The Phoenix Suns Are Reportedly Keeping Their Pick In the NBA Draft, Is That the Right Choice?

The Phoenix Suns Are Reportedly Keeping Their Pick In the NBA Draft, Is That the Right Choice?

today on locked on Phoenix Suns John gambadoro of Arizona Sports reporting that the suns are in fact expected to make a selection in the first round of next week’s NBA draft after all so let’s discuss where they might look where they might not look and what it tells us about their plans this summer let’s go you are locked on suns your daily Phoenix Suns podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day and we’re back this is locked on Phoenix Suns part of the lockon podcast Network your team every day I’m Brendan clean your host welcome to the show I’m a credential media member covering the Suns for the past seven seasons and the host of the just basketball show thank you for kicking off your Wednesday with the show with locked on suns making us your first listen to kick off your day we are free and available everywhere including YouTube so if you haven’t already hit follow hit subscribe get us in your feed every single Monday through Friday keep track of all the noise all the rumors all the reports right here become an every dayer get locked onto the Suns all off seon long again just hit that button you get an episode in your feet every single Monday through Friday let’s Dive Right In today’s episode is brought to you by the FanDuel sports book make every moment more right now new customers get $200 in bonus Bets with any winning $5 bet that’s $200 in bonus Bets with any winning $5 bet Vis ael.com lockon to get started all right Burns and gambo on Monday afternoon John gadoro reports that the suns are not expected to trade their pick in next week’s draft for an established veteran player that is the bottom line of what he said we will get to the Tyler klech rumors and what gambo said there and my thoughts on that we will talk about uh bronny James and if that noise is still real or not as well as some examples of trading back which is also something gambo left open so this is by no means nine days out from the draft here is what the Suns will do but I think we can at least say that their plans as of right now Tuesday June 18th at 3:30 p.m. as I’m recording this do not currently seem to include getting rid of the pick to trade for a Landry shamut type like they did of course in 2021 so this comes back to something I’ve been saying all offseason since the moment the Suns got eliminated and we all trained our eyes toward the summer being Allin doesn’t have to mean being overly aggressive okay the right move is not always the move that gives up the most assets there is a reason that when I did my best case scenario off season if you all remember and that episode did pretty well I’m assuming a lot of you who are listening to this or watching this you probably check that one out if not go back find it listen to it I told you then that my preferred pathway with all of this and I don’t know the prospects I don’t Scout the draft like I used to because the Suns haven’t made a pick in three years four years so this was not me saying oh if they can get such and such draft prospect then I’ll be excited no this was purely about a value a value judgment uh getting the most bang for your buck given the Suns have so few assets they’re heading into this draft heading into this offseason with two first round picks at their disposal one of which is this year a pick they could make or trade and basically nir little and Yousef nurkic’s contracts that’s it so with that said I proposed in that scenario this taking a pick taking a player with this pick this year trading the 2031 pick and getting younger and deeper overall that’s kind of the gist of what I tried to do there right so in my imagination it was trading that 2031 pick and nurkic for Grant Williams Trey man and the 42nd pick this year taking a player at 42 taking a player at 22 getting Grant Williams getting Trey man and then you know I think I had a couple minimum signings in there whatever that’s not what we’re talking about but that version of reality gets you a lot more cracks at it at at finding contributors whereas if you know let’s say you let’s say you combine you know the Suns cannot aggregate salar so they can’t trade little and nerkish together in one trade so everything but that basically both picks and let’s say nurkic cuz he makes more money you can get a higher paid player let’s say you go out and get I don’t know fill in with your favorite guy in that price range the only one I’m thinking of right now is Grant Williams because uh he’s um I think technically dejonte Murray counts I don’t or he did or let’s say Austin Reeves let’s say Austin Reeves he’s not available but let’s use Austin Reeves he makes the right amount of money for this Austin Reeves is a much better player right now than anybody the Suns will get at 22 almost for sure even Tyrese maxer ban these late bloomers they’re not great as rookies Reeves is better but is Reeves by himself a Surefire lock to get you closer to winning a championship and I know I’m focused on this one example of this player but that’s not the point put in whatever player you want Maybe not maybe that’s not enough even though he’s better right the suns are in a position where what they need is more Specialists more depth more positional and lineup versatility so going all in putting everything together is not always the way to do it so we’ll get to the ramifications and the specific players and all that I promise because that matters you got to it’s not just the first move of okay we’re taking a player or we’re not taking a player or we’re making this trade to get these picks or this player it’s okay then what are you doing with that but the the mindset here where again being Allin does not have to mean being overly aggressive taking a player here at 22 with one of the only opportunities you have to get young talent in the door to me that is still being all in I know I’ve harped on these examples a ton the finals are now over this series is not ongoing to give us the example but they’re two teams that show it really well the Mavericks tanked last year they make the Conference Finals in 2022 you don’t need me to remind you of that then last season 2023 they get Kyrie but they don’t even make the play in they rest their guys because they’re not even worried about chasing the 10 or the nine they just say screw it they get Derrik Lively you know they make several moves after that and they’re right back to the finals Boston they trade a first for Brogden then they use Brogden in the holiday deal they get picks back in the porzingis trade and then they again turn around and go get holiday in the middle of that smart goes out the door they sign and trade Grant Williams away from their team again this is theoretically they’re coming off of a finals birth and then an Eastern Conference game seven they get rid of one of their key role players in the form of Grant Williams they’re a thinner team but they stayed flexible they got picks and porzingis they got picks for Grant Williams then here on the other side they’re going and getting Drew holiday that’s what the best teams do and I’m not even going to continue to harp on those examples because frankly I thought of a son’s example that’s just as good as I was putting all of this together 2019 draft the Suns made two moves both of which allowed them to acquire draft to draft players and acquire veterans in one move they trade up from 11 to six uh sorry they trade back from 11 from 6 to 11 they get shich Dario shich and they end UPA drafting the same guy they wanted all along which was cam Johnson who we’ve heard since they would have maybe taken at six they get the 25th pick in that draft and Aaron Baines for a future first and they select Ty jome the pick didn’t work out but Baines definitely worked out point is that’s the creative type of mindset that the best teams use to stay Nimble stay flexible and give themselves consistent chances to improve taking the biggest swing possible every time you get the chance to get an that bat is not always what’s going to get you to the Hall of Fame get you the batting average or the OBP or whatever that you need it’s about what makes the most sense now and I am honestly surprised but nevertheless excited that the suns are seeing this the same way that I have been seeing it which is that drafting somebody next week is just as likely to pay off as taking that big swing let’s talk about Tyler klech bronny James and Beyond as far as the sun’s options when they do make their pick or picks next week coming up next first Today’s Show brought to you by eBay Motors passion drive and patience the formula for winning championships is also what keeps your ride or die alive eBay Motors has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to Peak Performance whether that’s a supercharger a roof rack an exhaust kit LED headlight I will add the flap on the interior of your vehicle from the ceiling down that blocks the Sun out of your eyes which is must have anywhere but of course in Phoenix and then a wheel cover literally have bought two of these things from eBay Motors because for some reason uh I’m not going to throw my manufacturer under the bus but they couldn’t get there you know what together eBay Motors had me covered though with over 122 million parts for your number one ride or die you too will also find exactly what you’re looking for and with eBay’s guaranteed fit your part is guaranteed to fit your ride every time or your money back because with eBay Motors you’re burning rubber not cash all the parts you need at the prices you want it’s easy to take make your car the MVP and bring home huge wins so keep your r or die alive at ebaymotors.com eligible items only exclusion Supply eBay guaranteed fit only available to us customers keeping the show rolling John gadoro in the same report on Monday’s show said yes I can tell you the Suns like Tyler klech that is a name that I think you have to keep in mind for the Phoenix Sons but I do think people are overestimating how much the Suns like him meanwhile Tuesday Jonathan gavone of ESPN reported that the Suns have a second workout with bronny James gambo reported about Brony that he does not expect that the sons would pick bronny at 22 but the fact that they’re bringing him in again and the fact that gambo feels like 22 might be early for klech speaks to a potential trade okay but let’s just focus on these players for a moment right because there is Dron Holmes there is T Jaylen Tyson there’s Jaylen Bridges there’s Johnny Fury filipowski there’s mcculler there’s any number of dudes who if the Suns kept 22 but did not take kak did not take bronny could still select and again I’m no draft expert we will be having Zack Cohen of real GM on the show soon in the leadup to next week’s draft maybe bring Damon alled back here as well to get alas digest and download on those players again that’s not the point I’m making here but let’s just take it for what it is right the Suns clearly and this is James Jones Heaven having a draft where you’re just treating it the way I broke down in the last segment of we are making a pick and almost treating it like free agency right you know of course the draft board can break down a different way guys might not be available it’s not just pure negotiations but for the Suns it is purely about filling a need filling a spot in their rotation James Jones has talked forever about the 5×5 note card I want to have five guys you know I guess it’s three by five not five by5 he wants three guys at each position to get to a 15-man roster effectively and so for him this draft is about let me get one of those three at one of those five and go from there so of course the Suns need to they they feel that they need some kind of point guard option right and so kak provides that he is a a great playmaker he is a great pick and roll distributor he can play in the transition game he can play in the half court game he’s big enough that it’s not a huge weakness for him he can shoot he can shoot on the ball or off the ball a lot of it works we talked about it on Monday’s episode makes perfect sense they clearly feel like they need point of attack defense and kind of that hustle and and and athleticism and grit and bronny in theory could eventually be that now the bronny part of it adds up a little less given that I’m doubt ful he would contribute in year one if you’re betting on him to contribute at all which I could hear a case for it it’s not going to be right away the guy you know struggled in the Pack 12 last year it would be superhero stuff for him to come come in and and be a bench player on a team trying to win a championship so that doesn’t fully Jive but basic skill set wise you can understand why bronny makes some sense we will hear more names I’m sure especially now that gambo has kind of Pumped the brakes on klech it felt like between Michael Scot and Kristen Peak there was some kind of consensus building that the suns were just going to stay at 22 and take klech and that was that it felt a little early for something to be cemented so much and the fact that colex agent is the father of the son’s team CEO didn’t fully pass the smell test right which is why I’m trying to focus on the positional side of it but let me just because these are both guards and they’re the names that we’ve just sort of heard most specifically tied to the Suns throughout this whole process and and I’m really talking about kak here more than anything I Eddie Johnson went back on local radio this week and and hyped up the need for um a point guard to not force Booker to be that for this team kind of worded it to the extent that just because book can do it doesn’t mean that you want him to do it I get all of it I do I I truly do I I mean I know people here think I’m some kind of Booker truther and whatever I’m not it may not be the best role for him I can admit that here’s the deal one it would be a little bit foolish to me to expect that if you are taking a player at 22 that is a point guard and kak makes the most sense to be that I would think from the guys that I’ve seen unless somebody Falls the idea of that player contributing is already far from a lock the idea of that player being the magic point guard we everybody’s been arguing about for six months to like fix this team I’m skeptical of that I’m skeptical that anybody they could get would be that which is why I’ve been against it the whole time so while I think drafting a player at 22 gives you a really good shot to add depth and flexibility financially and all those things that doesn’t change the limitations the Suns have overall nothing across the 22 pick the nerkish trade options or minimum contracts in free agency feel like a Surefire way to get that type of point guard who is going to be good enough to be on the court a ton and be good enough to not have Devin Booker have to do that what I’m saying is if you feel like you still need that if the suns are sitting there and they still they feel like they still need somebody a a 30 plus Point 30 plus minute per game point guard and that’s part of their thinking with klech or Brony or any of the other things that they’re looking at I guess to me you’re again looking in the wrong place because if you’re that convinced that Booker and Beal and Durant kind of splitting the playmaking duties with book being the primary initiator the majority of the time then the real answer if you’re if you think that that setup is broken you got to trade Bradley Beal and I don’t think you should trade Bradley Beal because I think that setup can work but people just need to sort of pick one or the other and when we’re analyzing what the Suns should do or if they are to take somebody like kch what that means once they do it we cannot always go back to needing this thing that they we’re not supposed to need I know I’m getting a little bit off base but I guess as it pertains to this report and this rumor what I hope we hear are some names that maybe are not guards or if we do see the Suns go ahead and pick klech I guess return back to the thing we were talking about last week from gambo early in the week which was that they want a younger point guard option who could play 20 plus minutes per game kle can do that kak can be that that would help the Suns that would provide some versatility and flexibility with lineups and with play style that would be helpful nothing in this repor or elsewhere has changed my mind that a point guard is getable the point guard is not getable and if you still think that’s what this team needs you got to just you’re probably closer to feeling like you got to blow the whole damn thing up than you realize and I’m not there I don’t think the suns are there there and this rumor tells me that they want to add depth around this not a major piece like that trading back is the last ingredient of what we could see the Suns do next week tell you what gambo said tell you what the Suns can learn from the team that ousted them in 2023 about all of this coming up next first Today’s Show brought to you by the FanDuel sports book summertime means baseball basketball and more and you can bet it all on FanDuel right now new customers get $200 in bonus Bets with any winning $5 bet that’s 200 bucks you can use to bet everything from the baseball MVP to who’s going to hit one out of the park of course the WNBA season rolls on despite the NBA Finals being over I am headed to Mercury Liberty right after I get finished recording but Wednesday night the aces host the storm a potential finals preview the aces are 5 and a half Point favorites the over under is 169 I could see the under there the storm have a little bit more defensive potential than uh the typical team Kelsey Plum has been a little quiet you never know I could see an under hitting there are props there are Commissioners cup odds and much more across the world of the WNBA in addition to baseball and Beyond visit fanduel.com locked on to check it all out and add a big win to your summer bucket list FanDuel America’s number one sports book Let’s close out the show so as I mentioned gambo surfaced this idea that klech um might be a little bit of a reach at 22 now that’s you know of course gambo’s not scouting the draft so that’s kind of probably from conversations with teams he mentioned that before we ever knew the Suns had a second workout with bronny gambo had already said that they that he couldn’t rule out them taking him but that that probably would not be at 22 either I would even throw in the fact that we have seen them work out a guy like Jaylen Tyson who I did a breakdown of last week I believe on the podcast who is not really an early 20s guy in terms of lot of other teams big boards now that could that has not stopped James Jones in the past so I’m not saying if they take jayen T Jaylen Tyson it would only be because they traded back they could take him at 22 they could take [ __ ] at 22 they could take bronny James at 22 of course it all takes another team to Tango right it’s going to be about if they can find that trade not just if they want to make it I like the philosophy though I like the idea of potentially getting again if I’m making the case the Suns should keep 22 as a way to get more byes at the Apple and stay flexible getting even more picks makes even more sense the example that I will point to before I come back to this draft and what we could see the Suns be look what the Suns might be looking at is the Denver Nuggets last summer okay so it was two trades very NFL like if you remember back to last summer with Denver they traded in total their 2029 first and their 40th overall pick in 2023 this was all ahead of the draft so this was the 40th pick in the draft that they were finagling in what they got back so 2029 1st 2023 early 2nd they get back the 29th pick in 2023 so they basically trade up from 40 to 29 and they get two additional seconds for that future 2029 first they trade up from 40 to 29 and they get 32 and 37 and they tra they drafted really well now I think part of what you could criticize Denver for this whole season was the coaching staff not necessarily being on the same page as the front office after those moves because uh Jaylen picket and Hunter Tyson and the shooter from Gonzaga whose name I can’t remember right now Julian Str all three of those guys were well hyped up prospects at the time Denver took them but then Michael Malone didn’t want to develop them and everything else so that’s just for context the philosophy was very smart the Nuggets knew we’re up against some tax and cap restrictions they knew cavius Caldwell Pope would be um up for a new contract potentially this summer with the player option they have extensions for their best players they knew Bruce Brown was probably gone so they said we’re going to create and manufacture some depth through the draft splitting a future first into two high seconds and trading up into the first from 40 that’s really smart stuff especially those early seconds to be honest with you because those guys are on even more even less expensive contracts so if you’re worried about it from a team standpoint that’s a great way to do it now the Suns I don’t think would use their 2031 pick the same way Denver used their 2029 pick but I think the idea of getting multiple picks back for 22 makes a whole lot of sense I have a few ideas I look at of course New York is the first one you’re going to have to zoom in on right they have 24 and 25 I kind of doubt as a onet to one the Suns would be able to get both of those picks for 22 remember though the Suns have 2 seconds left we’ve been thinking about that those pick that they do still have that they didn’t use in the Royce O’Neal trade or they didn’t lose for tampering on Drew Eubanks as things that they could go out and attach to Royce O’Neal to or I’m sorry to um David Rody to NS little to Yousef nerkish but maybe those two seconds could sweeten the deal and it’s pick 22 those two second round picks go to New York and picks 24 and 25 go to Phoenix I could see it if the Knicks like somebody that they want to move up for the Knicks don’t have a I don’t know if that would make sense for them but again just spitballing the Knicks also have the 38th pick so maybe it’s just one of those firsts and 38 that the Suns get back for 22 that’s honestly what’s tough is there’s not a lot of other teams that have a late first and an early second the Bucks are at 23 and 33 I could see that but honestly the Bucks might be the only team who need young versatile athletic depth pieces more than Phoenix so I wouldn’t count on Milwaukee giving up those two opportunities just to go out and and get somebody at 22 maybe not saying it won’t happen I obviously don’t know I’m just sort of speculating and piecing together some possibilities but that’s kind of where it ends as far as what we know right now teams that have picks and in the first round after the Suns and then a te a pick in the first half of the second round it’s basically New Yorker or Milwaukee so keep an ey there as we saw with Denver those trades to move around in the draft happened before the draft days before the draft so you know early next week don’t be surprised if we hear something don’t be surprised if there’s a move and the Suns suddenly have 25 and 38 and they take kch with 25 and Ronnie with 38 or something or Jaylen Tyson with 38 it’s going to be interesting it’s going to be fun I’m glad the suns are not just beating a dead horse with these shoot for the moon traits they very well still might maybe this is partially to signal to other teams that they’re not desperate there might be a trade on the table for a vet that the Suns have that they can use 22 to go get maybe they don’t like that trade or they don’t like all of it and this is partially negotiating either way it’s good that they are not just full go toward the biggest the next the best the greatest that they possibly can find and they’re trying to be a little bit smarter about things that’ll wrap us up for the day Steven pjon will be on on Thursday’s show as he always is to break down the latest in Suns land might talk a little bit more about this book guard Dynamic I know we’ve hit it before but there’s it’s in the news again so Steven’s Insight will be appreciated there he had some Kevin Durant ideas he was tossing my way so I’ll also have to ask him about he came to Phoenix he went to a Mercury game last week I got to get his Phoenix in June scouting report as he probably sweated his butt off but we’ll see what he says more news I’m sure I’ll talk to you guys then

The Phoenix Suns plan to keep their pick in the NBA Draft next week per John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports.

Brendon Kleen of @justbasketballfans breaks down the news, what it signals about the Suns’ mentality this offseason, and whether the selection could be Tyler Kolek, Bronny James or someone else entirely.

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