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Burns: Suns fans: Reality bites

Jun 25, 2009, 7:37 AM | Updated: Jan 14, 2011, 4:23 pm

Good morning Suns fans, this is your wake up call.

Two words popped into my head when told that Shaquille O’Neal was traded to Cleveland.

Reality Bites.

The reality is that there was no way, absolutely zero chance, Shaq was going to be on this team next year.

The reality is that he never should have been here in the first place.

The reality is that Steve Nash didn’t want Shaq back and the Suns covet a Nash extension. You do the math.

The reality is that a team so far over the luxury tax and yet so far away from hopes of a championship simply must dump salary when presented the chance.

The reality is the Suns had their chance…..and missed.

Reality Bites.

From the moment the Suns acquired Shaq it played like a desperate move. A blackjack player who hits on 17 when the dealer is showing a Queen. A decision made from panic not logic.

Look at this team and their situation. Aging. Returning to the run-and-gun. Suffocating financially. Wanting Nash for a few more years but not feeling the love back in their direction. Amare’s opt-out looming. The Lakers claiming a title while the Spurs load up for one more run.

What were they going to do? Keep Shaq? No, this one had all the suspense of gravity. Throw the ball up and watch it come down.

Maybe you’re upset the Suns didn’t get more in return. If that’s the case then I think you were overvaluing Shaq’s value and underestimating the Suns desperation to get rid of him. Steve Kerr and Robert Sarver could’ve held out for a better deal (better than a salary dump + second round pick) but I find it difficult to believe a better one was coming.

I hope for two things.

First, that the rumors are true involving the Suns and Thunder. The reported deal would have the teams swap first round picks this year (Suns would go from 14 to 25). The Suns would then get back the first round pick they inexcusably dealt to the Thunder years ago in the Kurt Thomas trade. It’s a classic City Slickers style do-over.

The rebuilding project would then have the green light to begin now with the freedom of knowing the first round pick won’t be headed to the heartland. Stop the charade, acknowledge who you are and get to work. Love it. Do it.

The second thing I hope for is a little more vague; I want a plan. Frankly since the day they traded for Shaq there hasn’t been one. Shaq. Marion. D’Antoni. Porter. Lopez. Barnes. Diaw. Bell. Richardson. Gentry. The last two years of this team’s existence has been largely trial and error. The Suns just don’t seem to know who they are and who they’re supposed to be.

Kerr and Sarver are both driven to win. Of that I have no doubt.

And while I hate to say it because it happened so long ago, days like today I miss Bryan Colangelo.

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Burns: Suns fans: Reality bites