Looking At The Newly Released Phoenix Suns NBA 2K16 Player Ratings

Shooting Guards (Knight, Booker, Goodwin)

On Friday, the game released its top 10 shooting guards, and once again, there were no Suns to be found. I asked Mike Stauffer — a member of the 2K team — what Knight was rated, trying to figure out where he was in relation to the top 10. And before long, there was an answer.

As an 80, Brandon Knight would be tied for ninth in player rating if he were listed as a shooting guard, which I think is fair. However, there are some people ahead of him — Kobe Bryant, Wesley Matthews — who are coming off injuries, and because of that, may see their ratings fluctuate throughout the year, whether it’s for better or worse.

My biggest complaint with Knight’s rating would be that he’s behind Kemba Walker by one point. While Knight definitely struggled to close out the year, I think he bought enough goodwill with his pre-Suns performances last year, even though he was perhaps the most Vineable player in the NBA last year, for all the wrong reasons.

However, that wasn’t it for the Suns on the eventful Saturday. Stauffer later tweeted out the rating for Suns’ shooting guard Archie Goodwin, which is actually two points lower than Devin Booker’s rating — which was released much earlier than the other shooting guards. That difference is most likely due to the difference in shooting ability between the two players, although Goodwin does seem to be improving in that regard.

Like the small forward position for the Suns, the backup shooting guard position should be pretty hotly contested throughout the year, so it will be interesting to follow which player ends up taking control. Devin Booker certainly showed some flashes at the Summer League, but Archie Goodwin is now entering his third year, and really it’s time for him to step up and show his growth.

He’s already improved his shot form and aggressiveness, now it’s time to put that all together.

Next: A Clash On The Wings