5. Ryan McDonough Making Smart Moves
Remember the days of Lance Blanks? Remember when adding guys like Hakim Warrick, Hedo Turkoglu and Josh Childress became the standard for the Suns’ general managers? Ryan McDonough has been in Phoenix for less than two years, but the days of incompetence feel like they were ages ago.
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Why? Because McDonough’s been nothing short of a God-send in his limited time with the Suns. He’s built this roster to be pretty back-court heavy, but those gambles are starting to pay off now that the Suns have had more time to gel. Even the non-blockbuster deals recently have been remarkable.
Adding Brandan Wright for a protected draft pick, which will likely turn into two future second-rounders, bolstered the bench and also allowed McDonough to ship the rarely used Shavlik Randolph for a young 3-and-D prospect. With the trade deadline approaching, McDonough has more than demonstrated his ability to make smart deals when they’re there.
That’s not to say the Suns need to make a trade to reach the postseason. Many have suggested trading Isaiah Thomas, Gerald Green or even Goran Dragic since the latter two will become unrestricted free agents this summer.
To clarify, I don’t think trading any of these three is necessary, but McDonough’s track record is pretty damn good, which means the Suns should feel comfortable with his decision-making as the deadline approaches.
Next: Enter The Dragon