PLAY YOUNG PLAYERS
Going into the second half of the season the Phoenix Suns have eight players that are under 25-years old. This means that the talent of these players is still not polished; their games are not yet complete; and they still are not experienced veterans. Yet Jared Dudley (31-years old), P.J. Tucker (31-years old), and Tyson Chandler (34-years old) are all still rotational players for the Suns, and rightfully so because of their superior talent. However, the team should look to play the younger players on the roster to get more experience because this should be a tanking season.
Players like Marquese Chriss, T.J. Warren, Tyler Ulis, and Alan Williams, each deserve a chance to receive more playing time and more of the spotlight. All of the young players play with a lot of grit and grind, but Head Coach Earl Watson still plays the veteran players longer.
For example, when the Suns played the Los Angeles Lakers on February 15, 2017, they blew out their rivals 137-101. During garbage time, however, Leandro Barbosa (34-years old) received more time down the stretch than players like Tyler Ulis (21-years old), Alan Williams (24-years old), and Derrick Jones Jr. (20-years old).
If the franchise wants to improve for the future and build on the young talent that they have, Earl Watson need to play the younger players that he has in these (ultimately rare) situations.
The final 25 games of the season needs to be used to develop their younger players to allow them grow in experience.