Sell: Mirza Teletovic
To me, this feels like the pick you’d make when you start to overthink things. I mean, what if Markieff Morris gets traded? It seems like Teletovic would be an absolute steal as a very late pick, especially considering how well he’d fit in the system.
And truth be told, that idea does make some sense, but you really have to view the situation as a whole.
Mirza Teletovic could end up being a pretty solid late pick if Markieff Morris gets traded, but if that doesn’t happen, his season isn’t going to be incredibly noteworthy. With Morris playing 30+ minutes per game, and talk of Alex Len playing some four around Tyson Chandler, there won’t be many minutes available, and we still don’t know how Teletovic will look, as he missed most of last season because of a blood clot in his lung.
Teletovic is by all accounts a good guy, and he’s definitely passionate about the game, but when you go scenario-by-scenario, it doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense to take him.
First, let’s say Markieff Morris gets traded. If the Suns bring back a quality power forward, it’ll be the exact same problem all over again; how many minutes will he see? To use purely as an example (and nothing more), some people have brought up the idea of swapping him for Jared Sullinger…
I can see the Celtics making a quiet trade for Markieff Morris. Maybe a Sullinger, Jones, with some sort of pick type deal?
— Celtics Insider (@InsiderCeltics) August 19, 2015
Wish Boston would give up a package of Jared Sullinger and R.J. Hunter for Markieff Morris. That would never happen though
— Roberto Payne (@HouseofPayne555) August 13, 2015
While I don’t think anyone thinks Jared Sullinger is a top-tier power forward, I do think he’s better than Mirza Teletovic, and thus would take minutes away from him. Sullinger’s per 40 stats are really quite solid, and his rebound rate and PER both ranked in the top 25 for power forwards. They were also both higher than Teletevic’s corresponding numbers for any year of his career.
Again, the idea here is not to get hung up on Sullinger. Others have suggested players like Taj Gibson and Ryan Anderson. Really, that scenario is just one where the Suns receive a quality replacement power forward for Morris.
And to backtrack a bit, Teletovic’s ability to play pick-and-pop basketball and space the floor will certainly be helpful, but he’s still not a guy I would go out of my way to grab. Teletovic could definitely be a strong midseason pickup in case of injury or if a replacement is needed, but that’s also true with any number of guys you should have on your watchlist.
Still, let’s take in another scenario: the Suns trade Markieff Morris and don’t get back a strong power forward. All of a sudden, Teletovic becomes a more viable option, but even then, he isn’t super valuable. Similar to how P.J. Tucker played a decent amount of shooting guard last year, T.J. Warren spent over a third of his time on the court as a small-ball four, per 82games.com. And as the four, he posted his best net rating, while really limiting his turnovers, which leads me to believe he will see some time at that position, especially if Morris is gone.
So for all those reasons, I wouldn’t use a draft pick on Teletovic. If the season rolls around and something happens, he could definitely be worth adding, but as the backup power forward on the Suns, I don’t expect anything huge, at least fantasy-wise. Teletovic also may be slightly overrated on big boards because of the Markieff Morris situation, which is something to look out for.
Next: Sell: Tucker