Sitting in the corner office of a Valley business leader this past week, he asked, “What do you think of the Arizona sports scene right now?” An hour and a half later, I left his office.
Suns – When the Suns are good, it’s a Suns state. When they aren’t, they will try to tell you that they are. That’s pro sports in this day and age. Remember “Planet Orange” or “Seven Seconds or Less”? Alan Parsons Project Eye to open the night and finish on a final possession down one, only to see “Thunder” stick a shot or Charles grab the rebound for the victory? (go to :20 mark here to jolt your memory)
From Robert Sarver through the current ownership, the stormy skies have been more the story than the bright days. As a whole, the organization has never won a title in 58 seasons. They’ve won 53% of their games in that time. Yes, complex numbers for the die-hard Suns fan (you’ve died hard many times). There will be energy in the building when SGA, Luka, Lebron, Steph, Cooper Flagg, and others come to town, but what exactly is going to bring the interest when it’s New Orleans on a Sunday night after an NFL Sunday in November? I’d like to see and hear more humility and less media hype around our heroes of the hardwood. The only way the passion comes back is with deep playoff runs and a group of players that fans can genuinely root for. The last few seasons, the roster hasn’t been embraceable, and the forced “this is great” shouldn’t be accepted…
Cardinals – Kyler doesn’t play well. They lose, and he’ll be gone. Kyler plays well, they might win and get into the playoffs…
Diamondbacks – I am on the side of the street; they should’ve had more in their bullpen or pursued other options earlier, beyond Justin Martinez and Puk. The other side is, “Well, all of the injuries depleted the bullpen”. I’ve had the “next man up” phrase shoved down my throat through the years of doing this. Well, it’s mid-August, and the bullpen has choked away three games in the last week and a half. Who will be held accountable for this at the end of the year if/when they miss the postseason? Will we start to see more in the next phase of the ownership group unfold in the coming months? All to say, they are hanging on in the race for the final NL Wildcard spot…
NHL – There is a group that would make a solid base for new ownership and expansion. I will not be surprised to see that group come to the forefront before the end of 2025. The NHL would be impressed. The location of the arena could be the former Fiesta Mall site off the U.S. 60, or the 101/202 interchange to the northeast of Tempe Marketplace across from Sloan Park…
Arizona State Football – They will win eight games (a great season in the Big 12 this year), and people will wonder what went wrong, lest you forget how many narrow escapes the Sun Devils had in their magical Peach Bowl run. Kenny Dillingham will be pursued by bigger programs(USC), and central campus is going to have to pony up more to keep Kenny here. We all say things that sound good at the time, and I believe Kenny when he says he’s going to be here. However, once the mid-boggling dollars come from Big Cigars at other programs and the NFL digs into him, it will surprise me if the President of the University steps up to keep him. Kenny appears to be the tonic to fix Arizona State Football long-term, much like Lute Olsen was to Arizona Basketball when he first arrived. However, it’s not just Kenny; it’s also his staff. They WILL be pursued, and some should consider leaving to advance their careers as head coaches. But, there will be others who will get a phone call from a program offering bigger dollars, and would Graham Rossini get the nod from those above him to move the decimal point? This isn’t a matter of “If”. Arizona State football is the most interesting product in the Valley right now, and it’s not even close…
From my vantage point, Arizona Wildcat basketball is where I’m seeing and hearing the most buzz across the state in my circles. It’s no surprise, given the roster includes Valley sensation and high school all-American Koa Peat, as well as LeBron James’ son, Bryce. Eliav Gabay from our team went to Tucson this past week to check in on James.
Bryce James Reveals Best Advice He’s Received from LeBron James
In case you missed this, Eric Sorenson delivered the goods in his weekly Zone Read column.
The post Looking at the sports landscape/most interesting program across the state first appeared on Sports360AZ.
