Phoenix Suns look to rise again after disappointing season

This season's unraveling took a short time, and now, those fans will have to endure another reconstruction that might take awhile.

"I don't think any of us deluded ourselves into thinking it was going to be a year like last year when we started, but we all believed we are a playoff team," said Lon Babby, first-year president of basketball operations for the Suns. "So, not ending up that way is profoundly disappointing. We've got to take (missing the playoffs) as a positive and look to see where we can get better."

Now, instead of sneaking into the playoffs as the last seed and, as Babby said, not being "honest with ourselves about where this franchise is and where we need to go," the Suns can focus on fixing the causes of their precipitous fall. Certainly, they are easy to pinpoint.

Without Stoudemire, they took a severe hit in talent. Without most of the same team, they lost the rare chemistry found with a mix of 10 players rotating each game.

Kerr's departure came first, in June, when he was asked to take a pay cut by Suns Managing Partner Robert Sarver - to return to his rookie GM year's salary - and was stonewalled on extending coach Alvin Gentry's contract.

Stoudemire was not far behind despite declaring a desire to stay in Phoenix. He accepted a five-year, $99.7 million contract from the Knicks, reuniting with his former Suns coach, Mike D'Antoni.

The Suns made a five-year, $96.6 million offer to Stoudemire but did not fully guarantee portions of the contract's final years, fearing his history of knee and eye surgeries.

By the time the Suns brought in a new front-office tandem of Babby and General Manager Lance Blanks in July and August, respectively, the team essentially was in place for the season.

A December trade with Orlando was their best move of the season, finding a taker for Turkoglu and acquiring center Marcin Gortat, who already looks like a valuable piece for the future.

The Suns also dealt Goran Dragic and a first-round pick for Aaron Brooks.