Phoenix Suns: 5 Things You May Have Missed From Media Day

2. Young Guys Are Making An Impression:

Even with the new veteran additions to the team this summer, the Phoenix Suns still have plenty of young players on the roster. But even with this new sense of balance, there was plenty of optimism — specifically regarding T.J. Warren and Devin Booker — at Suns Media Day.

For 18-year-old rookie Devin Booker, his first NBA season will feature competition with third-year guard Archie Goodwin and overseas veteran Sonny Weems for minutes as the first shooting guard off the bench. But according to Jeff Hornacek and Booker’s new teammates, the young sharpshooter could earn minutes sooner than expected.

“When you bring in an 18-year-old, you’re probably going, ‘Ok, it’s probably gonna be a couple of years, he’s gotta learn the game,” Hornacek said. “Yeah we know he’s a great shooter, but I’ll tell you: the kid knows how to play. The one thing that Ryan and I see when we watch him play is you don’t have to explain a lot of things to him. Most of the time, defensively, he’s been in the right spot.

“Offensively, he makes good plays. 18-year-olds sometimes get sped up, the game kind of comes at them fast, the speed of these pro guys is a big adjustment for them. But when you watch him play, he’s controlled. If there’s a pass to make, he makes it. If the shot’s open, he’ll shoot it. He’s very advanced for his age so we believe he can contribute for us.”

As for T.J. Warren, it’s no secret he’s already won over some of the more established players. Before addressing the media at the podium, Eric Bledsoe made sure to call out to “Tony Buckets” as he was coming down the stairs.

When asked about the Suns’ offense for the upcoming season, Bledsoe began his answer by again focusing on Warren.

“We’ve got a lot of confident guys and we’ve got Tony Buckets,” he said. “He can hold it down for us and we’ve got a lot of great guys that can score the ball.”

Bledsoe wasn’t making another joke though, and it’s telling that a question about the offense led him to single out the Suns sophomore. But Bledsoe also revealed an interesting fact about the team’s voluntary pickup games that had been going on for weeks now.

“Sometimes it gets old playing against the same people, but I think we did a good job challenging each other and we kind of kept the score with wins and losses,” he said. “T.J got the most wins, and you know, he was on my team.”

It wasn’t just Bledsoe who seemed excited about Warren’s development. Jeff Hornacek mentioned the vast improvements Tony Buckets has made on the defensive end, despite all the hype about his innate scoring ability.

“T.J. is another guy that I think has taken a stride,” he said. “When you watch him in preseason pickup games, obviously you see his scoring ability, but I think his defense has really picked up.”

Echoing that theme was Tyson Chandler, who said he was pleasantly surprised by the talent and drive of some of the younger players, crediting the coaching staff’s approach to developing their skills.

“A lot of these players are even more talented than I thought they were,” he said. “I think it’s players that have really bright futures here. When you’re on the outside looking in, you don’t know personalities, you don’t know how receptive they’re gonna be when you come in, how receptive they are to a different culture, and everybody’s been like sponges.”

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