The Phoenix Suns are imploding. Now what?
It would be hard to start the season worse than the Phoenix Suns have. They are 0-3, having lost by a combined 92 points already. Their best player, Eric Bledsoe, just tweeted "I don't want to be here". So much for subtlety. Oh, and the Suns just fired their head coach Earl Watson. So much for patience.
The Suns dug themselves into a hole on this one. They trotted into the season with a clear directive to lose as many games as possible in order to nab another potential superstar in the draft to pair with their lone bright spot, Devin Booker. Flush with cap space, GM Ryan McDonough stayed pat in free agency. Last season, they basically sent Bledsoe home so they could lose more games. There is no doubt that Bledsoe's recent blatant signs of displeasure stemmed somewhat from his team's decision to bar him from playing basketball games when he was perfectly healthy.
McDonough has just burned through his second coach in three years. Executives generally receive a pass from ownership for one coaching error, but after two, that executive is usually on thin ice. I cannot read owner Robert Sarver's mind, but I have to imagine he is considering the prospect of letting McDonough go.
McDonough's tenure in Phoenix has been mixed, at best. After being hired away from Danny Ainge's Celtics laboratory, McDonough oversaw a beloved Suns team blitz its way to an astonishing 48 wins, and miss the playoffs by a hair. He also drafted Booker, who has stardom written all over him. Other than that, it has not been pretty. His first misstep was trading away the Lakers' valuable 1st round pick for Brandon Knight, whose low-efficiency scoring and undesirable defensive tendencies have rendered him as a sunk cost. Knight is also out for the year with a torn ACL. He also drafted Alex Len, a slow-footed center, over Giannis Antetokounmpo, CJ McCollum, Rudy Gobert and even Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. He shipped off Isaiah Thomas for a late 1st round pick. I'm starting to cringe.
Watson was never going to be around for the Suns' eventual turnaround. He was clearly in over his head, having been given the head coaching job just 13 months after he retired from playing. With his departure, interim Jay Triano will take over. What he is taking over is still a mystery.
Besides Bledsoe and veterans Tyson Chandler and Jared Dudley, the Suns are a bunch of kids. Booker, Marquise Chriss, Josh Jackson and Derrick Jones are all 20-years-old. Dragan Bender is 19. Tyler Ulis is 21. Some college teams are assuredly more experienced.
That is not to say there is no raw talent to be mined. Booker is one of the silkiest shooters in the league and he's improving rapidly as a proficient pick-and-roll orchestrator. Chriss, while erratic, bounces like he's on a trampoline and has toyed with a three-point shot. Jackson seems primed to grow into a versatile wing who can defend and score. Bender has displayed some advanced passing skills and a smooth jumper. The Suns may be laughably young, but they are laced with potential.
As for Bledsoe's clearly deteriorating situation, the Suns are going to have to trade him. Not doing so would poison the locker room with unease and risk losing him for nothing if he bolts in free agency in 2019. Scouring the league for possible trade partners is a tricky subject. A lot of teams are set at point guard, and the handful that would want Bledsoe do not have anything appetizing to offer Phoenix in return for the star guard.
The New York Knicks would probably love to bring Bledsoe in, seeing as they are currently starting a woefully overmatched Ramon Sessions. But who would the Knicks give up in return? Not their 1st round pick, that would be foolish (watch the Knicks do that now). Kristaps Porzingis is untouchable. Willy Hernangomez is not enough. Frank Nlikina is interesting, but both teams may be squeamish to involve him.
The Clippers really want Bledsoe back, as they are now thin at guard after the delightful Milos Teodosic went down with a foot injury. Their center, DeAndre Jordan, recently tweeted "Come back home bro" presumably in response to Bledsoe's open request to be shipped off. Maybe their 1st round pick does it along with Sindarious Thornwell.
The Pacers would welcome an upgrade at point guard, where Darren Collison is best served as a backup. But again, would Phoenix really accept Domantas Sabonis or TJ Leaf? Again, matches are difficult.
The Milwaukee Bucks are a very intriguing team. It's well known they are very attracted to the possibility of finding a star guard to pair with the Greek Freak. Over the summer, it was reported they offered Cleveland Malcolm Brogdon, Kris Middleton and a 1st round pick for Irving. Maybe Brogdon, who is a rugged defender, and excellent shooter, as well as a 1st, would do it for Phoenix. Keep an eye on those Bucks, who may be smelling blood in a weak Eastern Conference and want to pounce.
Lastly, there are the Denver Nuggets, who are currently starting Jamal Murray, who is really a shooting guard, as their starting point guard. Perhaps former lottery pick Emmanuel Mudiay, Trey Lyles and their 1st round pick would have the Suns sniffing around.
All is not lost in Phoenix. They have their star of the future in Booker. It can only go up from here.
The Suns dug themselves into a hole on this one. They trotted into the season with a clear directive to lose as many games as possible in order to nab another potential superstar in the draft to pair with their lone bright spot, Devin Booker. Flush with cap space, GM Ryan McDonough stayed pat in free agency. Last season, they basically sent Bledsoe home so they could lose more games. There is no doubt that Bledsoe's recent blatant signs of displeasure stemmed somewhat from his team's decision to bar him from playing basketball games when he was perfectly healthy.
McDonough has just burned through his second coach in three years. Executives generally receive a pass from ownership for one coaching error, but after two, that executive is usually on thin ice. I cannot read owner Robert Sarver's mind, but I have to imagine he is considering the prospect of letting McDonough go.
McDonough's tenure in Phoenix has been mixed, at best. After being hired away from Danny Ainge's Celtics laboratory, McDonough oversaw a beloved Suns team blitz its way to an astonishing 48 wins, and miss the playoffs by a hair. He also drafted Booker, who has stardom written all over him. Other than that, it has not been pretty. His first misstep was trading away the Lakers' valuable 1st round pick for Brandon Knight, whose low-efficiency scoring and undesirable defensive tendencies have rendered him as a sunk cost. Knight is also out for the year with a torn ACL. He also drafted Alex Len, a slow-footed center, over Giannis Antetokounmpo, CJ McCollum, Rudy Gobert and even Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. He shipped off Isaiah Thomas for a late 1st round pick. I'm starting to cringe.
Watson was never going to be around for the Suns' eventual turnaround. He was clearly in over his head, having been given the head coaching job just 13 months after he retired from playing. With his departure, interim Jay Triano will take over. What he is taking over is still a mystery.
Besides Bledsoe and veterans Tyson Chandler and Jared Dudley, the Suns are a bunch of kids. Booker, Marquise Chriss, Josh Jackson and Derrick Jones are all 20-years-old. Dragan Bender is 19. Tyler Ulis is 21. Some college teams are assuredly more experienced.
That is not to say there is no raw talent to be mined. Booker is one of the silkiest shooters in the league and he's improving rapidly as a proficient pick-and-roll orchestrator. Chriss, while erratic, bounces like he's on a trampoline and has toyed with a three-point shot. Jackson seems primed to grow into a versatile wing who can defend and score. Bender has displayed some advanced passing skills and a smooth jumper. The Suns may be laughably young, but they are laced with potential.
As for Bledsoe's clearly deteriorating situation, the Suns are going to have to trade him. Not doing so would poison the locker room with unease and risk losing him for nothing if he bolts in free agency in 2019. Scouring the league for possible trade partners is a tricky subject. A lot of teams are set at point guard, and the handful that would want Bledsoe do not have anything appetizing to offer Phoenix in return for the star guard.
The New York Knicks would probably love to bring Bledsoe in, seeing as they are currently starting a woefully overmatched Ramon Sessions. But who would the Knicks give up in return? Not their 1st round pick, that would be foolish (watch the Knicks do that now). Kristaps Porzingis is untouchable. Willy Hernangomez is not enough. Frank Nlikina is interesting, but both teams may be squeamish to involve him.
The Clippers really want Bledsoe back, as they are now thin at guard after the delightful Milos Teodosic went down with a foot injury. Their center, DeAndre Jordan, recently tweeted "Come back home bro" presumably in response to Bledsoe's open request to be shipped off. Maybe their 1st round pick does it along with Sindarious Thornwell.
The Pacers would welcome an upgrade at point guard, where Darren Collison is best served as a backup. But again, would Phoenix really accept Domantas Sabonis or TJ Leaf? Again, matches are difficult.
The Milwaukee Bucks are a very intriguing team. It's well known they are very attracted to the possibility of finding a star guard to pair with the Greek Freak. Over the summer, it was reported they offered Cleveland Malcolm Brogdon, Kris Middleton and a 1st round pick for Irving. Maybe Brogdon, who is a rugged defender, and excellent shooter, as well as a 1st, would do it for Phoenix. Keep an eye on those Bucks, who may be smelling blood in a weak Eastern Conference and want to pounce.
Lastly, there are the Denver Nuggets, who are currently starting Jamal Murray, who is really a shooting guard, as their starting point guard. Perhaps former lottery pick Emmanuel Mudiay, Trey Lyles and their 1st round pick would have the Suns sniffing around.
All is not lost in Phoenix. They have their star of the future in Booker. It can only go up from here.
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