Phoenix Suns: Top-Five Best First Round Picks of the last Decade
By Adam Maynes
5. Markieff Morris – WS 13.6 (.075)
Drafted 13th overall in 2011
Markieff Morris was seen at the time as a solid pick by then general manager Lance Blanks, a power forward from Kansas who was athletic and could score from anywhere on the court.
If for some reason the best player in that draft, Kawhi Leonard, had been taken ahead of Morris – Blanks’ pick might have actually been the best he could have done.
His selection was proof that he wanted the team to remain athletic and long, although it didn’t hurt that the need at power forward was a gaping one with Amar’e Stoudemire then a full-year removed from his time in the Valley.
If you consider too that Markieff improved his game every season of his tenure in Phoenix, raising his scoring average each year, maintaining a solid FG%, while working on his outside shot, and the fact that it was a truly fun story that he and his twin brother Marcus Morris played for the franchise at the same time, and each were key contributors to the team’s unlikely 48-34 season in 2013-14, then we could praise the selection unanimously.
However, the Morrii’s poor collective relationship with head coach Jeff Hornacek, coupled with their bitter perception of Suns fans, and later the situation in which they beat up an old man, soured their stay with the franchise, ending their combined tenure probably far too early.
Coupled on top of that that the reason Lance Blanks did not select Kawhii (who was taken two picks after Phoenix selected Markieff) was because the now superstar sweat through his suit in player interviews, and the entire scenario surrounding Markieff Morris ends up as a complete drain on the collective fan base’s psyche.