Heading into the 2015-16 season, the Phoenix Suns have 13 players on contracts. With two spots still left on the roster, general manager Ryan McDonough has a couple of avenues he could take to fill out the fringe of the rotation and provide his team with extra insurance in the event of an injury.
In taking a look at the current roster, it’s easy to see the two positions that could use some more depth in Phoenix:
- PG: Eric Bledsoe/Ronnie Price
- SG: Brandon Knight/Sonny Weems/Archie Goodwin/Devin Booker
- SF: P.J. Tucker/T.J. Warren
- PF: Markieff Morris/Mirza Teletovic/Jon Leuer
- C: Tyson Chandler/Alex Len
A few quick observations:
Obviously Knight is a point guard, but since he’ll be playing alongside Bledsoe in the starting lineup, we’ve slotted him in at the shooting guard position.
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Weems can play either the 2 or the 3 position, but McDonough has said he believes Weems could be the first guard off the bench. Either way, with wings like Weems, Goodwin, Tucker and Warren available, the shooting guard and small forward positions are basically set.
After the Marcus Morris trade, there’s a chance that Markieff Morris no longer wants to play for this organization, as his brother suggested on Twitter. If Keef demands a trade, or if McDonough finds equal market value for Phoenix’s offensively talented starting power forward and decides to pull the trigger, that would obviously throw a wrench in this projected rotation.
But assuming Keef maintains his silent professionalism and that the front office buries the hatchet with their embattled remaining twin, he’ll be starting at the 4 ahead of Teletovic and Leuer.
Sir Charles In Charge
Above all, you can see that the Suns could use a third string center behind the Twin Towers of Chandler and Len. And even if fans are sick of this Suns team having an abundance of point guards, bringing another point guard to training camp to compete with veteran Ronnie Price wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
When it comes to bolstering the rotation, the Suns can sign players using the Room Exception or by signing players to minimum salaries. As far as third string centers are concerned, the Suns have options.
Last season with the Washington Wizards, Kevin Seraphin averaged 6.6 points and 3.6 rebounds in 15.6 minutes per game while shooting 51.3 percent from the floor. He represents one of the best options still available on the market, but he made $3.9 million last season, so he’d have to take a discount to play for the Suns.
Summer League standout Josh Harrellson is another option. In seven games with the Summer Suns, “Jorts” was extremely efficient off the bench, averaging 8.4 points and 5.1 rebounds in 17.1 minutes per game while shooting 42.3 percent from three-point range. His ability to spread the floor could be useful in a pinch if something were to happen to Chandler or Len.
Jorts is 6'10" 275 lbs and was out there knocking down 3s today. Reason #2 the Suns should sign him. Reason #1? The nickname.
— JJ (@Suns6thMan) July 15, 2015
There are a few other options as well. Former Sun Earl Barron is available. Austin Daye has yet to sign with a team. Jeff Withey and JaVale McGee remain unsigned as well. But if Seraphin isn’t a realistic possibility, a stretch-5 like Harrellson seems like the best option here.
As far as point guards are concerned, the Suns technically don’t need one. Ronnie Price was a serviceable floor general for the talent-deprived Los Angeles Lakers last season, and though he can’t really shoot, he doesn’t make many mistakes and he wouldn’t need to see the floor much since one of Bledsoe and Knight will always be out there.
But Price was added to the roster to bring veteran leadership to a young team, so does he really need to be on the floor to fulfill that kind of role? To that end, most Suns fans would love to see another Summer League standout, Mike James, earn an invite to training camp and find a way to usurp Price for that third string point guard role.
After playing better than starter Jerel McNeal through the first two games in Las Vegas, the undersized but explosive leaper Mike James was moved into the starting lineup. He dropped 32 points in the championship game, he averaged 12.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game for his Summer League and he thrilled people with his athleticism.
However, James could make more money overseas rather than take a chance at training camp and spend most of the year in the D-League. If he wants a legitimate NBA shot, there’s a chance this union could happen, but it doesn’t seem likely at this point.
Other options include former Sun Ish Smith, Nate Robinson, Will Bynum and the traded-four-times-over Luke Ridnour. though they aren’t exactly huge upgrades over Price. Most of James’ appeal comes from his younger age and NBA potential.
At the end of the day, if the Suns choose to bolster their depth and take advantage of having a full 15-man roster, McDonough wouldn’t have to look too far to find low-cost options to do so. After a successful Summer League, Mike James and Josh Harrellson seem like the ideal pieces to use to round out the edge of the rotation.
Next: Suns Column: A Farewell To Marcus Morris