Phoenix Suns risk disaster firing Terry Porter or trading Amar’e Stoudemire

February 15 09

For Phoenix’s fans, it won’t feel like a party.

While the league celebrates All-Star weekend, their beloved Suns are contemplating major changes, which includes auctioning off superstar Amar’e Stoudemire and firing first-year coach Terry Porter.

Thanks to owner Robert Sarver, one of the NBA’s classiest teams has regressed into a dysfunctional mess. The banking tycoon has wrecked the toy he bought for 401 million dollars in 2004.

They miss the Colangelos. After assuming control, Sarver excommunicated the well-respected father-son duo from the front office and organization. But talent bounces back. Jerry, the Dad, captured Olympic gold in Beijing with Team USA, while Bryan, the son, is the head suit in Toronto.

Sarver then hired friend Steve Kerr to run the club. The former sharp shooter has tossed up a brick as GM, struggling to find an identity and making poor personnel decisions. Compounding Kerr’s incompetence has been Sarver’s demands to sell off draft picks and chase big names.

In an effort to improve, Sarver and Kerr, as previously mentioned, are contemplating major changes. They should tread carefully.

Getting equal value for Stoudemire will be tough. A combination of young players, expiring contracts, and draft picks can’t compensate for a top talent. Of course, it’s also a buyer’s market because opponents are aware of Sarver’s financial difficulties and are likely tendering lowball offers.

A STAT sweepstakes could be disastrous. After all, an egotistical owner, financial issues, and frustration led to Memphis donating power forward Pau Gasol to Los Angeles at last year’s trade deadline. The Grizzlies need years to rebuild after this blunder.

Reports indicate assistant coach Alvin Gentry will replace Porter on Monday. This is on Kerr because he hired the defensive-minded Porter. And a half-season isn’t enough time to implement a new system. Look for Gentry to return to Mike D’Antoni’s run-and-gun ways.

This afternoon’s All-Star game is supposed to be a party for Phoenix’s faithful. With everything going on, it could feel like a funeral.

What are your thoughts on the Suns possibly firing Porter and trading STAT? Get at us in the comment box below and come back to HoopsVibe the Blog for more NBA tidbits. Photo courtesy of skewb.

10 Comments: Phoenix Suns risk disaster firing Terry Porter or trading Amar’e (...)

Posted by

on 02.16.2009

Ah Sarver didn’t own the team do when they brought in nash ... do your homework .

Posted by

on 02.16.2009

"Ah what is with the doctoral thesis ... Sarver, not anyone else, let Johnson go. Period. Sarver wouldn’t pay and told him to go out and have a good year and you will make loads of money. ."So if it was only Sarver, then it was only Sarver who got Steve Nash and Q. That is the only reason the Suns went from 29 wins to 62 wins.Truth is, No one thought Johnson had it in him. Truth is (as admitted by JJ himself) Joe was offered the same exact deal as he got in Atlanta but JJ said he would rather be in Atlanta than Phx. He was tired of being 3rd-4th fiddle to Amare, Nash, and Marion. He wanted to be an All Star. .

Posted by

on 02.16.2009

"Sarver didn’t extend Brian COlangelo. You are full of it. He let him go and talk to Toronto. ."You are truly an idiot. When Sarver bought the team, he gave Brian an extension and a raise. It was widely reported locally that Brian wanted the last year + torn up in lieu of a new contract. You know, you could have just looked it up before making yourself look stupid.MIAMI (AP) - Phoenix Suns president and general manager Bryan Colangelo swung a midseason deal: He’s switching teams.Colangelo resigned Monday and is expected to join the Toronto Raptors as president and general manager Tuesday. He’ll replace Rob Babcock, fired Jan. 26 by the Raptors.Colangelo was the NBA’s 2005 executive of the year after the Suns’ retooled roster won a league-high 62 games.``Bryan has decided that his preference is to leave the Suns, and under those circumstances, we saw no other option other than to accept his decision,’’ Suns managing partner Robert Sarver said in a statement.Richard Peddie, president of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, said a news conference was scheduled Tuesday to announce the hiring of Colangelo. The Raptors were in Miami for a game Monday night.``We’re very close to finishing the deal,’’ Peddie said. ``Let’s get back to Toronto safely and get some signatures on paper, and I’ll be a happy guy.’’Colangelo, 40, could not be reached for comment.He spent 17 years with the Suns, the past 11 as general manager - a job first held by his father, Jerry Colangelo, when the team was founded in 1968. Jerry Colangelo sold the club to a group led by Sarver but will remain chairman and CEO until the sale is complete after the 2006-07 season.Bryan Colangelo’s relationship with Sarver soured amid reports that the two men had been unable to come to terms on an extension of Colangelo’s contract. The Suns permitted the Raptors to begin discussions with Colangelo more than a week ago, Peddie said.Sarver said Colangelo had to go through an ``adjustment’’ in dealing with a new boss who wasn’t his father.``I wouldn’t say it was difficult. We still get along,’’ Sarver told The Associated Press in a phone interview Monday night, adding that Colangelo invited him to the upcoming Suns-Raptors game in Toronto.But the decision caught Sarver a little off guard.``I would say it did surprise me,’’ Sarver said. ``When I heard Toronto was interested in talking to him, that didn’t surprise me. The fact that he wanted to pursue it surprised me.’’He wasn’t the only one.``When we were allowed to talk to Bryan in February, that was unexpected,’’ Peddie said. ``When your top person gets available months earlier than you imagined, you jump at the chance. ...``I said we were going to go out and get the most proven, experienced GM that we could, and I think we have.’’Toronto has been competitive since a 1-15 start but is still fourth in the Atlantic Division. The Phoenix team built by Colangelo leads the Pacific Division and has the NBA’s fourth-best record.``He’s a successful GM,’’ Raptors forward Chris Bosh said. ``He has a good rep. You can see his work right now. It’s real good to know, just to have somebody come in who has pretty good credentials.’’In Toronto, Colangelo joins Wayne Embry, a longtime friend of the Colangelo family and Peddie’s senior basketball adviser.Embry was interim general manager but not interested in the job long term. He’ll remain with the organization, Peddie said.Colangelo’s contract with the Suns was reportedly worth $1 million per year and expired at the end of next season. He also has an ownership stake in the Suns that he’ll have to sell.The Raptors reportedly offered Colangelo a multiyear deal worth $3 million per year. The job gives him more power over basketball operations than he has with the Suns, and he’ll report to Peddie.``He has complete autonomy for the basketball organization,’’ Peddie said. ``He’ll be president of business and basketball.’’Toronto coach Sam Mitchell said he talked Tuesday with Colangelo.``Bryan and I are going to talk a lot more in the weeks to come,’’ Mitchell said. ``He obviously has proven he understands what it takes to put together a team.’’Sarver said he was disappointed to see Colangelo leave the Suns.``At the time we bought the team (June 30, 2004), we agreed to a new three-year contract with Bryan,’’ said Sarver. ``Dating back to last summer, I assured Bryan of my intention to extend his contract. I’m disappointed with Bryan’s decision but I wish him well.’’Sarver said he would proceed methodically in finding a replacement, and he did not plan to name an interim general manager. .

Posted by

on 02.16.2009

Sarver is at fault. .

Posted by
Dan Foth is making up facts
on 02.16.2009

Sarver didn’t extend Brian COlangelo. You are full of it. He let him go and talk to Toronto. .

Posted by
No sense dan foth.
on 02.16.2009

Ah what is with the doctoral thesis ... Sarver, not anyone else, let Johnson go. Period. Sarver wouldn’t pay and told him to go out and have a good year and you will make loads of money. .

Posted by
danfoth
on 02.15.2009

Oly Sandor appears to have little knowledge of what is really going down here in Phx. While it might be true that this new owner has his share of blunders, it;s nothing new in the Valley of the Sun(s).Sarver gave Brian an extension and a raise when he got here. Brian didn’t like losing the comfort of his father being on top and always around and used his first real success as GM of the Suns to try and get Sarver to rip up his new contract for a bigger payday. It was Mike D’Antoni that sent most of those picks packing with repeated threats of not playing the personnel that Griffin wanted to draft. Mike D was only interested in 2-3 players in the drafts and their names were not Rudy, Rajon, and Nate. It was Mike and Brian that hamstrung the team with poor signings of Banks and a Max deal for Marion, etc. Sarver came to the Suns with a payroll of 45 mil and jumped that up to 73 mil in 4 years. Sarver made mistakes but not without help. It was Brian at the controls that allowed Joe Johnson to depart. We know that Sarver allows his GM/s room to make deals otherwise Banks would never have been brought on with his worthless contract ( hope Toronto enjoys).Let’s not forget the most critical change to the Suns organization was the trade for Shaq. While Sarver had his hand in this, it was D’Antoni that pushed it. Kerr had no desire to make that big of a splash in his first year. Mike has since admitted that he wanted Shaq and made the push. Do you know who had the biggest part in getting Marion traded? It was Nash. He was integral in getting Marion moved because he had become a cancer in the locker room.Don’t get me wrong, Kerr and Sarver made mistakes. Kerr didn’t tread lightly on egos that were easily bruised (but Mike D had veto power over Kerr as GM). Sarver did make a bad move in trading Kurt Thomas and giving 2 unprotected draft picks but bad trades and signings are not new to the Phx Suns. Brian traded for Hot Rod Williams; traded for McDyess just to see him bolt after one year; signed Tom Gugliotta, Luc Longley and Penny to ridiculous contracts; Traded Kidd to NJ for Starbury; gave the 2009 or 2010 NY Knicks #1 pick to Utah in order for Utah to take Gugliotta off our hands; etc. As a matter of fact, if it wasn’t for the worse GM in NBA history in Thomas, the Suns can’t trade Marbury and Hardaway and don’t get Nash the following year. Then nobody cares about what is happening in the not so sunny Valley of the Sun. .

Posted by

on 02.15.2009

Trade Shaq .

Posted by

on 02.15.2009

Yes, because Detroit wants to add another year of Shaq’s salary????? They are looking to add flexibility! .

Posted by

on 02.15.2009

Fire porter then trade shaq if we could trade shaq for Wallace and others that’d be good Sheed is who we should have went after last yr he can guard the duncans and kg’s and can shoot so we still can run and do our pick and rolls or worst case scenario trade shaq for marbury but not amare hes 26 and wants to be a sun forever..hes averaging 21 a game and is the third option on the floor .

Post your comment:

No profanity or inaproppriate remarks. All i.p. addresses will be saved and abuse/hate posts will be reported to providers and authorities as part of the anti-spam act of 2003, thank you for posting comments on the articles only.

	About Oly Sandor
Daily take on NBA Oly Sandor is an NBA analyst and sports journalist based out of Vancouver, Canada.After years of the free-lance game, Oly Sandor is bringing his unique brand of NBA analysis exclusively to (...) More

Phoenix Suns risk disaster firing Terry Porter or trading Amar’e Stoudemire

AboutOly Sandor

About
Oly Sandor