Former Sun Casey Jacobsen has been to New Orleans, Spain, Germany and now Siberia (the Memphis Grizzlies) since he left
Phoenix in the Jimmy Jackson trade during the 2004-05 season.

 But he still has close friends on the team and watches their moves from afar. Here’s his take on the Shaquille O’Neal trade:

 “I certainly didn’t envision them doing it. The style they’ve played, everyone in the league is trying to imitate it but no one does it quite like they do.

 “I don’t think they’ve abandoned it got rid of it just because the brought in Shaq and got rid of Shawn (
Marion). Their expectations are to win a championship and they are doing what they think they need to do.

 “But here’s where I was surprised: Last year they were an Amare Stoudemire ejection (in Game 4 of the
San Antonio series) away from possibly going all the way. They were THIS close. Under different circumstances, with everyone healthy and available to play that (Game5), it’s a completely different series and possibly a different outcome.

 “They’ve been so close for so long, I figured they would give that team one more chance, But that’s what they pay (general manager) Steve Kerr. to make the big decisions.”

 The Brent Barry Derby dragged into late Tuesday afternoon without a resolution but the Suns still feel they are in the running with San Antonio to sign the veteran free agent.

 Suns general manager Steve Kerr was scouting the Texas-Kansas State game in Manhattan Monday night when he decided he wanted to meet with Barry personally. After the game, he drove to Kansas City and flew to San Antonio where he met with Barry and his wife for about two hours on Tuesday morning.

 Kerr, who was on his way out of San Antonio this afternoon, said he expected Barry’s decision to come very shortly. He wouldn’t comment on reports that Barry is now deciding between only Phoenix and San Antonio – where he won a pair of championships with the Spurs in 2005 and 2007 and has his family rooted.

 The Suns can offer Barry more playing time and more crucial role with the team. Phoenix is in need of not only another 3-point shooter to create better spacing on the floor but a player capable of handling the ball and keeping the offense moving when Steve Nash is out of the lineup.

 There are indications that Barry, who turned 36 on New Year’s Eve, want to play beyond this season and is looking for a two-year committment from the Suns or any team seeking to sign him. Since he’s already made $5.6 million this season he’d likely be willing to see the prorated veteran’s minimum, but would that be enough for 2007-08? 

 If the Suns fail to land Barry, the Suns aren’t likely to pursue another veteran guard, Sam Cassell, if as expected his contract is bought out by the Clippers. But the Suns will be watching to see if shooter Gordan Giricek, who has played sparingly in Philadelphia since being sent there in the Kyle Korver deal with Utah two months ago, is bought out by the Sixers. Philadelphia will be in Phoenix to play the Suns on Saturday, the deadline for free agents to sign with team and remain eligible for the playoffs.

 Just when the Houston Rockets had things rolling with 12 straight wins and looked like a serious threat to the other Western Conference powers, one of the their superstars went down with a serious injury.

 And guess what? This time is wasn’t Tracy McGrady.

 Yao Ming is done for the season with a stress fracture in his left foot, and likely so are the Rockets, who had pulled themselves into a playoff spot and were a serious threat under new coach Rick Adelman. Now 22 points and 10.8 rebounds are gone and the Rockets are left with a 7-foot-7 hole in the middle of their lineup.

Now with only 26 games left and the West loaded, Houston will be hard pressed to even hold on to a playoff spot with the creaky Dikembe Mutombo as their only big-man option, much less make a dent in the postseason. The trade deadline has past with only free agents and buyout candidates now left as viable fall-back plans.

 The loss of Yao might also take the Rockets out of the Brent Barry sweepstakes. There were reports Monday that the Rockets were making a hard push for Barry, but that was before tests on Yao revealed the bad news.

 Barry is expected to choose between Boston, Phoenix and San Antonio today, but there are indications that the Celtics would rather have Sam Cassell if, as expected a buyout is worked out with the Clippers today.

 As expected, Seattle bought out Brent Barry’s $5.6 million contract and released him on Friday, two days after acquiring him from the Spurs in the Kurt Thomas trade.

 Now the question is: Does Barry want to go back to San Antonio, where his family is settled and things are familiar but playing time is limited? Or does he sign with the Suns, who have a spot open for him as a 3-point shooter?

 The longer Barry takes to decide, the worse the news is for the Suns. He has been out for weeks with a calf injury and he can’t re-sign with the Spurs for 30 days. The Spurs can offer him more money than the veteran’s minimum – they have their mid-level exception available — but are they willing to up the ante to bring him back?

 The Celtics are also rumored to be interested in Barry, but they would appear to be a distant third in this derby.

 The Suns need another 3-point threat who can run the floor and Barry is still athletic enough to keep up for short stints at age 36.

The Suns failed to make a trade before Thursday’s 1 p.m. (Arizona time) NBA trade deadline.

 Efforts to acquire Los Angeles Clippers guard Quenton Ross did not pan out. Ross would have given the Suns the perimeter player they are seeking since the departure of Shawn Marion. The Clippers also had motivation to deal Ross, as they could have gotten under the luxury tax threshold. But the two teams could not come to an agreement.

Instead, the Suns will sign a free agent by Friday – the two-week deadline to add a 13th man to the roster after trading Marion and Marcus Banks for Shaquille O’Neal. Free agent candidates are Linton Johnson or Bobby Jones, but either would likely get only a 10-day contract.

The Suns would prefer keep an eye out for players who might get bought out of their contracts. Potential buyout candidates could be Brent Barry, who was dealt from San Antonio to Seattle in the Kurt Thomas trade; Gordan Giricek of Philadelphia; and Tyronn Lue, was traded to Sacramento in the Mike Bibby deal. Those players would only be owed a prorated portion of the $1.2 veterans minimum salary.

Any player added to the Suns roster by March 1 would be eligible for postseason play.

 It was nice to see them finally show up Wednesday at US Airways Center.

 Not the Lakers. With Pau Gasol on board and Andrew Bynum waiting in the wings to help out Kobe Bryant, the Lakers are a legitmate championship threat — although Bynum’s return might cause more problems than he solves chemistry-wise.

 Not the Suns. Even with Shaquille O’Neal looking like a guy who didn’t study for a test and was winging it, the Suns put up 124 points — with Raja Bell going scoreless, Boris Diaw struggling and Leandro Barbosa going 7-for-16. They showed that a trip to the basket won’t be as easy as it has been in the past.

 The Lakers won, they looked good doing it. But be sure of this: They took note that the Suns will be there waiting in May.

 I’m talking about the crowd, which has been there in body all season (101 straight sellouts) but often without spirit — unless you count booing at Diaw or the odd cat-call at coach Mike D’Antoni for not running more plays for Amare Stoudemire.

 Not Wednesday night. Shaquille O’Neal was plugged in, and the building was playoff electric. Kobe Bryant noticed. Steve Nash, who has been critical of the malaise from Day 1 this season, applauded. And although we could all do without the fistfights in the stands — including one particularly ugly one in the lower bowl during the second half — the crowd brought the energy and the passion for the first time during a 37-17 season.

 Whether that lasts more than one game remains to be seen. After 50 games, the fans were heard: The Suns had grown stale, winning 50-60 games wasn’t enough anymore and watching the other teams perform a layup drill wasn’t good enough anymore.

 It was hard to find all the fans who slammed the Shaquille O’Neal trade Wednesday night. The expected pregame frenzy stayed strong all night. Every rebound, assist and defensive effort was received with a roar. Every basket raised the vocal roof, while the dunks had 1-2 punch on the building — Shaq’s impact on the baskets followed by the foundation-shaking response.

 The Suns lost a game, but they gained some mojo.

  With the NBA trade deadline looming at 1 p.m. Thursday, the Suns are working the phones hard to come up with a player that can help them beyond the free agents they brought in this week.

 With only second-round picks (or perhaps cash, or both) the Suns are trying to pry 6-foot-6 guard Quinton Ross away from the Los Angeles Clippers. Ross makes only $824,000 this year and will be a free agent at the end of the season. He is a strong defender and rebounder who started against Phoenix in the Western Conference Quarterfinals two years ago. His offensive capability is limited, but the Suns won’t be asking him to score.

 Sources with the team said interest has cooled on Denver’s Yakouba Diawara and Seattle’s Mickael Gelabale, leaving Ross as the main target with the deadline approaching.

 If they don’t get a deal done, the Suns could still sign one of the players brought in Tuesday — likely either Linton Johnson or Bobby Jones — to a 10-day contract and wait to see if a player is bought out. Three-point specialsit Brent Barry, who was traded to Seattle earlier today in the Kurt Thomas deal with San Antonio, is one of the players Phoenix will watch.

 Even if the Suns swing a deal for Ross, that wouldn’t keep them from going after Barry. Sources say the team would either add him as a 14th player to the roster or cut loose one of the veteran minimum players on the teams (Sean Marks, Eric Piatkowski, etc.) in the hopes that another team would pick them up for the playoff run.

 Either way, it appears Suns owner Robert Sarver is prepared to go deeper into luxury tax red ink to make the team stronger for the playoffs.

 While Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire were at the All-Star Game and Shaquille O’Neal was working out back in Phoenix Sunday , the rest of the Suns were spread out in search of some rare in-season R-and-R.

 Leandro Barbosa was in Cabo San Lucas. Boris Diaw was in Hawaii, while Sean Marks headed to Las Vegas.  But it’s back to work Tuesday as the Suns prepare for the roughest possible three-game homestand imaginable — beginning Wednesday against the Lakers and continuing Friday against Boston and Sunday against Detroit.

  MONEY TALKS — Here’s another reason to make the O’Neal trade. His deal expires after the 2009-10 season, as does Raja Bell’s. The Suns have a team option on Steve Nash while Amare Stoudemire has an opt-out window on his seven-year max deal. That could leave the Suns with up to $45 million in free agent spending money, or more than $25 million even if Nash and Stoudemire stick around.

 Will all that happen? Who knows in the wild world of the NBA. If someone told me two weeks ago that Shaq would be wearing purple and orange I would’ve laughed out loud. But if you don’ t think Phoenix’s capologists didn’t have all those numbers in mind before pulling the trigger, you haven’t been paying attention.

 The Suns have two needs — perimeter defense and an outside shooter — and would like to address one with their vacant 13th roster spot created by the Shaquille O’Neal trade.

 The Sacramento Bee reported Sunday that the Suns have shown interest in guard Tyonn Lue, who was shipped to Sacramento from Atlanta Saturday in the Mike Bibby deal.

 Lue, 30, would give the Suns another option at the backup point guard spot and a guy who’s shooting 43.5 percent from 3-point range this season (38.7 percent for his career). He also has an expiring contract that would only cost the Suns the prorated portion of his $3.5 million salary for this season. He’s also a former teammate and two-time NBA title winner with Shaquille O’Neal in Los Angeles

 The downside is he’s another short guard at 6-foot even (the Suns have several already) and he’s 175 pounds dripping wet. But picking up Lue is better than bringing in a free agent who will never get off the end of the Phoenix bench.

 Just in case you thought Jerry Colangelo would never change his NBA colors or take on the overwhelming task of rebuilding the New York Knics, today’s New York Post reminds us otherwise.

“If someone calls and wants to have a conversation, I’m open to talk,” Colangelo told the Post while discussing the U.S. Olympic Team during All-Star weekend. “I like New York.”

When asked by The Post if he liked the Knicks’ situation, Colangelo said: “Do I like the Knicks situation? The Knicks situation is what it is. It would be real challenge. It is a challenge for anyone - present management, ownership or new. But some people like those challenges and some don’t. It’s a big one.”

 Read the whole article here:

http://www.nypost.com/seven/02162008/sports/knicks/colangelo__knick_job_a_challenge_97918.htm