The Suns have not made an appearance in NBA postseason play since '10NBAE/getty images
The Grizzlies and Suns sit at the bottom of the Western Conference, and local columnists are starting to take both franchises to task, with the ARIZONA REPUBLIC's Kent Somers writing Suns Owner Robert Sarver "should feel a heavy onus to improve a team that's been a civic embarrassment for too long." What is not part of the team's new arena renovation deal is a "promise by Sarver to take the necessary steps to produce" a winning team. The Suns have not made the playoffs since '10, and Sarver "doesn’t seem inclined to sell the Suns, which rules that out as a path to improvement." But he "could take some immediate steps that would improve the organization." Sarver needs to "stop meddling in basketball decisions" and "hire an experienced, talented person" to run basketball ops. He then should "hire an NBA lifer to serve as a consultant" to that same leader (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 1/25).
SPEAKING OUT: Phoenix will pay $150M of the $230M projected cost for the Suns arena renovation, and ESPN's Rachel Nichols noted public money "should not go to fund billionaire welfare." Nichols: "I'm sorry. It doesn't just apply to the NBA, it applies to the NFL, it applies to the NHL. The economic impact of a specific arena in the downtown area has not been shown to buoy the city. It's great for the city to have teams, but owners should not be able to threaten moving those teams from place to place based on who's going to give them money. Nobody should give them public money and then they can just stay where their fans want them" ("The Jump," ESPN, 1/24).
KEEPING THINGS UNDER WRAP: In Memphis, Mark Giannotto writes, "Dear Robert Pera, For the sake of this city, I really hope you know what you’re doing." The Grizzlies owner's visits to the city are "sporadic," and interactions with the local media are "even more rare." Giannotto: "I don’t know much about your vision for the future of this city’s NBA franchise. ... you’ve mostly been an absentee owner who operates in the shadows." But it appears franchise mainstays Marc Gasol and Mike Conley "will be on their way out of town as soon as the NBA’s Feb. 7 trade deadline," so maybe the organization is "finally ready to embrace a full-fledged rebuild." Giannotto: "I assume there’s some sort of plan. ... But I can only assume because you haven’t told any of us that yet" (Memphis COMMERCIAL APPEAL, 1/25).
