juin
Steve Nash throws his weight around
By Kelly Dwyer
Source Getty Images
So Steve Nash(notes) didn’t want Shaquille O’Neal(notes) on the Suns. Can you blame the guy?
But can you also see the writing on the wall? Actually, forget that; can you see last year’s standings? The ones that left Phoenix out of the playoff bracket?
I don’t doubt that Steve Nash conveyed a dubious tone, to say the least, regarding Shaquille O’Neal’s potential for aiding the Phoenix Suns in returning to the playoffs next year, in a recent meeting with Suns GM Steve Kerr. Not for a second.
It’s too little, too late, though. Shaq’s permanence or impermanence with the Suns, really, had little to do with this team’s championship aspirations. Because, as great as the Suns were playing in the days leading up to their acquisition of O’Neal in February of 2008, this still wasn’t a championship team. And it’s not because the Suns were poor defensively.
It’s because they weren’t a knockout team offensively. They were still the best in the NBA, offensively, but not to a point where it made the team’s average-to-below average defense passable.
Offense and defense win championships. Not defense, alone. Same with offense. And if you slip below the « damned good » radar on either side, your other side must make up for it. Phoenix, even with the league’s best offense, still couldn’t hit enough shots to make up for it.
With, or without O’Neal. And the same went for 2008-09. And as well as O’Neal tried to fit in last season, and as good a teammate as he was, the writing was on the wall. It had been there for a while. There’s a reason Nash (and O’Neal, to a lesser extent) went through the season with a bemused smile. He knew this team wasn’t going anywhere.
