Valley of the Suns
Fansided

The Phoenix Suns should shop Josh Jackson

By Khaleel Abdullah

LOS ANGELES, CA - JAN 27: Josh Jackson #20 of the Phoenix Suns dunks the ball against the Los Angeles Lakers on January 27, 2019 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Chris Elise/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - JAN 27: Josh Jackson #20 of the Phoenix Suns dunks the ball against the Los Angeles Lakers on January 27, 2019 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Chris Elise/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Phoenix Suns have a plethora of wings as well as needs at other positions. Before the trade deadline, they should see if they can do some balancing.

With the fourth pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, the Phoenix Suns selected Josh Jackson. He was supposed to develop into Robin for Devin Booker‘s Batman if you will. A super athletic defensive forward with offensive potential as well. He’s known as a slow starter and has some kinks to work out but still has shown some serious signs of what he can do in the future.

He’s displayed glimpses of an inspiring 6-foot-8 multi-positional player that can not only play shooting guard and small forward but even some point guard and if he adds some muscle (only 200 pounds right now), some power forward too.

Josh has been playing pretty well lately. For the month of January, he had a 43-31-73 shooting line, made one three per game and averaged 13.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.9 blocks while only turning the ball over 2.3 times per game.

Also, over the last eight games, he’s gotten to the line much more (42% of his shot attempts have resulted in a free throw) which is a strong aspect of the game to work on for a wing player. Over the course of this season, he’s gone to the charity stripe at a 27% rate. A 15% jump is nothing to sneeze at, but he really needs to start making them (65% this season) while earning more.

So, why would the team look at trading a player that was chosen with the fourth pick and is only a 21-year-old sophomore? The Suns desperately need to improve, are loaded on the wing, and have a clear weakness at other positions. They would be wise to see what kind of value Jackson has on the market before the deadline, and if the right deal comes up they need to pull that trigger.

Next. The Phoenix Suns should shop Dragan Bender. dark

Could Phoenix deal him for a veteran, rugged rebounding power forward that is locked up for a couple years on a decent contract? Could a young point guard or power forward be had on a swap? That’s what the franchise needs to find out and if the answer is yes, and the team believes it to be a good fit, they need to make the move.

Home/Suns News