Projecting Earl Watson’s 2017/18 Rotation
Now that Josh Jackson has been ruled out of any Kyrie Irving trade, it looks like Phoenix will not be making a move for the 25-year-old.
The updated Kyrie trade information, coupled with the recent Brandon Knight injury news, gives fans a great deal of clarity in regards to Coach Earl Watson’s rotation. For the purpose of this article, we are going to assume that Alex Len will end up back with the Suns for the upcoming year. We are also going to disregard any injuries that will undoubtedly occur during the course of the season.
So without further ado, let’s take a look at a projected version of the 2017-2018 Phoenix Suns rotation.
The Starters:
Eric Bledsoe:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 33.0 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 31.0 MPG
Rationale: There is not much reason for Bledsoe’s playing time to drastically increase or decrease this season. Though with a combination of Tyler Ulis and Devin Booker possibly getting some time at point guard, Bled’s MPG could drop ever-so slightly.
Devin Booker:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 35.0 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 35.0 MPG
Rationale: Devin Booker is this team’s young star. Everybody knows that Book is going to get big minutes this year, just like last year.
T.J. Warren:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 31.0 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 23.0 MPG
Rational: Now that Josh Jackson is officially here to stay, T.J.’s minutes are going to suffer. It’s likely that he will still remain in the starting lineup (at least to start the year), but Jackson is definitely going to cut into some of T.J.’s playing time.
Marquese Chriss:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 21.3 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 24.0 MPG
Rationale: Coming off of a strong rookie year, there is no reason to expect that Chriss won’t get a larger role this season. If Marquese can get his foul issues under control, he should be playing more in 2017/2018.
Tyson Chandler:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 27.6 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 19.0 MPG
Rationale: As Tyson ages, and the rest of this young team develops, his minutes are going to drop. Plus, Alan Williams, Alex Len and Marquese Chriss are all going to be eating into his minutes at center.
The Bench:
Tyler Ulis:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 18.4 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 19.0 MPG
Rationale: Ulis showed tons of promise last year, providing creativity off the bench. Going into his sophomore season, hopefully Earl Watson will reward him with some added PT for his very successful rookie year.
Josh Jackson:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: N/A
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 23.0 MPG
Rationale: It seems appropriate to expect Josh Jackson to play at least as much as T.J. Warren this year. In fact, no one would be surprised to see Jackson begin this year in the starting lineup.
Dragan Bender:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 13.3 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 17.0 MPG
Rationale: In a year hampered by injuries, Dragan Bender only got limited minutes in 2016/17. Hopefully, this upcoming year will bring more court time for Bender in Coach Watson’s rotation.
Alex Len:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 20.3 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 14.0 MPG
Rationale: If Len does get re-signed by the Suns, he will be stuck competing with the other centers on this roster for minutes. Unfortunately for Len, that most likely means that his playing time will dip slightly.
Alan Williams:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 15.1 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 14.0 MPG
Rationale: Big Sauce is back in Phoenix with a new contract. Hopefully he will be able to bring that same spark off the bench in 2018.
Jared Dudley:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 21.3 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 8.0 MPG
Rationale: Like Chandler, Dudley’s minutes are going to drop this year because of his age and the developing talent around him.
Davon Reed:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: N/A
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 8.0 MPG
Rationale: After showing some extremely promising skills in the LVSL, Davon Reed has a chance to break into Earl Watson’s rotation early on this year.
Derrick Jones Jr:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: 17.0 MPG
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: 5.0 MPG
Rationale: Unless Derrick Jones Jr. is able to add a decent jumpshot to his game over the summer, it is hard to imagine D.J. Jr. getting any major playing time this year. Also, the addition of Davon Reed is definitely going to cut into his playing time.
Mike James:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: N/A
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: N/A
Rationale: After a very impressive Summer League campaign, James will likely split time as the third point guard here in Phoenix and be the starter for Northern Arizona Suns up in Prescott.
Alec Peters:
2016/17 Minutes Per Game: N/A
Projected 2017/18 Minutes Per Game: N/A
Rationale: Right now, it is nearly impossible to predict how Alec Peters is going to fit in this rotation. Like James, Peters will almost certainly spend the majority of his time in the G-League this year.