Apr 30, 2008 - 11:18 AM
0 shoutsBy Ed Kacik PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer
The Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks are both headed for an offseason of head-scratching.
After finding a recipe for success which routinely led both franchises to the playoffs, the Suns and Mavericks deviated from their previous philosophies during the 2007-08 campaign, acquiring players which they believed gave them a better chance to win an inaugural NBA championship.
However, with both teams making quick first-round exits, they are left asking themselves if they made the right moves.
Entering this season, the Suns had won three consecutive Pacific Division titles but had failed to advance beyond the conference finals, losing twice to the methodical but efficient San Antonio Spurs during that stretch.
With a potential playoff matchup against San Antonio looming since midseason, Phoenix decided to send disgruntled star forward Shawn Marion and guard Marcus Banks to the Miami Heat in return for 14-time All-Star Shaquille O'Neal in early February.
O'Neal appeared to be the perfect candidate to fend off the Spurs' Tim Duncan - arguably the best power forward of all-time.
"This team has been there in the Western Conference, and they just couldn't get over the hump," O'Neal said in his first press conference as a member of the Suns. "I think with my experience and with my on- and off-court leadership, I can help them get over that hump.
"(Phoenix) is already a good team, but they have certain matchup problems with certain teams - teams that have always surpassed them to get to the next level."
After finishing sixth in the Western Conference, the Suns got exactly what they planned for - a first-round meeting with the third-seeded Spurs and a chance to prove that acquiring O'Neal was the right move.
Even with the 7-1 O'Neal in the lineup, the Suns were ousted for the fourth time in six seasons by San Antonio in five games during their Western Conference first-round series. It was the first time Phoenix had been eliminated in the first round since the 2002-03 campaign, when it also lost to the Spurs.
"It seems like every time we get to the playoffs we play the Spurs, and they beat us every time," Suns All-Star forward Amare Stoudemire said.
O'Neal averaged 15 points and nine rebounds a game against the Spurs but was no match for Duncan, who averaged nearly 25 points and almost 14 boards.
"They threw a lot of different things at us, obviously with (O'Neal) with his size and then Amare and Boris (Diaw) also did a very good job down (in the low post)," Duncan said. "They had a good rotation of big guys and were very physical all series. I'm just happy we're done with them honestly."
So, what happened?
Two-time MVP Steve Nash believes the team just needs more time to get used to each other.
"I think we have a lot of tweaking to do," he said. "We threw this together a couple months ago. That's not a lot of time when compared to the team that just beat us.
"While we showed moments of superiority, when it came down to the crunch, (the Spurs) familiarity, their toughness, all those winning characteristics really showed through. We really need to come out with some new ideas."
Those new ideas may come from a new coach as Sports Illustrated reported on Wednesday that 2004-05 NBA Coach of the Year Mike D'Antoni will not return to the Suns next season, citing a fractured relationship with general manager Steve Kerr and owner Robert Sarver.
The Mavericks finished with the best record in the NBA last season only to be ousted in the first round by the eighth-seeded Golden State Warriors.
Determined to avoid similar embarrassment, Dallas acquired Jason Kidd from the New Jersey Nets in exchange for a package of players, including former first-round draft pick Devin Harris.
However, the 35-year-old Kidd - seemingly in the twilight of his career - was exposed on both ends of the floor by New Orleans Hornets' MVP candidate Chris Paul as Dallas was eliminated, four-games-to-one, in their Western Conference first-round series.
"We went for one of the best point guards ever to play this game," 2006-07 MVP Dirk Nowitzki said. "It didn't play out the way we wanted it to, but sometimes you have to take some risks in this business."
Kidd averaged just over eight points and nearly seven assists a game in the playoffs while Paul torched the aging superstar for almost 25 points, 11 assists and four rebounds over the five-game series.
"Right now I think we're all disappointed," Nowitzki said. "I think we're a little better than what we showed in these games. You don't want to say stuff when you're emotional and disappointed, but you've always got to look at what you have to do to make the franchise better. We didn't play well enough to win this series."
Coach Avery Johnson praised Paul's play as the difference in the series.
"Chris is like a young Nate Archibald, he's relentless," Johnson said. "The Hornets have just as good a chance as anyone to make it all the way. When you have a point guard like Paul, the sky is the limit."
Apparently, that's what Dallas thought it was getting when it acquired Kidd.
Instead, like the Suns, all the Mavericks got in return for their bold move were empty results and an offseason full of second-guessing.
