Though the Phoenix Suns took a tough loss on Wednesday night, they did get another great reminder of just how good Jamaree Bouyea is. He was on two-way contracts with the San Antonio Spurs and Milwaukee Bucks, but both teams let him go. And now, the Suns get to reap the rewards of those teams’ mistakes.
Phoenix already has a ton of talented guards on its roster. Devin Booker, Jalen Green, and Collin Gillespie are just the tip of the iceberg. But Bouyea is clearly an NBA player. He can hang at this level. And now, he’s in the Suns’ orbit, on a two-way contract.
And finding guys like him is the key to moving forward for Phoenix.
Suns may have found another gem in Jamaree Bouyea
Wednesday night was ugly. The Oklahoma City Thunder picked up a 138-89 win over the Suns in the NBA Cup quarterfinals. But still, the Suns enjoyed some solid performances from their guys.
Jordan Goodwin scored 15 points, rookie Rasheer Fleming had seven, and Bouyea—the team’s newest addition—ended the game with 14 points, two rebounds, six assists, one steal, and one block. He shot 6-of-9 from the field and 2-of-3 from beyond the three-point arc.
As the Suns look to build out their roster in the post-Kevin Durant era, they need to focus on adding value contracts. Booker is their star, and they have solid players like Green and Dillon Brooks behind him.
But without first-round picks, tanking doesn’t make much sense for the Suns. They should look to remain as competitive as possible with Booker at the helm.
And in order to do that under the current CBA, finding cheap, valuable contracts is more important than ever, especially considering the Suns have some very expensive deals on the books (Booker, Green, Brooks, etc.).
Bouyea is a perfect example of that type of player. He’s still on a two-way deal right now. If he can continue to blossom, he could turn into a legitimate rotation piece for the Suns, and he won’t be making much money.
Gillespie is another prime example. Nick Richards is on a solid contract, too. And their rookies, who are on cost-controlled deals, have looked decent, too.
Despite the drama that came with the end of the Durant and Bradley Beal era in Phoenix, the Suns have bounced back pretty well. They’ve put a fairly competitive team around Booker in the short-term, and they’re setting themselves up for the long-term, too.
Finding diamonds in the rough always helps, and Bouyea looks like the latest.