Nash ties NBA record...

[J@3]

http://www.nbaliveforums.com/sutra704780.php#704780

[JamesCameron]

If Steve was not worthy of last years MVP award, who else do you think would be? I can not see anybody near the top with him but Dirk and Lebron.

[cyanide]

I wish Steve got his MVP in the second year but lost out to Shaq in the previous year. It wouldn't make his 2 MVPs seem like overkill.

[cklitsie]

Joe Johnson and Quentin Richardson really benefitted from Nash's presense and got their pay days. And at least Quentin isn't that special as a player. With Joe, it remains to be seen.

Joe Johnson is a franchise player, (not on the level of Lebron but more like Bosh). He was held back by the Suns' system obviously.

And IMO the Suns system didn't do any good for Quentin Richardson either. I used to like his game much more when he was with the Clippers. The Suns system made him look (and play) like a one-dimensional player. Plus the numbers he puts up now are the same as in 04-05, while he's on the Knicks who basically don't have any system at all.

ps.
Kidd 01-02 >>> Nash 04-05

[Dro]

The opposite argument can easily be made; it's Steve Nash who is making the system work. Other coaches in the league have even said that they would like to impliment the Suns' system, but they can't for lack of multiple Stevies.

That's not the opposite argument though, and Steve Nash isn't the sole reason the system works. The entire team is built for it, if it was just Nash's influence alone then everyone on the team would be flourishing, not just guys like Stoudemire/Marion who were already good. Then there's Barbosa who puts up monster stats even when Nash isn't in the team.

If Nash wins another MVP award then it officially becomes a joke and people are way way too easily pleased.

The Suns team is built for it, but the Suns' system could be duplicated on most other teams if there was a Steve Nash available. Sure, good finishers such as Marion and Stoudemire help. Good shooters such as Raja and Barbosa help. But Steve Nash is the one element of the system that can't be duplicated...Chris Paul is the closest thing at the moment, but he's not the shooter that Nash is right now. Paul will be just as good/surpass Nash very soon, though.

Fact of the matter is, the voters were surprised two seasons in a row by Nash. In 04-05, nobody expected a 60-win season from the Suns. However, Amare, Marion, Joe Johnson, and Quentin Richardson all had career seasons scoring-wise, and Steve Nash was at the helm. In 05-06, nobody expected the Suns to win 50+ games, much less earn the second seed in the West after Stoudemire went down. Then Diaw, Bell, and Barbosa among others all had career seasons, with once again, Steve Nash at the helm.

[J@3]

But Steve Nash is the one element of the system that can't be duplicated...Chris Paul is the closest thing at the moment, but he's not the shooter that Nash is right now.

I agree completely, he's obviously an elite point guard and to most people would probably be the best in the league at that position.

[Dro]

I just saw Steve Nash win one of my top 5 most exciting games I have ever seen. His poise and composure...words cannot express. If you had any doubts, that should push them out. Or not.

[J@3]

I try not to judge players based on 1 game. If that was the case then Kobe was the runaway MVP last season.

Not to mention the fact that his direct opponent had a monster triple double.

[Metsis]

With you guys (mostly Jae) saying that Quentin Richardson and Joe Johnson were such great players, when they were replaced by Raja Bell and James Jones and the team hardly missed a beat... Something has to be pretty right in the system and the man running the system. Barbosa, James Jones and Bell can pretty much thank Nash for making them the players they are. As well as Johnson and Richardson...

Joe Johnson was a young guy with lots of potential all along and its no surprise that he is a stud right now. Richardson was in Clipper obscurity land before he was put in the spotlight with the Suns. If it weren't for the Suns and Nash running those two to career years they wouldn't have gotten the deals they did now get.

It's all about surprise... Nash turned Phoenix around twice... First he came in and turned the team to instant contender and then the team took a huge hit with losing two key players and seemingly not get anyone even close to that level to replace them and losing Amare just before season began, well that had disaster written all over it... Nash wouldn't have let that happen... Had Phoenix won 30 games last season, no one would have wondered about the reasons... But winning 50 is just another example of how strong the system and the guy running the system are...

I have Phoenix down as my team to beat this season... I don't think anyone can run with these guys in a 7 game series... With Amare getting better by the day... It's going to be something beautiful at the end...

Barring serious injuries of course...

[J@3]

With you guys (mostly Jae) saying that Quentin Richardson and Joe Johnson were such great players, when they were replaced by Raja Bell and James Jones and the team hardly missed a beat... Something has to be pretty right in the system and the man running the system.

Or something wrong in the system where players like Richardson and especially Johnson couldn't flourish and were restricted to playing at the level of James Jones and the other guy.

If it weren't for the Suns and Nash running those two to career years they wouldn't have gotten the deals they did now get.

Right... so I guess Nash still calls them up at night and reads them bed-time stories or whatever, because they've got their deals now and they're both better players than they were at Phoenix... so how exactly does that work to you?

For you Suns homers, Boris Diaw... has Nash decided not to "make him better" this season?

[Matt]

it's easy to point to Nash and say he made JJ better, but seriously JJ always had it in him and what made him better was being the #1 option and plenty of PT.

[Metsis]

With you guys (mostly Jae) saying that Quentin Richardson and Joe Johnson were such great players, when they were replaced by Raja Bell and James Jones and the team hardly missed a beat... Something has to be pretty right in the system and the man running the system.

Or something wrong in the system where players like Richardson and especially Johnson couldn't flourish and were restricted to playing at the level of James Jones and the other guy.

If it weren't for the Suns and Nash running those two to career years they wouldn't have gotten the deals they did now get.

Right... so I guess Nash still calls them up at night and reads them bed-time stories or whatever, because they've got their deals now and they're both better players than they were at Phoenix... so how exactly does that work to you?

For you Suns homers, Boris Diaw... has Nash decided not to "make him better" this season?

Return of Amare will have an effect on how they play... Diaw has been taking a brunt of the bad effect from this right now, but they will adjust and make it so that Diaw will get more involved in the game... The season is barely month old and Amare was a big question mark before the season and still is. I think Marion, Amare and Diaw will get these things straightened out and they will all be effective.

And Diaw is still a lot more effective now than he ever was in Atlanta... And his game doesn't always reflect too well in statistics. He is the sort of a player any team would be happy with. Doing work and then doing some more work and not neccesarily getting the media attention he deserves.

Phoenix is still adjusting to Amare's return... And by the looks of the 8 game streak they are on, they are getting closer.

Joe Johnson and Quentin Richardson were reduced to triple shooting duty in Phoenix because they didn't have to do anything else. Marion and Amare were such a formidable pair down low that they caused defenses to crash on them and Joe and Q got easy shots from three point line in the process. That combination worked really well and who knows what might have happened if Joe hadn't been hurt in 2005 playoffs. If Joe and Q would have stuck around for less cash, I think they would have competed for a title last summer even without Amare. Alhtough they would have been without Diaw too...

But these are all speculation... Q in New York... Well Marbury is having his worst statistical season as is Frye, Francis, Crawford and the rest pretty much everyone besides Curry and Q... Q is playing good now... He isn't all that all-star there now... And besides Q has a pretty bad back and playing alot and doing everything won't help that matter at all. I think shooting three pointers for a season really took some strain off of him in Phoenix. So he might have actually given himself a couple of extra years by being in Phoenix for the one season. And getting all the extra media attention didn't hurt him either...

[Jugs]

Why don't the Suns fire D'Antoni, all the Assistant coaches and trainers since they have Steve Nash who can make them all better players.

[Dro]

Why don't the Suns fire D'Antoni, all the Assistant coaches and trainers since they have Steve Nash who can make them all better players.

Sounds reasonable to me.