After a disappointing draft lottery the Phoenix Suns should be looking to trade their 6th overall pick. Adding Goran Dragic could be a smart option.
It is time to say goodbye to Zion Williamson and Ja Morant. Whatever faint hope us Phoenix Suns fans had of getting to see them come to Phoenix are now all but gone. Next, the Suns should say goodbye to their number six pick and say hello again to a familiar face at point guard.
If the Phoenix Suns decide to trade their sixth overall pick, which they should, the position that would be the main priority to fill is point guard.
The main candidates that have been talked about are Mike Conley and Jrue Holiday. However, it is no guarantee either of these guys are going to be shopped or that they will be cheap enough for the Suns liking.
Which is why it makes sense to explore a strong plan B with the Miami Heat for Goran Dragic.
To start off, for a trade to be possible, Dragic would need to accept his 19.2 million dollar player option for the next season so that he is eligible to be traded, which he should. To make a trade for Dragic the Suns would need to be trading away roughly 10 million dollars of salary to make the trade work. A trade for Dragic would have to look something like this.
The big loss for the Suns here is to move out of the top 10 after a season in which they finished with 19 wins.
The advantage that the Suns can play on is that after the top 3 players in the draft, the next group of 10 to 12 guys are nearly interchangeable, with most of them being wing players that the Suns already have plenty of.
One popular choice for the Suns at #6 is Brandon Clarke from Gonzaga even though he is not considered a unanimous lottery selection.
The Suns give up on the troubling Josh Jackson along with Elie Okobo, who along with the decreased money for draft picks, will even out the salary going each way. The extra cap savings and flexibility is key for the Heat who had the highest payroll in the league this past year and are looking to get ready for a big free agency run in the near future.
With their limited cap space a move into the top 6 to grab a bigger name in the draft is something that the Heat could do to get people excited and try for a star since they are filled with role players.
Adding Jackson with team options each of the next two seasons gives them flexibility and brings in a former top 5 pick for pennies on the dollar.
The goal for the Suns in this trade is to help them win more right away. Although Dragic is not what he once was he is clearly better than any point guard the Suns have had since Eric Bledsoe.
Dragic is one season removed from averaging 17 points and 5 assists per game while leading the Heat to the playoffs and making an All-Star team.
Many fans want Jackson cut from the team and even those who are fine with having him around know he does not have much value so his loss is tenable.
For the Suns, staying in the lottery is important and with the 13th pick the Suns should be able to land an older, more experience player like Brandon Clarke, while also not needing to worry about which specific position to draft.
This move would take away most of the Suns’ cap space this summer but it fills their biggest need and T.J. Warren and Tyler Johnson would still be able to be moved to create space.
Dragic should not be the Suns’ top choice in the point guard market, but with the uncertainty and competition around Holiday and Conley he does make sense. If the cost is merely a player who just got arrested last weekend and a 7 spot drop in the weak end of the lottery, it is something that should at least be considered.