Posted by islesfan:

Posted by fishmike:

Gimmicky? Winning 50-60 games a year with a small team in a huge conference is gimmicky? And its not like they tanked in the playoffs.. losing to the Spurs, where is the shame?

Really what I read from your post is your dismay at any attempt to win games as you would rather tank for a high draft pick. Why not just say that? You didnt need to waste so many key strokes!

Drafting a star isnt a bad plan, and I have no problem with your chagrin at MSG's attempts to turn this team around and start winning games. But Donnie Walsh is not Isiah Thomas. Also people in the know that talk about Mike's "system" say the same thing.. he will adapt to what best suits his players.

I guess I am mostly curious to see what new management's plan is... because NONE of us know what that is.

You make the Suns sound like they came from a small town called Hickory. They had 3 perennial all stars, including a 2 time MVP.

It's gimmicky because it's designed to take advantage of the less talented teams. Believe it or not, the Suns were actually one of the most talented teams in the NBA over the last 4 years. When they couldn't run another team off the court, the Suns were a below mediocre team. In close games and against good playoff teams, the Suns were clueless when it came down to coaching, defense and half court execution. If they had a better coach, one that wasn't so rigid in his system, they could have gotten past the Spurs. Look at what Avery Johnson did for the Mavs, another team that the Suns couldn't beat when it mattered.

And it's not just about optimizing draft picks. Obviously, I should have used more keystrokes if you thought that's what I was saying. It's also about the system that will be put in place with players that aren't anywhere near the caliber that D'Antoni had in Phoenix. It's a bad fit.

clueless? less talented teams? What are you talking about? Nash didnt win an MVP until he played in Mike D's gimmicky system. All but one of Marion's all stars were under Mike D.

Playoffs under Mike D: 2 of his 4 years they went to the WCF losing to the Spurs and Mavs
05 beat Memphis, Dal, lost to SA
06 beat Lakers, Clippers, lost to Dal
07 beat Lakers, lost to Spurs

They lost in the playoffs because they were undersized, not because of Mike's coaching. They were an elite team playing for a title every year, certainly as much as the Knicks of the 90s were

It wouldn't have mattered who the knicks would have brought in as head coach(AVERY, SKILES, JACKSONetc..., you would still have to give them a 3 yr window to turn the teams culture and the teams mentality around.

Our current team when the players are motivated they tend to play harder, but the roster on this team...... will they play smarter ?