Photo by Rob Schumacher/The Arizona Republic
1. The team chemistry is amazing from top to bottom.
2. Hill and Nash are showing great leadership with their play.
3. I'm impressed with Amare's play on both ends of the floor and his effort on the boards. He's not getting them all, but he's going after them. Also happy to see him attacking the lane again. Once his legs get back, he's going to be a holy terror again.
4. Lou needs to start making those offensive rebound tip-ins, but I'll never complain if he misses them. He looks comfortable and in control out there.
5. Dudley. Excellent move by Kerr in demanding he be involved in the trade.
6. Did I mention the team chemistry? Holy shit, it's the best I've ever seen. It's even better than 05-06 when Amare was out.
7. Amare is not only saying the right things (as usual), he's backing up his words with his play and body language. He and Frye need to start hanging out more to get their mojos in sync, but they're a perfect match.
8. Lou and Dudley seem to have had a positive impact in Amare. They all are challenging the inbounds pass in the back court, and they're dogging their man the whole way. I mentioned chemistry, right?
9. Goran keeps having Nash moments in the lane. If he keeps it up, no team is going to get a breather when Nash sits.
10. Richardson looks comfortable finally. It's only one game, but it's a huge step in the right direction for him. He's the team's offensive wild card right now. If he keeps his nose clean and his head on straight, he'll make the Suns offense unstoppable.
11. Frye. I'll just reference coach Gentry in the post-game article written by Bob Young:
He got up 10 3s, and he probably should have gotten up 15, to be honest with you. It's an adjustment for him. It's hard for a guy to keep firing away. If he goes six for 10, I'll let him take five more, I'll tell you that. One thing I try to emphasize to him is that we did not bring him here to be a passer.I said Friday that the team just needs to get its three-point shooters rolling, and they'll be badass. He's got them on the right track.
12. The defensive effort is there from everybody. This is new territory for this team, so I'll forgive them if their effort doesn't always pay off. What they're doing is all I've ever asked of them, and it's going to get there.
13. Caveat: Clippers, Warriors, T-Wolves. I don't care. The only game that could have gone the other way was against LA, and they're a huge team. Still, they've handled the teams they are supposed to, which was always a question mark last season. This is not midseason, so we can't know for sure exactly what the Suns are capable of accomplishing. These things are for certain, though - the chemistry is there, the effort is there, and the right personnel are in place. I'm loving what I'm seing so far.
