Suns can steal NCAA champion everybody is talking about in NBA Draft

The Phoenix Suns are nearing the end of what has been one of the most disappointing seasons in franchise history, meaning it is almost time to put them out of their misery. There is not likely to be even a play-in appearance - and as most fans will readily tell you in The Valley - the Suns don't deserve a spot there either.

All that would be waiting for them if they did somehow make it to the playoffs proper would be a meeting with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and we all know how that would go. Attentions now turn to the NBA Draft - and although the Suns have given up their lottery pick this season - they do still have a late first rounder from the Cleveland Cavaliers to look forward to.

They should do all they can to select Walter Clayton Jr.

That might sound like a ridiculous statement to make. After all, Clayton Jr. was the talk of March Madness, and he was one of the key players in the Florida Gators winning a national championship. That is until you realize that - despite his tournament heroics - he is still only projected to go 28th in this year's draft according to ESPN.

Yes plenty could happen between now and then - and this is also a mock and nothing else - but these are put together having gotten a feel around the league as to what organizations like what players. Clayton Jr. should go higher - and in all likelihood his stock is only going to go in one direction - but for now at least, he is in range for the Suns.

He's also not what they need most urgently from a roster standpoint. That remains young and athletic bigs - as it was last season when they selected Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro - and it is also why the same mock draft has the team selecting center Alex Condon, ironically a teammate of Clayton Jr.'s in Florida. This CV however, is the body of work of a player with the fight the Suns need.

If you've watched the Suns this season, then you'll know they've lacked an edge and a will to win that has been best personified by Bradley Beal's reluctance to do anything urgently on the court. Devin Booker has been excellent in the last few games since Kevin Durant went down with an ankle sprain, but it is frustrating that it took that happening for Booker to snap out of his funk.

Clayton Jr. would automatically bring an energy that could have similarities to when Chris Paul headed to Phoenix and changed everything. That sounds like outrageous praise - and it is - but Clayton Jr. would be going about this in a different way. He's a young upstart, and he's got that dog in him that the Suns desperately need.

He's also a point guard which is another long-term need for the franchise, and he's the kind of exciting youngster that would get the fanbase back onside ahead of an inevitable re-tool around Beal. College heroics don't always translate to success in the league, but there's something about the way Clayton Jr. plays and carries himself that makes you believe he can be a success.

This is a late first round pick anyway, and how fantastic would it be for the Suns to rebound from the horrible trades that have left them in this mess with no future flexibility, by stealing one of the standout performers in college basketball across the last month. This has to be the guy that they make a play for, even if it means moving up in the draft in order to get him.

Yes Clayton Jr. is 22-years-old - ancient by the standards of many teams - but the Suns are still in win-now mode. Durant might be heading for the exit door, but Beal doesn't look like he's going anywhere. He would be able to come in and help immediately, and would be an easy and ideal transition away from Tyus Jones. This makes too much sense.