Four veteran point guards John Gambadoro says the Phoenix Suns might target
By Adam Maynes
Patrick Beverley
Like Collison, Patrick Beverley has the kind of starting point guard experience that the Phoenix Suns should target should their next starting point guard be a veteran free agent.
Generally a starter throughout his career (last season was the first since his rookie year in 2012-13 that he did not start at least 88.7% of games he appeared in), Bev knows how to run an offense, he plays above average, hard-nosed defense, and is a very good shooter.
Phoenix Suns
He has never been a primary scorer at an point in his career, which of course he would not be in Phoenix, although his excellence from the outside would be huge for the Suns.
While not quite to Collison’s level of efficiency, Beverley has averaged no less than 38.2% from beyond the arc in his last four seasons, averaging exactly 40.0% twice in that stretch.
For the Suns, adding a legitimate outside threat at point guard would be a huge boon for a team who was worst in the league in 3-point shooting last season.
Unfortunately he has one very specific drawback: like Collison, he is much older than the Phoenix Suns’ core, and will be 31-years-old by the start of the season. Again, he is nothing more than a sort-term solution thrown into the long-term vision of the team.
He is also not a prime distributor and has averaged under 5.0 assists per-36min in five of his seven seasons in the NBA, last season breaking 5.0 for the first time since his rookie season, dishing out 5.1 per-36.
What the Suns will lose offensively via assists and longevity, they will gain in shooting and defense. The team will most certainly improve, but not to the extent that fans are clamoring for.