Is Phoenix Suns rookie Mikal Bridges overlooked already?

The Phoenix Suns traded an unprotected first round pick to acquire him, but is Mikal Bridges being overlooked already, before he ever plays a game?

He’s behind T.J. Warren, Josh Jackson, Trevor Ariza, and Ryan Anderson. But an unprotected first round pick was moved to acquire him on draft day. The Phoenix Suns and their fans have high hopes for the three-year collegiate star, but is Mikal Bridges being overlooked before he ever sets foot on the court, before he even dons the purple and orange?

Throughout the summer, Suns General Manager Ryan McDonough has been expected to make a trade, whether a splashy deal for a star, or at least to acquire a point guard.

The roster touts a wealth of young players – forwards in particular – but lack any depth at point. It has been expected that at least one of either T.J. Warren or Josh Jackson would need to be traded in a package for a point and/or star to help the team become more well-rounded, and hopefully better on both sides of the court.

But with no moves made thus far, we still expect that Ariza will start, and maybe Anderson. We expect that at least Josh Jackson will start, and maybe too T.J. Warren. Four players, four forwards who can play at least two positions, and presumably all above Bridges on the depth chart, shrinking his minutes, and the chance to play much this, in his rookie year.

And yet, when Bridges plays, he has a chance to be as impactful to the Phoenix Suns as the rookie who was selected nine spots in front of him, Deandre Ayton.

Ayton brings with him from Villanova two particular talents that if a move is made on the roster above him or if he outplays any of those aforementioned wings, will make him absolutely invaluable:

His 3-point shooting and defense.

Neither T.J. Warren nor Josh Jackson are even moderately good 3-point shooters. While Bridges shot 43.5% his junior year in college (on 239 attempts, mind you), Neither Warren nor Jackson averaged even 27%, Warren – 22.2%, and Jackson – 26.8%.

Jackson was touted as a two-way player coming into the league, and most certainly held his own defensively for the most part and the second half of the season showed that he was a very capable scorer (so long as his shots came from within the arc).

Warren though, is an above average scorer (once again, from within the 3-point line), but not specifically known for his defense (although both averaged 1.0 steals last season and Jackson’s 112 individual Defensive Rating wasn’t that much better than Warren’s 114).

College Defensive Ratings cannot be accurately compared to an NBA rating, however Bridges still did own a 98.2 Rating, ironically the worst rating of his career, although still better than his professional counterparts.

But while Bridges might be a far more efficient 3-point shooter, and even possibly a better defender, he will almost undoubtedly start the season below those other four on the depth chart, waiting his turn, waiting for someone to be traded before he can become an integral member of the rotation.

For all we know he could be the next Steve Nash (in overall skill, not necessarily as a distributor), but while currently still playing behind four veterans, he might not realize and we might not see, his true professional potential.

The franchise and fans alike know who will play before him to start the season. When he does get to play, and he shows off his shooting and defensive skills, he might be just as impactful to the Suns as every other rookie.

Hopefully he just isn’t overlooked.