Category: Phoenix Suns Blog

Suns blog – Phoenix Suns blog, on Suns basketball news, rumors and more

Shawn Marion hurts eye in practice

The Miami Herald (Michael Wallace) reports:  Heat forward Shawn Marion was knocked out of Wednesday’s practice because of an eye injury and is questionable for Thursday’s game at Chicago. Marion was injured late in the workout, when forward Michael Beasley inadvertently hit him in the left eye during a drill. Marion was taken to a doctor for treatment and diagnosed with a bruised left eye orbit. Marion, the Heat’s leading rebounder, traveled with the team Wednesday and will be evaluated Thursday.

Mo Williams 44 points, Cavs beat Suns 109-92

The AP reports: Before packing for Phoenix, Mo Williams padded his All-Star stats. Playing in his first home game since finally being made an All-Star after being skipped over twice, Williams scored a career-high 44 points and LeBron James added 26 as the Cleveland Cavaliers reached the break by winning their 40th game, 109-92 over the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night… The Cavaliers easily outran the speedy Suns, who were without starting point guard Steve Nash. He didn’t dress to get extra rest for numerous sore spots. Amare Stoudemire scored 27 and Grant Hill 14 for Phoenix (28-23), which will host this weekend’s All-Star activities and could undergo a makeover before the Feb. 21 trading deadline.

InsideHoops talks to Q-Rich

With the arrival of Donnie Walsh and Mike D’Antoni in New York, people all around the organization knew positive changes were coming. Nobody welcomed those changes more then Quentin Richardson. After playing a season under D’Antoni’s fast-paced offense in Phoenix, Quentin found himself being traded to New York and making the best of a tough situation. Randy Zellea of InsideHoops.com recently caught up with Q and talked to him about the move to New York from Phoenix, the direction of the Knicks, the atmosphere of world famous Madison Square Garden, and his free-time activities.

Read the Quentin Richardson interview.

No Charles Barkley in Phoenix All-Star

The East Valley Tribune (with wire reports) reports: Charles Barkley will sit out TNT’s coverage of All-Star weekend in Phoenix after his arrest in Scottsdale on suspicion of drunken driving. Barkley was expected to return to the air sometime in the second half of the season. Barkley took a leave of absence from his TV responsibilities last month, the day tests showed that his blood-alcohol level was at .149, nearly twice the legal limit of .08 in Arizona.

Shaq says Kobe is better than LeBron

The Cleveland Plain Dealer (Jodie Valade) reports: If Sunday’s Cavaliers-Lakers game wasn’t enough evidence, take Shaquille O’Neal’s word for it. Kobe Bryant is better. LeBron James? He’s pretty good, too. But Kobe is the best the Big Diesel has ever played with. “Kobe’s probably a 10,” O’Neal said Tuesday night. “LeBron’s a 9.7, 9.8. He’s a fabulous player who does it the right way and gets everybody involved. Those guys [Cavaliers] are playing at a very, very high level right now because of him.”

76ers rout Suns 108-91 for third straight win

The AP reports: Marreese Speights had a career-high 24 points and Thaddeus Young scored 25 points to lift the Philadelphia 76ers to their third straight win, 108-91 over the Phoenix Suns on Monday night… Andre Iguodala scored 22 points and Samuel Dalembert grabbed 11 rebounds to help the Sixers (26-24) move two games above .500 for the first time this season. They’ve won 13 of 17 and are seven games over .500 since DiLeo took over in December. Amare Stoudemire shrugged off persistent trade rumors and scored 19 points for the Suns. Jason Richardson had 16 and Shaquille O’Neal grabbed 10 rebounds.

Iverson throws nasty pass

The Detroit Free Press (Carlos Monarrez) reports: On a fast break late in the third quarter, Allen Iverson spotted Richard Hamilton streaking toward the basket and bounced a pass through Grant Hill’s legs. Hamilton took the pass under the basket and scored on a lay-up. “I just saw Rip running,” Iverson said. “I didn’t want to put too much air under it, so that’s why I bounced it. I felt like if I threw a bounce pass it would get there fast enough. I think Grant going for it, trying to steal it, he just added more to the play. It might not have seemed as spectacular if he wouldn’t have tried to stick his foot out there and kick it. It’s a play that I’ve made before, a play that I’ve been practicing since I was kid, since seeing Magic Johnson do it.”

Nash 21 assists, Suns beat Pistons 107-97

The AP reports: Steve Nash scored 15 and had a season-high 21 assists, directing a balanced offense for Phoenix in a 107-97 win over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night… Amare Stoudemire had 18 points and seven rebounds, Jason Richardson scored 21, Shaquille O’Neal had nine of his 20 points in the pivotal second period, and Grant Hill added 10 points… Richard Hamilton scored 27 and Iverson had 25 points for the Pistons, who have lost 11 of 17. Rasheed Wallace scored 16, Tayshaun Prince had 11 and Rodney Stuckey was held to just eight points and only one assist for the Pistons.

Warriors wild from outside, beat Suns 124-112

The AP reports: Stephen Jackson had 30 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for his first career triple-double, and the Warriors never trailed in a 124-112 victory over the Suns on Wednesday night. Jamal Crawford scored 27 points, and 6-foot-5 power forward Kelenna Azubuike had 19 of his 25 in the first quarter for the Warriors, who started the game on a 17-2 run and never let the Suns get close… Shaquille O’Neal had 17 points on 8-of-9 shooting and 12 rebounds in the Suns’ fourth straight loss at Oracle Arena, while Leandro Barbosa added several of his 20 points in garbage time. Steve Nash had 16 points and nine assists, and former Warriors forward Matt Barnes scored 10 points in his own homecoming.