Veteran Sports Illustrated writer, Jack McCallum, wrote a book last year titled Seven Seconds or Less: My Season on the Bench with the Runnin’ and Gunnin’ Phoenix Suns. Well, in the opening round of last year’s NBA playoffs, the Suns came back from down 3-1 in the best of seven series to win and advance to the second round. There was a questionable clothesline move by Raja Bell, some nice fighting, and bitter hatred exchanged between the teams. And with the pair set to square off in the opening round of the playoffs once again this year, Mike Bresnahan of the LA Times has pulled a couple of the more piercing selections from McCallum’s book. Amongst my favorites:
“As the Suns see it, the Lakers trek along the low road,” McCallum wrote. “Bryant is arrogant. [Kwame] Brown is just a big body with nothing behind it. Smush Parker was a Sun for a couple of weeks [in 2004-05] and no one rued his departure. Lamar Odom is just too damn big and long. Luke Walton seems like a nice guy … but he laid out [Tim] Thomas in Game 3 and triggered a miserable chain of events [for the Suns]. Sasha Vujacic is an all-universe whiner with an unpronounceable surname. Plus, Phil Jackson sits on a throne.”
…
The Suns, while watching video of their Game 1 victory, poked fun at the Lakers’ defense.
“This is when we’re at our best, when we’re changing ends on the fly,” Coach Mike D’Antoni said. “They have no answer for it. Kwame is awful. Odom’s a very average defender. Vujacic can’t guard anybody. And Bryant in the open floor takes chances that aren’t good.”
…
An unidentified member of the Lakers left a scouting report of the Suns at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel after Game 5 in Phoenix. It quickly ended up in the hands of Suns coaches, much to the Lakers’ dismay.
And my personal favorite from Suns owner Robert Sarver
“This L.A. [expletive] has got to stop,” Sarver said afterward. “This is war. I hate those guys.”
Nice. Something tells me it won’t take seven games for the series to be decided this time. I’m going with Phoenix in 5 — Kobe’s good for one win, nothing more.
