The Suns have signed 25-year old forward Louis Amundson to a 2-year contract. Amundson played in 16 games (0 starts) with the 76ers last season and he averaged 4.0 minutes, 1.1 points and 0.8 rebounds per game. Don’t look for Amundson to get much playing time the next two years with the Suns unless they suffer some injuries. Amundson has now played in 27 games (0 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 5.7 minutes, 1.3 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.

The Phoenix Suns have signed G/F Matt Barnes to a 1-year contract and he should fit right in. The 28-year old Barnes played in 73 games (18 starts) for the Warriors last season and he averaged 19.4 minutes, 6.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. Look for him to play more minutes for the Suns than he did last season and expect his numbers to go up some. Barnes has now played in 286 games (64 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 18.5 minutes, 6.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. This was a good move for the Suns.

The Suns have signed 30-year old shooting guard Gordan Giricek to a contract for the remainder of the season. Giricek played in 34 games (0 starts) this season for the 76ers and Jazz and he has averaged 11.4 minutes, 3.9 points, 1.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. But, he hasn’t shot well this season as he has only made 37.8% of his shots from the floor and 77.8% of his shots from the free throw line. He has now played in 362 games (191 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 23.2 minutes, 9.6 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. Giricek has hit 43.9% of his shots from the floor, 36.7% of his three pointers and 81.9% of his free throws. He should fit right in on the Suns as he shows no inclination to play defense.

The Phoenix Suns have acquired center Shaquille O’Neal from the Miami Heat for power forward Shawn Marion and backup point guard Marcus Banks. The 35-year old O’Neal has had problems staying healthy the last couple of seasons so it will be interesting to see if his body can hold up in the Suns’ playing style. O’Neal played in 32 games (all starts) this season for the Heat and he was averaging 28.5 minutes, 14.2 points, 7,8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. O’Neal still is shooting the ball well from the floor (58.1%) but he has been awful from the free throw line (48.2%) as usual. O’Neal has now played in 1,013 NBA games (1,004 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 36.4 minutes, 25.6 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.4 blocked shots per game. Shaq has hit 58% of his shots from the floor and 52.4% of his free throws over his career.

The Suns will miss Shawn “The Matrix” Marion who had a outstanding career with the Suns. Marion played in 660 games (647 starts) in his career with the Suns and he averaged 37.8 minutes, 18.4 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

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The Phoenix Suns have signed forward Brian Skinner to back up at power forward an center this season.  He’s a good rebounder and defender but he’s not much of an offensive player.  Skinner played in 67 games (44 starts) last season for the Bucks and he averaged 22.7 minutes, 4.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  Skinner has now played in 472 games (175 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 19.3 minutes, 5.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.