Suns Still Alive, But Mavs Get a Win
The Phoenix Suns are still alive in the race for the 8th seed in the 2009 NBA Playoffs, but they still need to win 75% or more of their games and hope that the Dallas Mavericks lose a few more games at the same time.
After winning 2 in a row (over crappy teams), the Suns were once again within 4 games of Dallas (after 2 Mavs losses as well), but Dallas got a much needed victory last night over the Pistons that once again pushes them up to a 4.5 game lead. With only 15 games left, the Suns are still mathematically in it, but the Mavs would have to lose 5 of their last 14 games and the Suns would have to win out. Much to the dismay of PHX Suns fans, I've gotta say that the Mavericks are not a bad team and will not finish the season on a losing note - owner Mark Cuban is too demanding and coach Rick Carlisle will make the players work their asses off to ensure a playoff birth. I also know that the Suns cannot put together a 15-game winning streak to close out the season, so our chances are not good.
I remain optimistic and hopeful that a miracle can happen. Hell, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd could both get bust an ankle/knee and Dallas would lose 75% of its remaining games... the chances of that happening are slim-to-none, however. And Amare Stoudemire is not returning for the Suns, so they are going to be ineffective against the Western Conference powers for the remainder of the season (as they have been for the past month or so).