1. T.J. Warren
Other than Len, the young Sun that most fans are really excited about is T.J. Warren. As a rookie last season, Warren only averaged 6.1 points per game. But he shot nearly 53 percent from the floor and at times, looked like the most intelligent Suns player on the offensive end of the floor.
Warren just has that feel for the game you can’t teach. He cuts to the open spots on the floor to convert easy looks at the rim, and even when they aren’t easy, he’s adept at finishing anyway. He doesn’t have a consistent perimeter shot yet, but his floater and his nose for the basket have a lot of people excited about his potential at the age of 21.
Lot of wing minutes now available after @Suns trade. Warren a candidate to earn them. @NBASummerLeague will be a start to doing so.
— Matt Petersen (@TheMattPetersen) July 9, 2015
So why does Warren take the top spot on our list? Well, because he has the best mix of potential, current skill and chance to seriously crack the rotation in 2015-16. Len will get his minutes off the bench, of course, but with Booker, Goodwin and maybe even Sonny Weems competing for minutes at the 2, Warren has the best benefit of playing the 3.
After the Suns made their trade with the Detroit Pistons to ship away Marcus Morris and Danny Granger, the logjam at the small forward spot was cleared out. Warren probably won’t start over P.J. Tucker, but he could work his way there with time and at the very least, he’ll be getting considerable time off the bench.
A breakout year for Len, Goodwin AND Warren would be ideal, but of those three, it seems like Warren has the best odds of actually doing so. After averaging 26.8 points and 7.0 rebounds per game in the D-League this year and impressing the heck out of everyone in Summer League last year, this year’s Summer Suns team is a platform built for Warren to thrill once again.
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