COACH: Mike D'Antoni | 2004-05: 62-20
Phoenix Suns

The Suns will try to hold together without Stoudemire.
Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
Video: NBA TV previews the 2005-06 Suns
The Suns finished with the best record in the league last season, but they fell short in the playoffs, losing to the Spurs in the Western Conference Finals. Not satisfied, they retooled this summer and should have a different look for the '05-06 season. They lost some scoring and explosiveness with the departures of Quentin Richardson and Joe Johnson, but they improved their defense and their depth with the additions of Kurt Thomas, Raja Bell, Boris Diaw, James Jones and Brian Grant.

The most significant news in the land of the Sun was losing Amare Stoudemire for four months after he had knee surgery early in training camp. Stoudemire had a huge year last season and has "Future MVP" written all over him.

"He can be as good as anybody in the league," says Suns point guard and reigning MVP Steve Nash.

With Stoudemire on the shelf for most of the season, the Suns lose a lot of firepower. Shawn Marion will likely move back to the power forward spot and will have pressure on him to be the go-to guy on offense. Jim Jackson will give them another shooter in the lineup though.

Thomas is the most significant addition, and he should keep the Suns from being in the bottom five in rebounding differential this season. Bell will give the Suns a defensive stopper on the perimeter who is also a solid shooter. Diaw will give them versatility off the bench with the ability to play the 1, 2 or 3. He will allow Phoenix to rest Nash more often without a major drop-off (they were 2-5 without Nash last season). Jones is another athlete with three-point range that should fit well in the Suns system.

Even with all the new faces, don't expect a major change to the Suns' philosophy. Nash will still look to push the ball.

"We still want to be an offensive team – I think that's where our strength lies. We'd just like to hopefully improve with the personnel we've added."

The Suns should still put lots of points on the board, and if they can stay in the playoff picture and get Stoudemire back healthy for the stretch run, they will be a stronger defensive team and more fit for playoff basketball.

Read the entire Steve Nash Interview

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Can He Do It Again?

Nash
Nash has certainly proven that he can lead the turnaround of a franchise, improving the Suns’ record 33 games from ’03-04 to ’04-05. Now, he must prove that he can keep it going with a different mix of players.

"I think I won the MVP because I was able to help my teammates play better. I don't necessarily want to put pressure on myself to put up big numbers. I just want to go out and help my team have a great year. If we win a lot of games, I consider it a success."

37.0
THE STAT
Amare Stoudemire set the NBA record for the highest scoring average by a player playing in his first conference finals, averaging 37.0 points per game against the Spurs.
X&O STRENGTH

Thomas
The Suns added two 10-year plus veterans in Kurt Thomas and Brian Grant. Can these guys take the fast pace throughout the season? Because the Suns don’t stop. Thomas will be a very good pick and roll, pick and fade guy along with Steve Nash. I think that is a real plus in acquiring all these players. The pace has to be the same because they thrived off of it and I don’t see any reason why they would even think about pulling back. They could lead the league in scoring again, but they took people by surprise a year ago. They still have the capabilities though... The Suns feature the NBA’s top trio of Nash, Stoudemire and Marion to the tune of 60.9 points, 23.5 rebounds and 10.5 assists per game.

X&O WEAKNESS
The Suns were awful on the glass, finishing last in the NBA, hence the arrivals of Thomas and Grant... The Suns may now be more physical but will they still be able to lead the league in scoring?... The Suns loved the three-pointer last season, leading the league with 796. Joe Johnson and Quentin Richardson, who are now on the Hawks and Knicks, respectively combined for 403 of those. Who will fill the void?

HEAD COACH PHILOSOPHY
To me, Mike D'Antoni deserves a lot of credit for opening the floor up rather than showing the world I can do this and that. He lets his players play, and has great confidence in his point guard, and off they went.
-- Don Casey (courtesy of the National Basketball Coaches Association)

Jim Jackson: Now slated to start with Stoudemire down, expect Jackson to log heavy minutes and pour in the threes
Steve Nash: His assist numbers should go down without Johnson and Richardson.
Video: Go inside Suns training camp
Practice Marion
Thomas Nash
Jackson D'Antoni
"A lot of changes, but they didn't change the main parts: Nash, Marion and Stoudemire and that's the key. As long as you have those three guys on the court, you're in pretty good shape. They were looking to get better defensively and improve a little bit on the boards... With that offense he ran last year, you can slot guys in different places and it doesn't make any difference. Nash is the key. If he stays healthy, they're going to have another great season... With Nash running the pick and pop with Thomas, that's another weapon right there... Barbosa has a strange game, but things happen when he's in there. He just doesn't look like a ballplayer, but he makes things happen. He can be a nice change of pace, but you’re in a world of hurt if Nash goes down and he’s your starting point guard."
-- Eastern Conference scout
PLAYER/2004-05 STATS
PPG
RPG
APG
PG
15.5
3.3
11.5
SG
12.3
3.2
1.4
SF
10.5
4.2
2.9
PF
19.4
11.3
1.9
C
11.5
10.4
2.0
G
7.0
2.1
2.0
G
4.8
2.6
2.3
F-C
3.8
3.7
0.5
G
5.8
1.2
1.4
F
4.9
2.3
0.8
G
Free agent
F-C
Free agent
G
Trade
F-C
Free agent
G
Free agent
F
Trade
F-C
Trade
G-F
Draft
F
Free agent
F-C
Free agent
G-F
Trade
F
Free agent
F
Free agent
G-F
Trade
C
Trade
PPG
26.0
RPG
11.3
APG
8.9
SPG
2.01
BPG
1.63
Points Scored
110.4
(1st)
Points Allowed
103.3
(30th)
Field-Goal Percentage
.477
(2nd)
Opponents' FG%
.445
(14th)
Rebounding Diff.
-2.00
(26th)
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