Leandro Barbosa was brought to Phoenix for the third time to provide a veteran presence on the court and in the locker room, and he did just that.
Although his stat line wasn’t too impressive, averaging 6.3 points, 1.2 assists an 1.6 rebounds in just 14 minutes per game, his positive impact on the team was much more than his stats show.
At times last season the Suns’ offense would become stagnant and freeze up. With Barbosa’s presence on the court, scoring wouldn’t come to a screeching halt allowing the reserves a better opportunity of keeping up with the opponent while the starters rested. Having a guy like Barbosa, who spent time with both the “7 seconds or less” Suns and the Warriors from 2014-2016, was key to keeping up a fast pace on offense and helping to prevent an all-out offensive stagnation by not succumbing to an isolation-first reserve mentality.
During the months of November and December, Barbosa had three-game streaks scoring 10 or more and in December put up performances of 21 and 18 points. In those games, his passing (which at times was forced as he attempted to do too much) improved and his energy on defense would match. Like most players, when Barbosa was able to put up points, his entire game improved. This was all very important as playing with a young secondary unit, Barbosa was an on court leader showing the younger players how to perform off the bench, both offensive and defensively.
Unfortunately, Barbosa was not able to perform consistently. When he was on, he was on. But like many older players who have lost their quick step or whose game can no longer keep up with their lethal mentality, there were several stretches where he disappeared completely. He rode the pine the last nine games of the season, and before that received few extended opportunities and put up very little with those chances. It should be noted though that his minutes were mostly lost in favor of playing the rookie Tyler Ulis.
Summary
Overall, Leandro Barbosa was a solid veteran presence off the bench all season, which is exactly what he was brought in to do. Although he’s no longer the Sixth Man of the Year candidate he once was, he can still contribute. Earning only four million next year, he is contributing enough for what the Suns are paying him. However, between his veteran leadership, positive and popular presence in the community, and potential to teach the rising Suns, his value is well above what he is earning for the team.
