Phoenix Suns shoot for the playoffs: ranking top 3 roles

Phoenix Suns: The No. 2 most important role

The maneuvering of key pieces now and up to the March 25 trade deadline falls to Monty Williams and general manager James Jones.

The personnel department certainly had a strong offseason, bringing aboard Jae Crowder, Chris Paul, E’Twaun Moore, Abdel Nader and Langston Galloway, but is there more work left to be done?

While Deandre Ayton has provided strong effort in learning the switching defensive demands on the perimeter, his defense on the low block — along with the tendency to occasionally allow his rebounding focus to drift — leaves plenty of room for improvement.

Frank Kaminsky isn’t really the answer, though his 3-point shooting and general offensive contributions have been a pleasant surprise.

Do the Suns look to find a creative way to improve their interior defense, perhaps adding a rim-protecting specialist? Either via trade or signing, players such as Hassan Whiteside, DeMarcus Cousins and LaMarcus Aldridge could be candidates to be acquired.

Each of those, along with those such as JaVale McGee and Andre Drummond, has drawbacks.

The question for each scenario is how well would a new piece fit in this carefully constructed — and successful — chemistry experiment carried out by Williams on the court.

At 24-11, and establishing a style that has long been proved to work in the postseason, the Suns are already well on their way to looking like a playoff competitor. But a little more grit and toughness added to the interior would help the chances to win a round or two in May.