1. Play In 75 Games
On a related note, this team could quickly unravel if Len continues to be unlucky with his health and the Suns are forced to rely on Chandler — who has 26,456 minutes on his NBA odometer — to pick up the slack in the frontcourt. Since Len has only played 111 games and 1,880 minutes in his first two seasons, staying healthy should be Len’s biggest goal for next year.
Between ankle surgeries, a broken finger, minor ankle tweaks and a broken nose, Alex Len’s early career has been like one continuous loop of Peter Griffin falling down. You’ll notice from the picture above that they even have the same injured posture:
All jokes aside, the biggest hindrance to Len’s development so far has been his inability to stay 100 percent healthy. Not many players actually play a full 82 games in a season, but when Len was able to stay healthy last year, he moved into the starting lineup and began to show his potential as a rim protector and instant ignitor of fast breaks.
Len managed 69 games and 1,518 minutes in his second season, which is why he made so much progress after an entirely underwhelming rookie campaign. Heading into his third year, a goal of 75 games and 1,875 minutes in a bench role seems more than manageable.
For the sake of Len’s ongoing development and the Suns’ depth at center, it certainly needs to be.
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