Game Day Links

Pietrus has been outstanding since the trade deadline. He’s stuck to what he’s good at and has contributed valuable energy on defense and rebounding. After being completely written off as incompetent by many fans and pundits, the goof went and redeemed himself. Here comes the sympathetic press - Scott Ostler wrote a nice piece about Peety’s history:

Pietrus grew up on the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. His mother, who worked for the governor, died of cancer when Pietrus was 9, leaving nine kids (her own seven and two cousins) parentless. They were taken in by Mickael’s grandmother.

Mickael’s oldest brother, Ronnie Coco, went to France and became a basketball star. Mickael didn’t play basketball until he was about 14, and then only as a casual pastime, along with tennis and swimming. But when Mickael was 16, Ronnie brought Mickael and his brother Florent to France to go to school and play ball.

Mickael learned fast, signed a pro contract at 17, and by 21, he was in the NBA, with the Warriors.

Coming into the current season the Warriors were considered the Suns lite - a less refined version of the thrilling Phoenix squad. With the big Shaq trade, and the Warriors’ team identity solidifying, the most-entertaining torch appears to have been passed to Oakland. Marcel Mutoni from SLAM online digs the scene:  

There was a time, not too long ago, when a Warriors/Suns matchup was one of the most highly anticipated events in all of sports. A crazy mix of dunks, conscious-less three pointers, fast breaks, scintillating one-on-one plays, and total disregard for defense.

Basically, it was a sugar rush for the basketball viewing public, and we couldn’t get enough.

Today, you could say that things are slightly different.

The Warriors are the same team from last season (loose, care-free, and winning); Phoenix, though, has made one big significant change: With varying success, the Suns are experimenting with a strange combo of slow-it-down halfcourt execution and reckless fastbreak action (when Shaq takes a breather).

Tonight, in Phoenix, the Suns host the team that snatched their crown as the League’s funnest squad to watch. It’s safe to say that, should the Warriors have their way, things will get hectic out there. Try and keep up, Diesel.

The questions regarding the wisdom of the Shaq trade still linger for Phoenix. The question of what to do in the situation below requires no deliberation.