Phoenix Suns former first rounder Chriss has option declined

Former Phoenix Suns top pick Marquese Chriss has had his fourth year option declined by the Houston Rockets, officially making him a bust.

The Phoenix Suns awful, awful 2016 draft class is officially full of busts. We already knew that was the case, but the Houston Rockets declining Marquese Chriss‘ fourth year option puts the nail in the coffin. It will be remembered as one of the worst draft classes a team has ever had relative to pick value.

That year, the Suns took Dragan Bender fourth overall knowing very well he would be raw when he entered the league. But raw shows flashes of greatness. Raw shows glimpses at what a player can become. Bender wasn’t raw, he was just plain bad. He’s the only player from that draft still on the roster, but he won’t be much longer, as the team has already declined his fourth year option.

Then there’s Tyler Ulis, who the Suns took 34th overall. He started more than half of games last year for the Suns, but he wasn’t very good, and the Suns declined his option this offseason, making him a free agent. He signed with the Chicago Bulls, who are just as bad as the Suns, and he’s still only gotten one minute of playing time despite the team being blown out often.

And finally, there’s Marquese Chriss. Chriss is an excellent athlete who was beloved by owner Robert Sarver before the draft. The Suns moved up from 13 to eight to draft Chriss, and he’s done nothing but frustrate fans with his lack of court awareness ever since. This summer, he was finally traded to the Rockets.

Chriss has been fighting injury problems, so he’s only appeared in one game for Houston, playing just eight minutes. But the Rockets clearly don’t view him as a piece of the future, as they have officially declined his fourth year option, meaning this year will very likely be his only year in Houston.

Good players have their options from their rookie contracts picked up. Even some bad players get them picked up just because they’re cheap and the player has some potential. But not a single player from the Phoenix Suns 2016 draft class will have their option picked up, even though they made two top ten selections. Everyone already knew the Suns 2016 NBA Draft was horrible, but now we can say it’s official.