Phoenix Suns Draft Watch: Markelle Fultz?
By Andrew Clark
The draft watch continues this week with the best pure player in the draft: Markelle Fultz.
Player Comparison
Fultz is compared by NBADraft.net to former Arizona State legend James Harden. While a freshman at ASU, Harden averaged 17.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. Fultz has had a better freshman season so far, averaging 23.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 6.1 assists.
Fultz is a more NBA ready prospect than Harden was in college. Standing at 6’4″ and weighing 195 lbs he is 25 lbs lighter than Harden’s college weight of 220 lbs. Fultz is a faster and more athletic player than Harden was at the same age. Just do a quick youtube search on Fultz and you’ll see his hops are closer to Westbrook than Harden.
Not only has Fultz outperformed most of Harden’s freshman statistics, he has done it at a much higher volume. Harden averaged 10.9 field goals per game, while Fultz puts up an absurd 17.1 a game. Despite the huge difference in attempts, the percentage between both players is similar: Harden made 52.7% of all field goals, besting Fultz’s 49.2%, while Fultz makes 41.7% of his three points attempts to Harden’s 40.7%.
Both players are outstanding, but Fultz has had the confidence to dominate the ball, is in superior physical condition, and has been a better all around player as a result. This experience combined with his better physique makes him more prepared for NBA play than young James Harden.
Why the Suns Would Want Him:
Much like Lonzo Ball, Fultz would give the Suns a tall and athletic point guard to pair with Devin Booker. Both players would be roughly the same age and would develop together. Fultz’s game would complement Booker’s by giving the Suns another high volume scorer. There will be nights in which Fultz will take over games by himself. In end of game situations, having Fultz and Booker would be very difficult to defend against. If Booker and Fultz could find chemistry in terms of sharing the ball, they would form a devastating back court for a decade.
Adding Fultz to the Suns fits the modern NBA game of players who can play multiple positions well and would allow the Suns to spread around the play making and shooting responsibilities. Drafting Fultz would also allow the Suns to trade Bledsoe for a younger and higher leveraged asset like a small forward or a young center.
Why the Suns Would Not Want Him:
There primary reason the Suns wouldn’t take Fultz if he’s available would be because Lonzo Ball is still available. That is the kind of draft dilemma any team would love to have. There is no wrong answer in choosing between Ball and Fultz.
The Suns may choose Ball because of Booker. There is a risk that in drafting a premier scoring guard, like Fultz, the Suns perpetuate their current problem of having a point guard who doesn’t implicitly develop other players on the team. There’s only one ball and having Fultz and Booker could eliminate a lot of touches for guys like Chriss and Bender where a player like Ball would more readily defer to Booker as the star of the team and keep the other players involved. Fultz could also reduce the number of touches Booker sees which might alienate the team’s best young player and lead to chemistry challenges.
The other reason the Suns might pass on Fultz would be if the Suns suddenly started to get more competitive with the development of their current young players. An emerging team might tempt Sarver and Co. to take a lesser talent like Josh Jackson because fitting an immediate need makes the team more competitive and complete in the short-term.
Conclusion:
This a deep draft, but has only 1-2 players with true franchise changing potential. Fultz is one of those franchise changing players. If the Suns have a chance to draft him, they will be hard pressed not to pull the trigger. If the choice was between Fultz and Lonzo Ball, The Suns will be thrilled. Ball is likely a better fit with a Suns team that needs an elite passer. Fultz is almost certainly the better all-around player and it is hard to pass up superior talent for superior fit. If Fultz is available and Ball isn’t, the Suns will have an easy choice that will thrill fans for well over a decade.