The big news surrounding the NBA right now is that yet another All-Star wants out of the city that made him who he is.  This seems to be happening more and more in professional spots, especially with the madness that is free agency.  Players play well for a season or two, get an inflated sense of self value, and leave town if their contract is up, or try and force their hand if they're still locked into the initial deal that their current team was generous enough to give them.  Very rarely in the NBA, however, is this player the third best player on his own team.  I'm talking, of course, about Shawn Marion.

Shawn Marion, without question, is one of the crucial pieces of the Suns and his versatility allows them to be the team that they are.  The Suns are Steve Nash's team...their is no doubt about this.  I live in Phoenix and was here during the Stephon Marbury years when the Suns just couldn't seem to get it together. Once Nash came to town, however, everything changed. Nash's offensive brilliance instantly transformed the Suns into the juggernaut that they are the minute he returned to town.  At the same time, Amare Stoudamire is the future of the franchise.  Stoudamire's blend of athleticism and unmatched power, puts him with Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh as one of the games best, young big men.  With the best player and the future of the team taken care of, what role does that leave for Marion?  Well if you go by the views of the league and the fans, the answer is "all-star."  Marion made is third consecutive all-star team in '07 and fourth overall in his eight year career.  Marion also finished fourth in the league in Defensive Player of the Year voting.  Marion is obviously one of the league's best, and like so many before him, he wants to prove that he can carry a team and be "the man" on a lesser team.  While I can identify with that desire, it would be a big mistake for Marion career wise.

The Phoenix Suns and Shawn Marion are a perfect fit.  He's an athletic forward who can run and finish on the offensive end and is quick and talented enough defensively to guard any position 1-4 on the opposing team.  When you look at Marion, it is clear that he is better suited as a Small Forward but in the increasingly perimeter driven NBA Marion is counted on to play 4 for long stretches of time.  Here he is able to flourish on offense because he is often guarded by taller and slower players because the quicker ones are forced to cover Nash, Barbosa, Bell or whoever else Phoenix puts on the court.  Since Nash returned to Phoenix in '04-'05, Marion is averaging 19.6 ppg and is shooting 51% from the field, up from 46% before Nash.  To fully appreciate the kind of player Steve Nash is just look at the some notable players who he's played with and their FG%'s before and after him:

Note: Nash only started 67 games in his first two seasons in Dallas ('99 and '00) so his true impact was not felt. For this breakdown, only the '01-'04 seasons will be counted for Nash in Dallas. During those four seasons he only missed 16 games.

  Dirk Nowitzki:

w/ Nash ('01-'04): 46.9%

w/o Nash ('05-'07): 48.0% (however, in '05, first season without Nash, Dirk shot 45.9% his worst season as a starter).

Playoffs w/ Nash ('01-'04): 45.5%

Playoffs w/o Nash ('05-'07): 43.6%

  Michael Finley:

w/ Nash ('01-'04): 44.8%

w/o Nash ('05-'07): 41.8%

Playoffs w/ Nash ('01-'04): 41.6%

Playoffs w/o Nash ('05-'07): 43.1%

  Raja Bell:

w/ Nash ('03, '06-'07): 44.4%

w/o Nash ('01-'02, '04-'05): 42.9%

Playoffs w/ Nash ('03, '06-'07): 48.9%

Playoffs w/o Nash ('01-'02): 43.3% (13-30 in a reserve role)

  Shawn Marion:

w/ Nash ('05-'07): 50.7%

w/o Nash ('00-'04): 46.0%

Playoffs w/ Nash ('05-'07): 49%

Playoffs w/o Nash ('00-'01, '03): 38.8%

As you can see, no player has benefited more in terms of shooting percentage, in both the regular season and the playoffs, than Shawn Marion. Dirk's shooting percentage has gone up during the regular season but Dirk's game is more individual based and not as dependent on receiving great passes. Michael Finley's percentages are a little misleading because he has always been such a streaky shooter. His playoff percentage is up in San Antonio because he is playing a reserve role now and is no longer able to just jack up shots whenever he wants This will obviously translate into a higher shooting percentage, especially in the playoffs when it really matters. But if you analyze Shawn Marion's numbers, it is obvious that having Nash has turned him into a much better offensive player. When you add the fact that Marion has been an all-star every year since Nash has been in Phoenix the evidence begins to mount.

Now for the sake of argument, lets take a look at some of the places Marion could go and see if he would really be happier there:

  Utah:

Many people were proposing a disgruntled player for disgruntled player swap of Shawn Marion for Andrei Kirilenko. Aside from the fact that Suns GM Steve Kerr would never pull the trigger on this in a hundred years, this trade has some other serious flaws. If I'm Shawn Marion, the reason I want out of Phoenix is so that I can go be the face of a franchise. I want to be the present and the future and drive by playgrounds and see little kids wearing #31's running around. In Utah this would not happen. Marion would be in a very similar situation in Utah as he is in Phoenix, were he wouldn't be the future of the franchise (Deron Williams) or it's best player (Carlos Boozer). Also, the reason Kirilenko wants out of town is because he feels coach Jerry Sloan has been suffocating him offensively. Hmm...Kirilenko is known as more of a defensive presence and is a questionable shooter from outside the paint. Sound like anyone you know?? No one questions Marion's defensive prowess but there's not a fan in Phoenix that doesn't wince just a bit every time Marion shoots one of his trademark jump shots. If Marion wants out of Phoenix to have his own team, Utah is not the place to go.

Los Angeles Lakers:

The Lakers have much more potential for Marion but this situation is also riddled with flaws. First of all, as anyone who has been following these developments knows, Marion could be traded for Lamar Odom and another small contract and the salaries would work out. Now, just because the salaries work out doesn't mean either team should pull the trigger. For one, Odom is returning from off-season knee surgery and Amare Stoudamire just had minor knee surgery as well. On a scale of 1-10 how much do you think Steve Kerr and Mike D'Antoni want their starting 4 and 5 to be coming off knee surgery?? -19?? Second, and many people seem to have forgotten this fact, Lamar Odom is one violation of the league's drug policy from being banned for life. Career over. Something else to consider. Granted, Odom has been playing very well as of late and would be more of a traditional 4 than Marion but would anyone actually pick him over Marion? I don't think so.

From Marion's point of view it doesn't quite fit either. Playing in Los Angeles is every athlete's fantasy who wants greater exposure and his arrival in LA would be very celebrated. But like everyone on the planet knows, the Lakers are Kobe Bryant's team and he's not going anywhere. Marion is actually 3 months older than Kobe as well so he won't outlast him. Marion would be the unequivocal number two option behind Bryant but going to a team where everything he accomplishes will remain in the shadows of the games greatest player can't be too high on his list. Even if it is now, after two seasons and around 85 wins he'll probably regret leaving the valley of the Sun for a team that's stuck in neutral.

  The Solution:

The ideal situation for Shawn Marion would be to swing a trade to an Eastern Conference team. At least there he would be a perennial all-star along with, Bosh, Howard, Garnett, Carter and LeBron. A team like Indiana seems to make the most sense. Indiana could dump Jermaine O'Neal who would love to get out and actually get decent value for him. Marion is set to make 16 million this season where as O'Neal is set to make 19 million. With a little tweaking this deal would definitely be doable and both teams would benefit. The Suns would start a lineup of Nash, Bell, Hill, O'Neal and Stoudamire with Barbosa and Diaw coming off the bench. This team remains at the top of the west and might actually match up better with the Spurs because they could rotate their bigs on Duncan. The Pacers on the other hand would start, Jamaal Tinsley, Danny Granger, Shawn Marion, Ike Diogu and Troy Murphy. With Granger and Marion the Pacers would have an abundance of athleticism at the wing position which is crucial in the guard dominated Eastern Conference.

The bottom line of all these talks and hypothesis' are that nothing is going to happen. Shawn Marion isn't going to go anywhere because he is already in the perfect situation. He is a fan favorite here in Phoenix and not unappreciated (like he thinks), at least among the hometown faithful. He gets to play with the best point guard in the league and a dominant big man who forces double teams. He has a coach who loves to run and showcase his athleticism and, one last little nugget, he is the highest paid player on the team! So Shawn, I know a part of you wants to go be the man for a struggling franchise, but that's what video games are for. NBA Live '08 just came out, go have fun. In real life though, just take a look around, embrace your situation and have another all-star season in Phoenix. You'll be happier in the end.

-Vip