Bickley's smarter than I give him credit for. He has a good column on the Suns most recent trade.
The Suns realized they were just running in place with the crappy lineup of Hedo Turkoglu, Channing Frye and Hakim Warrick that Alvin Gentry used every night. Small Forwards Anonymous is still at large, but this time they're better defensively and better athletically.
The Suns realized Steve Nash isn't able to win by himself. Amare Stoudemire's attitude and on-court fire weren't as easily replaced as they thought. I completely agree with the Suns for not giving in to Amare's financial demands. However, it's been well-documented that it takes at least two, and now more like 3 or 4, bona fide superstars to win in the NBA.
The bona fide superstars on NBA champions since 1991:
1991: Michael Jordan & Scottie Pippen
1992: Michael Jordan & Scottie Pippen
1993: Michael Jordan & Scottie Pippen
1994: Hakeem Olajuwon
1995: Hakeem Olajuwon & Clyde Drexler
1996: Michael Jordan & Scottie Pippen
1997: Michael Jordan & Scottie Pippen
1998: Michael Jordan & Scottie Pippen
1999: David Robinson & Tim Duncan
2000: Shaquille O' Neal & Kobe Bryant
2001: Shaquille O' Neal & Kobe Bryant
2002: Shaquille O' Neal & Kobe Bryant
2003: Tim Duncan & Tony Parker
2004: Chauncey Billups & Rip Hamilton
2005: Tim Duncan & Tony Parker
2006: Dwayne Wade & Shaquille O' Neal
2007: Tim Duncan & Tony Parker
2008: Paul Pierce & Kevin Garnett
2009: Kobe Bryant & Pau Gasol
2010: Kobe Bryant & Pau Gasol
2011: Dirk Nowitzki
As we can see, for the most part, it's a tandem of a superstar big man and superstar small man that wins championships. That's what the Suns had. Not only did they have it, they were on the brink of the Finals. There's no way to know how much of a chance they would've had against the Celtics.
Now the Suns have a big man locked up for a long time. Marcin Gortat is good. He's been playing against Dwight Howard (aka The Biggest Man In The World) for a few years. If that doesn't toughen you up, nothing will.
I would like to see the Suns go after Greg Oden or Yao Ming. Their training staff is top notch. I don't know why, but everybody is less injury prone when playing for the Suns. Greg Oden is an unknown who is worth a gamble at the right price. Yao Ming is a known game-changer who is worth a gamble at the right price.
The Suns will be fighting for the 6th seed now instead of 9th place. Good trade, Lance. I still miss Steve Kerr.
