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After losing in the Western Conference Finals to the eventual champion Spurs, the Phoenix Suns came into the offseason with a clear goal of improving their defense, depth, and rebounding while maintaining their identity as an uptempo, high scoring team.

Keeping Steve Nash, Amare Stoudemire, and Shawn Marion means they likely accomplished the second part of the goal.

The addition of guys like Kurt Thomas, Raja Bell, James Jones, and a few other solid veteran role players, along with some young potential in Boris Diaw, Lucas Tischer, and Dijon Thompson means they went a long way towards accomplishing the first.

Further improvement from young franchise player Amare Stoudemire should help this team get better at both ends of the floor as well.

Individual Breakdowns

Starters:

Steve Nash: Predicted Stats; 34 mpg/14 ppg/3 rpg/11 apg/ fg/3pt/ft% around .500/.400/.900. Similar year to last year. Still has Amare and Marion as his man targets on the break, and has a new pair of athletic 3-point shooters to run on the wings. Will still run plenty of P+R in the halfcourt.

Raja Bell: Predicted Stats; 32 mpg/15 ppg/3.5 rpg/1.5 apg/1 stl/.400+ 3pt%. Athletic defender who runs the floor well and is a good shooter from 3. Will play a Q type roll in the offense, shooting better percentages, and unlike Q also contributes at the other end.

Shawn Marion: Predicted Stats; 38 mpg/20 ppg/10 rpg/2 apg/4 combined blk/stl. Marion moves back to the starting SF job, but he will still likely play around half his minutes as the primary backup big man, with Amare or KT at C. Will do the same thing he always has, contributing in every facet of the game, as well as creating and finishing all sorts of fastbreaks. A key for the running game.

Kurt Thomas: Predicted Stats; 34 mpg/10 ppg/9 rpg/1.5 apg/about 1spg, 1bpg. KT will guard the best opposing big man at all times, freeing Amare to roam and block shots, as well as jump out on the break. He will be our primary rebounder and inbounder, and in the half court offense will be asked mostly to hit the 15 foot jumper whenever the defense gives it to him, as well as set a lot of picks for other players.

Amare Stoudemire: Predicted Stats; 38 mpg/30 ppg/10 rpg/2 apg/2 bpg/1 spg/.500+ fg%. Amare will pick up where he left off in last years playoffs. He will still get plenty of easy opportunities on the break and in P+R with Nash, but he will now also be the main go-to guy after plays break down (or when we just want to give Nash a break), a role Joe Johnson had previously occupied. Along with the improvement he has shown every year, and increased minutes, he should be averaging numbers worthy of the MVP award.

6th Man -- James Jones: Predicted Stats; 30 mpg/12 ppg/5 rpg/1.5 apg/1 stl/.400+ 3pt%. Jones should be the 6th man for this team, providing size and athleticism on the wing off the bench. He rebounds and defends well, and also has a sweet 3-point stroke that he will get plenty of chances to show off.

The Rest:

This is where things become less certain, on the Suns bench. Barbosa is going to be given a chance this year to prove he is the Suns backup PG (and possible Nash replacement), and if he plays well he could end up playing 24-28 minutes and putting up good, Bobby Jackson type numbers. If he struggles, chances are Boris Diaw will be given a chance as a point-forward type, but given his lack of shooting I think Eddie House would end up forming a unit of sorts with him, each playing just when Nash is out to give us a good balanced backcourt at both ends.

Guys like Jimmy Jackson and Brian Grant will likely play only spot minutes, but both are veterans that can be counted on to step into a large role if a starter becomes injured.

If neither Barbosa or Diaw proves to be dependable as a backup PG, JimmyJax would likely get that role, with the ball going through Amare's hands in the halfcourt.

Overall Outlook

The Suns have a good collection of young talent and steady veterans, and whoever is playing best is going to get the minutes. As a whole the bench should be much improved from last year. After the top 6 guys I have listed, there are 34 minutes left to be filled. Given the ability of multiple guys to play multiple positions, those minutes are not position specific.

Suns owner Robert Sarver was quoted as saying the coaching staff expects to be able to score 3 more points per game this year, and with my top 6 predicted to score 101, that would leave about 12 ppg coming from the rest of these guys. I expect Barbosa to step up and earn most of those minutes, as well as score most of those points.

As a team, the Suns are capable of improving at both ends of the floor this year, and at the least should be a much more consistent team on defense and on the boards. Until a 6 game slide when Nash got injured for the first time last year, this team was on pace to challenge the Bulls record 72 wins. The second time Nash went out the team responded well, going 2-1, including a win in Dallas, so possible injuries to him aren't likely to kill the team as much as they did in that first instance.

I predict a minimum of 56 wins (and a division title), with a good chance of winning around the 62 they managed last year, and an outside shot of winning a few more if they are healthy all year again.

Full Roster:
Steve Nash
Amare Stoudemire
Shawn Marion
Raja Bell
Kurt Thomas
James Jones
Leandro Barbosa
Eddie House
Boris Diaw
Jimmy Jackson
Brian Grant
Pat Burke
Dijon Thompson (likely in D-league)
Lucas Tischer (also D-league)