Justise Winslow: Phoenix Suns 2015 Draft Profile

By Gerald Bourguet | Jun 13, 2015

Jan 3, 2015; Durham, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Justise Winslow (12) goes up for a dunk over Boston College Eagles center Dennis Clifford (24) in their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Dolejs-USA TODAY Sports /

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Justise Winslow

Apr 4, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Justise Winslow (12) is fouled by Michigan State Spartans forward Marvin Clark Jr. (0) during the second half of the 2015 NCAA Men’s Division I Championship semi-final game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Chris Steppig/NCAA Photos-Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports /

Overview

As the 2015 NBA Draft approaches, we’ll be taking a look at the top prospects in this year’s class to gain a sense of what the Phoenix Suns should do with their pick. Today, we’ll be taking a look at Justise Winslow.

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Before we begin, we should acknowledge the blatantly obvious: the Suns have as good of a chance at Justise Winslow falling to them at No. 13 as they did of winning the draft lottery.

According to ESPN’s Chad Ford’s latest Big Board, Winslow is getting looks by teams as high as No. 4, with the New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Sacramento Kings and Denver Nuggets all seriously considering taking him early in the lottery. So at this point, you’re probably wondering why this is even worth covering.

Well, for starters, we’ve still got about two weeks until draft day, so there’s no harm in taking a look at the field and day dreaming a little. But more importantly, the honest truth is that the Phoenix Suns need to nail this year’s draft pick, so the possibility of moving up or down in the draft needs to be discussed.

Fan optimism is hanging by a thread right now, even if the Suns didn’t take the gigantic step backward in 2014-15 that everyone made it out to be. Still, the Suns are in a unique position: they have a lottery pick, but they probably won’t be able to get a franchise player at No. 13.

What they really need is veteran leadership, which would require the Suns to trade down. But Phoenix also has a collection of attractive young assets at their disposal, which means they could conceivably put together a deal to move up in the draft. The question is, does Justise Winslow have anything to offer that would warrant a dramatic move like that?

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