Why not – bring Boris Diaw back

Last offseason the Suns signed two former fan favorites, whether intentionally or incidentally, by re-acquiring Jared Dudley and Leandro Barbosa.

One of the publicly stated reasons for their acquisitions was to bring in veterans who, grouped with Tyson Chandler, could act as mentors for the young players, providing not only examples of good practice and playing habits, to act professionally, but also to win.

In the standings the Suns didn’t win much, but at least from the public perspective nothing but positivity came of those signings. (Barbosa is now gone for the third time, and Dudley is recovering from foot surgery with two years remaining left on his contract).

Boris Diaw has been waived by the Utah Jazz, nulling what was a $7M contract for this coming season. Another former fan favorite of the D’Antoni era, there could be a spot for him on the 2017-18 Suns roster, for the right price.

What Diaw could bring to the Suns is more than just a winning pedigree and veteran leadership. He is the epitome of the kind of player the Suns are hoping to mold Dragan Bender into – a ball-handling big who can both facilitate the offense while stretching the floor with his outside shooting. The roster currently has no such veteran with that kind of experience and skill-set, thus re-acquiring Diaw could be a helpful addition, and a strong voice in the ear of the still inexperienced 20-year-old.

Depending on what Diaw wants with the rest of the career would define if such a move were plausible. If he is seeking another shot at winning a title, then obviously Phoenix is not the place for him. If he is seeking a long-term deal or one last payday of some kind, then there is no interest in him here.

But if Boris Diaw, who last year averaged 4.6 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists for Utah, would be willing to take the veterans minimum of about $2.3M (or a little bit more if it’s needed to sweeten the pot) for one season, I do not believe that there is a better free agent out there for the Suns to bring in on a short-term deal considering what he could bring to the growth of one of the franchise’s presumed core players.

The first question fan’s now ask is “who’s minutes is he taking?” Honestly? No one’s.

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The young players will need rest, and there will be the occasional moments of foul trouble, ineffectiveness, and injury. He would likely receive similar minutes to Jared Dudley, which is relatively minimal. Diaw also wouldn’t come in as a starter, nor a first wave sub. Even last season on a playoff team he only averaged 17.6 minutes per game in the regular season. Cut that back by about five minutes and you’ve got yourself the fourth or fifth player off the bench, but at least one who could help work specifically with Bender.

At the moment the Suns’ roster is full. With 14 players currently signed (and so far Alec Peters has yet to sign as well), a move or two in terms of contract dumps would have to happen to fit Diaw in. But as the roster does not appear to be entirely set in stone just yet, if something happens to open up a spot, (or if Elijah Millsap and Mike James are not retained) then adding the veteran Diaw would not be that bad of an idea.