Success with the Suns can be a sensitive subject

There are times -- most times, actually -- when the Phoenix Suns feel good about themselves and the other team has as much chance as a marshmallow at a campfire.

Then there are times -- like now -- when Amare Stoudemire looks as if he retired at 24 ... and Shawn Marion is upset because he gets even less recognition than Amare ... so the brass sits down with Amare ... and Shawn mews about the hurt he feels to the media because no one even sits down with him.

At these times, the Suns look like they’re lucky to make it out of the dressing room, much less beat anyone.

Imagine Coach Mike D’Antoni’s delight when the gold-dust twins chose this month, the one when the playoffs start, to begin sending distress signals again.

After playing poorly in their April 5 loss in San Antonio, Stoudemire mailed one in the next night in Oklahoma City, sitting out the fourth quarter because he said he “didn’t want to go back out and risk injury.”

That led to a closed-door meeting with D’Antoni, while Steve Nash noted, “I think we’re not playing for each other as much as we need to right now. We’re a little bit selfish. We’re a little bit woe-is-me right now.”

The woe was mounting. Within days, ESPN the Magazine was out with a headline on the cover that said: “Shawn Marion Plays Hurt (On the Inside)”

In it, Marion lamented his anonymity (“I want the recognition. I feel I’ve done what it takes to get it, but for some reason it hasn’t happened”) and his role (“Everything we do starts with Steve and Amare’s pick-and-roll. I have no plays called for me.”)

Now for the playoffs!

“The reason we’re good and we’ve had success for two or three years now is basically the guys are good guys,” the easy-going D’Antoni says, hiding any temptation to throttle them. “If they were bad guys you couldn’t do it. But when you get down to the core, they’re all good guys.”

It’s true, as delicately as they’re balanced, the Suns have averaged 59 wins over the last three seasons.

Despite their heartaches and the skepticism they had to endure for defying convention, they made the last two Western Conference finals, without all their starters in either.

Of course, before you get all the way down to that core ...

Stoudemire, born to an oft-jailed single mother, was handed from guardian to guardian who took him from school to school. He dropped to the Suns at No. 10 in the 2002 draft partly because of concerns about his background.

For three seasons he was their wunderkind, exhibiting no hang-ups, but he had some -- a need to be No. 1, the new number he broke out this season.

Nash’s return in 2004 didn’t just mean sharing the spotlight but giving it up.

Self-effacing as Nash is, his brilliance speaks for itself. If he doesn’t join Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain and Larry Bird as the only players to win three MVPS in a row, he’s going to miss by a vote or two.

Stoudemire went into a shell after last season’s knee surgery. His attempt to come back lasted three games, but the hype -- now they could contend for a title -- set off his teammates. Jack McCallum, who spent the season with them for his book, “:07 Seconds or Less,” called it “the Subplot from Hell.”

Amare’s training camp was so agonizing, D’Antoni announced contingency plans. (“You know what? It might be two or three months. He’s not going to hold us back. We’re going on.”)

Stoudemire’s dramatic comeback came with a new mantra -- his time away gave him a new appreciation, he’s a better teammate -- until it slipped his mind this month.

Marion was always frustrated enough at being “behind” someone -- Jason Kidd, Stephon Marbury, Nash -- so the fuss around Stoudemire was one more insult.

Marion was also raised by a single mother, who had him at 14. The highest-paid Sun at $15.1 million (Stoudemire is at $12.5 million, Nash at $10.5 million), Marion is legendarily thrifty, flying Southwest Airlines in the off-season.

Marion’s list of complaints is like a comedy routine, extending to his anguish at not having as many bobblehead likenesses in the gift shop as Nash and Stoudemire.

His plight actually gets so much media attention, you’d think he makes a living being underrated, as opposed to playing basketball. He has had a steady stream of honors, playing in the 2004 Olympics, the 2006 World Championships and four of the last five All-Star games.

Despite its sunny official line, management is concerned about the team’s issues, not to mention a projected $12 million in luxury tax next season.

The Arizona Republic’s Paul Coro noted speculation around the league that the Suns might try to package Stoudemire or Marion with the lottery pick they hope to get from Atlanta for Greg Oden or Kevin Durant.

Atlanta owes the Suns a first-round selection to complete the 2005 Joe Johnson sign-and-trade, but this season’s is top-three protected.

With the fourth-worst record, the Hawks have a 38% chance of drawing one of the top three.

“That means more of the usual Shawn Marion summer-trade talk, which now has become more than just rumors,” Coro wrote. “Stoudemire, another All-Star, would not be untouchable without a trophy.”

So the Suns aren’t just playing for a title, but to see who stays and who goes.

Now to see who they really, basically are.

mark.heisler@latimes.com