Strengths:
Knight mostly looked out of place in Phoenix, but that’s not to say he didn’t give the Suns anything positive to work with. In his four wins with the Suns, he averaged 18.5 points, 5.5 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game while getting to the line 4.5 times. When he was aggressive and not so concerned about stepping on anybody’s toes, the Suns were better off for it — 7.8 points better than their opponent, to be exact.
But in the games where he took a backseat in losses, Knight only averaged 10.4 points, 3.9 assists and 1.3 rebounds per game while getting to the line 1.6 times. The Suns were outscored by 9.3 points per game in those seven losses. For Knight to be a good fit in Phoenix, he will need to be more assertive and become a vocal leader.
McDonough said current #Suns w/most leadership potential are some of the youngest guys. Named Len and Knight specifically.
— Matt Petersen (@TheMattPetersen) April 15, 2015
The good news is that at the age of 23, this intelligent restricted free agent is perfectly cognizant of the role he’ll need to play.
“When you start from summer and move forward it is easier to be vocal versus coming into game 60 when guys have a set rotation and set everything pretty much,” he said. “So it is tough to come in and be vocal and you have to pick your spots. When you start in the trenches with these guys it is easier to communicate with them because you’ve been there from the jump.”
By dealing Goran Dragic away at the trade deadline and bringing in Knight, the Suns avoided paying the Dragon a max contract this summer, but they also swapped a point guard who will turn 29 in a few weeks for a 23-year-old floor general to pair with Bledsoe for the future.
Dragic is better now, but the front office likes what it sees in Knight for the long-term, even if restricted free agency is a tricky proposition.
A lot of fans bringing up concern of Knight being RFA after year. But even his "max" would be just the starting point of new Dragic contract
— Sean Sullivan (@SeanSullivanNBA) February 19, 2015
“We like him a lot,” said president of basketball operations Lon Babby. “We just finished our exit interviews with him and he’s a very intelligent, bright guy who I think will conduct a fair, reasonable process and that’s all we ask for.”
Knight’s potential backcourt mate wasn’t shy about his feelings on the possible pairing either.
“I love playing with B. Knight, he’s one of the great young players in this league,” Bledsoe said. “I thought he should have been an All-Star last year in Milwaukee. He just had a great year.”
Maybe not with the Suns, but his three-point percentage (38.9 percent, 20th in the league) and free throw percentage (87.4 percent, 14th in the league) for the season show that he has the perimeter touch this team needs moving forward, especially to make defense pay when Bledsoe penetrates.
His impressive wing span and his intelligence are also common points of praise when Brandon Knight’s name comes up. As a combo guard, that wing span will help him defend both positions in the backcourt. And since Bledsoe isn’t quite the vocal leader this team needs, Knight’s leadership in that regard would certainly help this team’s young core grow together.
Next: Lowlights