There was a time when the Suns made That trade

There was a time when the Phoenix Suns made that trade.

When they did what needed to be done. When fans in the Valley of the Suns didn’t look longingly at another team’s achievement, but instead held their collective heads high and carried a broad smile across their face as of the rest of the league looked longingly at us wondering in bewilderment why their team didn’t pull it off.

Barkley. Kidd. Penny. McDyess. Carter. These were all players that could have gone anywhere, but Suns management found a way to bring them here.

With the announcement of the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers trade of the number one overall pick on draft day, Suns fans are left to once again ask, “why didn’t we offer more?”

Recently Suns involved franchise altering trades seem to have disappeared. Blockbusters involving Kevin Love, James Harden, heck, even Nerleans Noel, and now the first overall draft pick each time the trade trigger has been pulled, and Suns fans begged for their team to make it happen, they were left disappointed witnessing the result of another fired blank.

Fans are again faced with the reality that Phoenix will be one of the 29 teams who has to face Markelle Fultz on Philadelphia 76ers, rather than celebrating the team’s trade success.

In potentially trading with Boston, maybe the requested return was too rich for Ryan McDonough’s blood. Maybe he put his cards on the table and in the end the Sixers held a full house to Phoenix’s two pair. And maybe the Suns never actually made an offer at all. I suppose we’ll never know. And maybe we don’t need to know. What is obvious though is that the first overall pick could have been Phoenix’s. McDonough could have outbid Philadelphia and Markelle Fultz could have been a Sun.

But would it have been worth it? To have moved potentially two additional first round picks aside from the fourth pick this year, is Fultz worth that big of a haul?

Some have compared him to Chris Paul, a sure-fire Hall of Famer. Yet Paul has never been to a Conference Final. Maybe Fultz could be as good as Gary Payton. Yet he never even won a title.

Shoot, even if he somehow manages to raise himself to the statistical level of Russell Westbrook, even Westbrook couldn’t get over the top in 2011, and he played in a rotation that boasted two future Hall of Famers besides himself.

Point guards can help win titles, but you cannot count on them to carry a team. The Suns need more – much more – to finally make Phoenix a title town once again. I for one am glad the Suns didn’t make the trade. It may have been a godsend that Ryan McDonough didn’t partially mortgage the Suns’ future for a point guard.

However, I too would have loved to have been that team once again who swooped in to steal the star, rather than gawk in awe as fans of another franchise bask in the excitement of this newfound addition.

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Maybe Suns fans can take solace in the fact that there is still time to make a trade. Maybe they still will surprise the NBA world and make a move that no one saw coming.

What if Los Angeles could be guaranteed that Boston has no interest in Lonzo Ball. Could Phoenix still trade up with the Lakers to slip into the second spot and select Josh Jackson? The Celtics would then pass on Ball in favor of Jayson Tatum, Johnathan Issac, et al. and not only would the Suns too make a blockbuster equivalent trade, but with the acquisition of Jackson would help to soften the bitterness of losing the draft lottery.

Of course this would mean that the Suns give the Lakers an additional first round pick (or other asset) while L.A. still gets the guy they were going to take all along, but at least Phoenix would acquire the star player they wanted, adding a seriously good piece to a young core.

If it happens, great. If not, that’s fine. There is no doubt though that trading with Boston was an opportunity for Phoenix to add another shiny trade trophy to their franchise mantle.

And yet, while I am glad they didn’t over pay for the right to draft Markelle Fultz, for what feels like the 1,000th time, they once again, failed to hold the winning hand.

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