The Phoenix Suns have been slow playing the development of former lottery pick Khaman Maluach. But now, with Mark Williams sidelined after undergoing surgery to repair a torn labrum, the big man from South Sudan is poised to see a vastly enhanced role.
Mark Williams’ injury will lead to more playing time for Maluach
As Williams recovers and ultimately rehabs from surgery, the Suns will have to move forward with their two young(er) centers. The more-seasoned Oso Ighodaro — entering his third professional season and setting lofty goals for himself — in all likelihood will be the new starter. But with Oso's role as backup shifting, Maluach finally should get an opportunity to show what he can do with consistent minutes on the big stage.
To this point, the Suns have shown plenty of patience as it relates to Maluach’s pro development. He spent much of his time as a rookie playing with the Suns’ G League affiliate. Across 11 games played last season for the Valley Suns (Tip-Off Tournament and regular season combined), Maluach averaged 16.5 points, 12.7 rebounds, 2.5 blocks, and 1.2 assists per game while converting 52.6 percent of his field goals.
Those numbers are all sterling and would be a welcome addition to the NBA team, but Maluach did have noticeable warts. The 7-foot-1 center shot just 26.7 percent on 3-point attempts in that stretch and averaged 2.6 turnovers per contest for an ugly assist-to-turnover ratio.
To be clear, Maluach doesn’t need to be an elite sharpshooter from beyond the arc this early in his career. He’ll continue to develop that part of his game, but for now he needs to lean into his strengths.
Khaman Maluach must focus on his rim protection at the NBA level
Chiefly, the Duke product’s biggest strength remains shot blocking and rim protection.
In a 118-116 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on March 6, Maluach notched what was, at that point, a career-high 20 minutes of action. In those 20 minutes, he blocked five shots. That was the most blocks in a game by a Suns rookie since 2017 (when Marquese Chriss did it twice). In the process, Maluach also became the youngest bench player since 2013 to record five blocks in a game.
The underlying statistics were even better.
According to NBA.com data, Maluach’s defended field goal percentage on shot attempts within six feet of the basket was a stifling 42.2 percent. Of players who played at least 30 games while defending at least two such attempts per game, only Isaiah Stewart of the Detroit Pistons was a better interior defender — allowing a 39.6 percent shooting clip in those scenarios.
Maluach’s interior defense was leagues better than that of Williams, by contrast, who allowed opponents to shoot 63.4 percent from within six feet of the basket. A more than 20 percent difference is a Grand Canyon-sized chasm in terms of who the better rim protector was.
Williams is a much more polished offensive product compared to Maluach. However, the latter’s length and defensive capabilities should make Coach Ott confident that he can plug and play him while Williams is sidelined.
If Maluach runs with the opportunity, continues to be elite defensively on the interior, and shows he can at least contribute on offense by catching lobs and finishing at the rim, the Suns could be forced to expedite his development into a key rotational cog.
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