Stoudemire to start off bench for Suns
In the ongoing saga of Amare Stoudemire and his surgically repaired knees, the Phoenix Suns are reporting that STAT will come off of the bench to start the season. Amare's offseason has been filled with good days and bad, so he doesn't seem to be comfortable playing a lot of minutes yet. With the amount of money the Suns paid him for the future, they should be letting him come back slow as well. If he comes back too quickly, he could end up like Chris Webber or Penny Hardaway.
Stoudemire will come off the bench to start the season, with D'Antoni expecting to play him 15 to 20 minutes a game.
Stoudemire was an All-Star in 2004-05, and a dominant force in the Suns' Western Conference finals series against San Antonio. But Stoudemire missed all of last season, except for an aborted three-game comeback, because of microfracture surgery on his left knee. He later underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee to address wear and tear that occurred during his rehabilitation.
That has led to an uneven recovery, with recurrent pain sending him to the sidelines from time to time. Each setback is closely watched and Stoudemire has grown weary of the scrutiny.
Steve Nash has noted that the offense has changed over the past two years, but Stoudemire said that adjustment is no big deal.
"It's a little different," he said. "It's just that I haven't played in a year. It's not really hard to fit into this offense. It's not hard at all. It's just that I haven't played in a full year, so it's just a little rust." - Associated Press, FoxSports.com
The Suns are the early favorite to win the NBA Championship (along w/ the Spurs), but everything hinges on Amare's return and his ability to contribute late in the season. If he's there, the Suns should be in the NBA Finals; if he's not there, another Western Conference Finals could be in their future, but they'd have to get through San Antonio or Dallas to get there (new rules allow best teams to meet up in the later rounds).