Driver’s Championship

1.  Sebastian Vettel – Red Bull Renault

This is a pick from the heart.  I truly believe in this kid’s driving ability and he was able to come in 2nd last year.  I hope he has an amazing year.

2.  Fernando Alonso – Ferrari

If you have read any of my other posts, I am a Ferrari fan but do not like Alonso at all.  It will be hard to reconcile this year, given that Alonso is not with Ferrari, but Alonso is an amazing driver, I cannot deny that.  What he was able to do with his crap Renault last year was downright incredible.  It will be exciting to see what he does with a legitimate car.   As long as he can avoid bringing scandal and disrespect (unlikely) to Ferrari, it should be a good year.

3.  Lewis Hamilton – Mclaren

Another hard one to actually type out, however, Lewis is a great driver.  Mclaren are consistently good cars.  Even though Button, the other McLaren driver, is the reigning world champion, Lewis is a better driver and in essentially the same car, advantage Lewis.

4.  Michael Schumacher – Mercedes

I was originally only going to do the first 3 but I am a huge Schumacher fan (Michael of course because I think there are only a handful of Ralf fans and most are related to him…although I was always a Ralf fan and it was a sad existence.)  Brawn has proved himself a God of F1.  Brawn reunited with Schumacher is bound to be amazing but Schumacher is getting up there age-wise.  If it was 3 years ago this would definitely be my number 1 pick, but F1 has become a young man’s sport and at 41, unfortunately, Schumacher is past his prime.

Constructor’s Championship:

1.  Red Bull Renault

2.  Ferrari

3.  Mercedes GP

4.  Mclaren

Dear Scott,

With the trade deadline behind us, I wanted to give you some thoughts regarding our decision to hold firm with our roster.

Our team is in the midst of a very good season, and we’re excited with the prospect of being a successful playoff team. We were not going to compromise our position in that regard unless we could make a deal that made us better now and into the future. We fielded all kinds of offers and did our due diligence these past couple of weeks, but in the end we felt standing pat was the best thing to do. We want to let this team stay together and finish the year with a bang.

As a season ticket holder, you may be wondering where that leaves us in the future, particularly as it relates to Amar’e Stoudemire. Amar’e can opt out of his contract at the end of the season, and he must make his decision by June 30th. If he does indeed opt out, he will become an unrestricted free agent and have the right to sign with any team. If not, he will be under contract with us for one more season. Either way, we will have plenty of options this summer to improve our team through trades and/or free agency.

With so many of our young players developing into key pieces for us, we feel like our foundation for the future is growing stronger. Our goal is to keep these young guys together for a long time, and to continue to add talent to our roster in the coming years. We are building a fast, defensive minded team that will continue to play the up tempo style that the Suns have been known for through the years.

Obviously there’s plenty of work ahead, but I hope you share my enthusiasm for what will be a very exciting time – both this season and beyond. Thanks again for your continued support, and we’ll see you soon at US Airways Center.

Go Suns!

Sincerely,

Steve Kerr

So there that is.  I don’t necessarily disagree with the prospect of the Suns being a successful playoff team, I suppose it’s just all about what you consider “successful” – which for this team likely means (a) making the playoffs and (b) winning a series.  Hell, I expect the rest of the season to actually be quite enjoyable.  This version of the Suns might not be title contenders but they seem to have found their stride again in recent weeks and should be able to make a strong push for a middle seed in the Western Conference (4-6 area).

The major question – which Kerr also addressed – is the future.  I like our young players as much as the next guy but none of them have a real “star” quality and probably lack the ceiling to get there.  I may not be the most educated NBA fan in the world (top 5 though) but I can’t remember a time where an NBA team put a bunch of role players in place and then picked up a star through trades or free agency to tie it all together (read the words “role players” before you disagree…ex – ’91-92 Suns were good and picked up a superstar…but they had All-Star caliber players in KJ, Majerle).  To me that seems like a suspect plan at best.

For now I’ll just sit back, enjoy the playoff chase and start worrying about this in the summer.

Suns recieve:

J.J. Hickson & Zydrunas Ilgauskas

Cavs recieve:

Amar’e Stoudemire

On Friday night, Bright Side of the Sun touched on a possible deal that would bring Hickson and Big Z to Phoenix, but it also included the exhumed Wally Szczerbiak coming to the Suns (but only in that Keith Van Horn during 2008 sort of way) and Cleveland taking Jason Richardson’s much maligned contract.  I can possibly talk myself into this deal once I have enough to drink to convince myself that Steve Kerr and Robert Sarver will spend the $19 million dollars in cap space in the right way to reshape the Suns. 

The trade presented above is not that trade.  The trade presented above is a joke and basically represents an absolute slap in the face to Suns fans.  I’m sure Hickson is a nice player and all but this type of deal indicates to me that Steve Kerr hasn’t the slightest clue what he’s doing as a general manager.  I realize you don’t want Amar’e to walk after this season – but for this?  Is THIS really the absolute best Kerr could have done?  It appears pretty clear that the Suns could have Michael Beasley in a trade for Stoudemire if they want him – so this indicates to me that they prefer Hickson.  I won’t even get into what I think is the why on this, I’m just over 100% sure it’s completely wrong.

If Amar’e is traded and the only return is J.J. Hickson and cap space (that’s what you are Big Z), Kerr better have a fucking plan and an explanation better be forthcoming.  I realize this entire post is basically one non-sensical rant but I don’t care – this pisses me off and I imagine it will piss off a great deal of the fan base.  Good luck on those season ticket renewals fellas.

Player A (26 years old):

40.2 MPG

17.1 PPG (6.0 FG made per game / 14.2 attempted FG per game)

7.0 RPG

5.7 APG

1.9 SPG

42.5% FG shooting

31.3% 3p shooting

Plays for Eastern Conference team with .385 winning percentage

Player B (27 years old):

38.4 MPG

21.8 PPG  (7.9 made FG per game / 17.9 attempted FG per game)

5.4 RPG

3.1 APG

1.4 SPG

44.1% FG shooting

40.6% 3p shooting

Plays for Eastern Conference team with .390 winning percentage

The shocking reveal?  Player A is Andre Iguodala during the current season and Player B is Jason Richardson during the 2007-2008 season while he was playing for the Charlotte Bobcats.  Yet Suns fans are ready to run J-Rich out on the rails because he’s not worth the $13.3 million owed this year and the $14.4 coming next year, while everybody’s boy Iggy seems to be the preferred trade option to just about anyone else out there.  Never mind the fact that the former University of Arizona star is locked up through 2013 (player option for 2014) – with a price tag of $14 million plus in the final base year – he’s a former U of A star…doesn’t matter that he shoots threes worse than Boris Diaw (look it up here).

A few of the primary arguments people use to separate Iguodala from J-Rich are that AI2 is a better passer and defender.  Are those traits that really make him all that much different than Richardson?  I haven’t watched enough of the guy to really comment on his defense but it isn’t as if he’s been rolling off All-NBA Defensive team selections in his 6 NBA seasons (he has no 1st or 2nd team selections).  As for the passing, if the Suns are getting into a situation where they are going to rely on their shooting guard to deal out more than 5 assists a game – things are likely not very good.

Look, I’m not completely anti-Iggy as a player – hell he seems like a pretty strong all-around talent.  My argument is more that he’s putting up good stats on a shitty team, he’s a bit overpaid, and he’s probably peaked as a player.  After 6 years in the NBA a guy pretty much is what he in terms of production. Ask yourself this when thinking about Iguodala – if you can take the U of A emotional bullshit out of the equation…is he really that much better than J-Rich?  So much so that you think he’s the best asset the Suns can get in return for Amar’e?  The idea of having several years sunk into an above average shooting guard sounds pretty unexciting to me.

My basic opinion/conclusion is this:  Amar’e Stoudemire is a better player than Iguodala or what appears to be the universally hated Michael Beasley (another trade option) and if the Suns can keep STAT for the right price then they should do it.  Since the “right price” may not actually be a possibility I’d want the Suns to get a big man or a guy with large upside potential (preferably someone who is a combination) – Iguodala is neither.  Argue all you want – I expect the push back – but if Iggy is the asset I’ll feel pretty bad about the direction of the team.

In one of the first sets of power rankings I’ve seen since Kurt Warner retired, Foxsports.com ranked the Cards 18th – a full 12 spots below where they finished the season.  Anytime you lose a Hall of Fame-caliber QB and all around dreamboat like Warner you can expect to drop a few spots, but it was the logic behind it that reminded me that the two years of national media giving a shit about the Cardinals are officially over:

OFFSEASON DIAGNOSIS: It’s not often to see a playoff team that won a game in January dropped so far in the postseason rankings. But that’s how much Kurt Warner meant to this operation. If the Cards aren’t bluffing and do settle on Matt Leinart to run the show in 2010, No. 1) Look for a RB in the draft, plus a ball-control style offense come September, and No. 2) Watch for the rest of the NFC West salivating, ready to make their move

I made the offending portion bold for emphasis.  Apparently whoever Adrian Hasenmayer is can’t be bothered to google Beanie Wells – you know, the guy the Cards picked in the first round last season – or hell, even Tim Hightower. Let me help Adrian out – running back is the absolute least of the Cardinals many problems.  It’s about as likely a selection as Tim Tebow in Round 1.  Fail city.

Discount the New Orleans and Denver wins all you want due to their respective stars Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony being out with injury, but I should remind you that the CP3-less Hornets beat the Suns when they were at their best in November while the Nuggets without Melo managed to beat up on the Spurs in San Antonio on Sunday afternoon.  Fact of the matter is, with a combination of a pissed off Amar’e Stoudemire (averaging 13.3 RPG on the road trip), better rebounding, and the ability to actually get a few stops when needed, the Suns have moved to 30-21 and back into the Western Conference playoff conversation (currently tied for 5th).  In case you’re curious I don’t consider a ritual execution at the hands of the Lakers the 8 seed “in the conversation.”

So what does it all mean?  Your guess is as good as this less than amateur bloggers.  In spite of his recent jibber jabber about not opting out of his deal this summer, Amar’e is probably still headed out of town and depending on the package recieved, the Suns are likely going to end up starting over a bit when he does.  In that sense I suppose that would mean these wins are effectively meaningless or maybe just something to tide the Suns over while they transition to a new type of team…but that’s a little dark for me.  I think I’ll just concentrate on the fact that the Suns have pulled off some nice wins and are finally starting to look like a good team again for the first time since November.

Other Notes:

• I’d just like to get myself on the record right now as not being a fan of these Andre Iguodala to the Suns rumors.  The way I see it, most of the people who are in love with him (including fellow bloggers) are U of A fans/grads.  When I see his numbers – 17.3 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 5.7 assists, 31.4 3P%, and 42.7 FG% – I see someone who is basically J-Rich on a shitty team with better assist numbers and worse shooting numbers (for reference sake J-Rich is 14.5, 5.1, 1.9, 35.5%, 45.1%).  Combine that with the fact that he’s locked up until 2013 – with a player option for 2014 – and I’ll pass.
• The Suns hit the 30 win mark yesterday.  Obviously this is not a big deal but it was of interest to me due to one of my favorite preseason predictions on the Suns – TheBigLead picking the Suns for 30 wins.  I think the 31 game season ending losing streak is going to be really tough on the city.

What’s changed 4 days later?  A pair of tough wins over Dallas and Houston have vaulted the Suns back into 7th in the West (and just 1.5 games back of 4th) and have inspired a glimmer of hope. I say only a glimmer because this is still a team that has played below average basketball for 2 months and hasn’t even won three straight games since the end of November.  Add to that it’s a virtual certainty that they’ll be trading their top scorer prior to the February 18th trade deadline and again – glimmer.  I suppose it’s something.

Following the Suns overtime loss to the Bobcats last Tuesday night I’d accepted that the only real reason to watch the games until an Amar’e trade was for the development of Robin Lopez, Goran Dragic, and Earl Clark as painful loss after painful loss was endured.  Now with a couple of decent wins,  at a bare minimum I feel like I can actually give a damn about wins and losses for a few more games.  You know – until they again lose to the CP3-less Hornets tonight and follow it up by blowing a 15 point lead to Denver on Wednesday.  If you were looking for optimism (or D’Arcy Maine porn) you’ve come to the wrong place.

Warner’s one year with the Giants was alternately exciting and painful (and sometimes both at the same time) as Kurt led them to a 5-2 start before tailing off and giving way to snot nosed rookie QB Eli Manning.  Oddly enough, Warner’s final start as a Giant occurred in Tempe against the Cards and he was basically sacked out of the starting job by fellow 2010 retiree Bertrand Berry.  Even in a rare win for the 2004 Cardinals I was less than thrilled to watch Warner take hit after hit and lose his job…again.

By the time Kurt showed up in Arizona in 2005 he was seen as a journeyman QB with both fumbling and injury problems.  ’05 didn’t do much to dispel any of those notions and when Matt Leinart was drafted in 2006 , Warner lost the starting gig after 4 starts – his third lost job in 4 seasons.  Enter Ken Whisenhunt.

In the third game of the Whiz era, Warner replaced an ineffective Matt Leinart and with the Ravens leading 20-3, he almost led the Cards back to victory.  Leinart went down with a shoulder injury just two games later and Warner put together a solid season in spite of the fact that he had a torn elbow ligament for the majority of the year.

Leinart was named the starter heading into the 2008 preseason but a disastarous performance against the Raiders in the preseason put Warner into the starting role.  I think you might know how things went from there:

• 31 starts (32 possible games)
• 8,336 yards, 56 TDs, 28 INTs
• 2008 NFC Championship
• 2 NFC West Championships
• 4-2 playoff record

In case you’re not much for reading comprehension, that means things went well.  Since that aforementioned Ravens game in Week 3 both the Cardinals and Kurt Warner have done a lot to battle long-standing assumptions about themselves – and they did it together.  As Kent Somers wrote earlier this week each party has been good to the other.  Without the opportunity to be a starting quarterback it’s unlikely that Warner would have taken his career from that Terrell Davis couple years in the sun resume to that of a surefire Hall of Famer.  Then on the other hand you’ve got the Cardinals and you cannot underestimate what Warner brought – hope.  Entering 2008 the Cards had 2 playoff wins in franchise history.  Yes FRANCHISE history.  In the last 2 years Warner engineered 4 playoff wins and did it with surgical precision.  He even took the Arizona Cardinals to within 2:37 of a Super Bowl victory.  Along the way fan support has reached an all-time high and for the first time since the Cardinals moved to Arizona in 1988 it feels like the team has a strong bond with the state – a great deal of that can be attributed to the contributions of Warner.

I’m about as cynical as it comes with sports, I expect the worst just to ensure that nothing ever disappoints me.  Kurt Warner was an exception to that personal rule.  Even at his lowest levels I always expected him to come back and hit grand heights – and he sure as hell didn’t disappoint.  It was a fun ride and an absolute pleasure to watch Kurt Warner play – I’ll miss him just about as much as a fan can miss a professional athlete.

Don't we have a dude with one of these already?

Don Banks and I have a complicated one way relationship – he writes things, I hate them, and then I get angry and write back at him on our little-read blog, see here, here, here , here and here for more details.  So with his latest offering – a 2010 NFL mock draft – I can only assume he’s begging for my anger to boil over.  As you may have already guessed, the offending portion is who he suggests the Cardinals might select with the 26th pick in the draft:

Tim Tebow QB, Florida.  This one is pure projection on my behalf, but hear me out: Tebow’s rough week at the Senior Bowl notwithstanding, it’s only going to take one team to fall in love with him to make him a low first-rounder. Why the Cardinals? If Kurt Warner retires Friday as expected, does anyone think Arizona has 100 percent confidence in Matt Leinart at this point? And we already know Ken Whisenhunt doesn’t mind playing two QBs in the same game, because he did it with Warner and Leinart in 2007. As rough as things were for the Cardinals defense in the playoffs, that side of the ball probably should get first-round attention. But for now, we’re sliding our Tebow chips to Arizona’s square.

Forgive me for not jumping up and down about a guy who one NFL personnel executive said “Great kid but some of the worst mechanics and accuracy I’ve seen on a big-time QB prospect.”  Heartwarming isn’t it?

With a defense that gave up 90 points (NINETY!) in two playoff games I’d prefer to see the pick used on a linebacker or hell…anybody else who isn’t a project QB or future UFL star.  I will go out on a limb and say this doesn’t happen.  100% doesn’t happen.  If the Cardinals are interested in adding a 2nd Heisman trophy winning QB I’m sure Chris Weinke can be coaxed out of retirement.

The biggest part of me Kurt!  The biggest part!  Don’t leave.