this team to its full potential as a talented and legitimate center (and energetic backup to Shaq and S.T.A.T.);

Amare Stoudemire just needs to be Amare, because with a future in the Hall of Fame as a possibility, his expanded shooting range, ferocious dunks, speed, intensity and reported 2% body fat, the Suns will at least be NBA Finals contenders annually;

And anything Alando Tucker can bring in hustle, defense and/or shooting will all be positives.

For Phoenix, the time is now for the real winning to begin.

Or the desert could soon find itself starving in thirst for the sustenance of a championship.