2018/19 Opening Night Depth Chart

[Carolinacacti]

I think Bridges will be the Suns SF star of the future bye Jackson and Warren.

 

[SirStefan32]

I think Bridges will be the Suns SF star of the future bye Jackson and Warren.

Sentence structure aside, I think I do agree with you. I really think Bridges is gonna end up being the Suns' SF in the long run.

 

[Hoop Head]

Best case scenario for Chriss is a little bit better offensively, but I think that's not likely to happen.

I can't help but think Chriss is Stromile Swift 2.0. There are too many players like him who have flamed out and very few with that sort of athletic skill set that have panned out. I think Amare and Kemp are the best case scenarios for guys like that but Stromile Swift, Noah Vonleh, Hakim Warrick, and more seem to be the norm with uber-athletic players who can't put things together mentally.

 

[Yuma]

Sentence structure aside, I think I do agree with you. I really think Bridges is gonna end up being the Suns' SF in the long run.

I am hedging my bets by waiting to see how Bridges develops, but in theory he has the offense of Warren, and defense of Jackson. He is a combination of both WITH a 3 point shot to boot!

 

[SirStefan32]

I am hedging my bets by waiting to see how Bridges develops, but in theory he has the offense of Warren, and defense of Jackson. He is a combination of both WITH a 3 point shot to boot!

Yes, but his offense is different. He doesn't really do much off the dribble, he doesn't create for himself. I don't think he'll be a 20ppg player. That said, if Ayton ends up being really good, they won't need another 20ppg player.

 

[Errntknght]

My expectation is the we'll have balanced scoring except for Booker and, eventually, Ayton. With Ariza and Bridges in the corners and Book out front we'll have the floor pretty well spread. Ayton can step our to 20 feet at least so we'll have space for cutters into the paint. When the second unit comes in we'll have Reed spreading the floor further and Harrison will give some dribble penetration.

Igor has a good variety of offensive skills to draw on. I don't know if JJ will ever be much of a secondary playmaker but Booker already is and Reed showed some skill as well in SL. It will take some time for it to all jell but by the second half of the year we could be a pretty good scoring team. I expect our defense will be fairly good right out of the gate, which will surprise teams as we were at the bottom of the league last year - and the roster in much the same if you just look at the names - the distribution of playing time will tell a different story, however.

 

[Hoop Head]

My expectation is the we'll have balanced scoring except for Booker and, eventually, Ayton. With Ariza and Bridges in the corners and Book out front we'll have the floor pretty well spread. Ayton can step our to 20 feet at least so we'll have space for cutters into the paint. When the second unit comes in we'll have Reed spreading the floor further and Harrison will give some dribble penetration.

Igor has a good variety of offensive skills to draw on. I don't know if JJ will ever be much of a secondary playmaker but Booker already is and Reed showed some skill as well in SL. It will take some time for it to all jell but by the second half of the year we could be a pretty good scoring team. I expect our defense will be fairly good right out of the gate, which will surprise teams as we were at the bottom of the league last year - and the roster in much the same if you just look at the names - the distribution of playing time will tell a different story, however.

I agree with all of this. Very good post.

I think one of the best things about JJ right now is that he's willing to learn to be a playmaker. I'm not sure if that's something he decided to take upon himself after seeing how poorly our playmaking was last season or if that's something suggested to him by another player, front office personnel, or a directive or challenge from Igor but I was glad to hear him talk about that during Summer League.

Even though he didn't appear to make very many good decisions while he played, I think he's smart enough of a player to realize his mistakes on his own and also learn from them. He did try to do too much but if you caught any of his interviews he seemed like he had a lot he was looking to show. It didn't seem like he put too much on his plate with how he talked about everything but it was when you saw him trying to doing everything. He also seemed to notice his mistakes while playing so it wasn't like he didn't see the errors he was making.

I think he realized he bit off more than he could chew and took SL too seriously but I'd rather a player be too serious in wanting to improve than anything else. That should lead to success, eventually, he does have all the tools physically to be a great player one day. It's not like it's just physical tools either, like Chriss, it's a combo of being athletically gifted and having a good basketball IQ to go with a strong work ethic and high motor.

 

[leclerc]

Plus he has more skills than Chriss. Passing, driving, pull up jumper. I really liked what he did post all star break last year.

 

[JCSunsfan]

The Jj, Warren, Mikal battle will be one to watch.

 

[SirStefan32]

JJ is definitely the most talented/ gifted one. I just hope he learns how to slow down and not force things. Oh, and work on his jumper.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Keeping multiple wings on a team seems to be the way the league is going though.

Look at Boston. They have Hayward, Tatum, Brown, and Morris all listed as small forwards. Last year, they found extensive minutes for Tatum, Brown, and Morris. I think get stuck into thinking about "starters" too much. We get high hopes about star quality for players picked high in the draft but do not see the value of a quality rotation of players.

 

[Mainstreet]

Here are some comments about how Cannaan is progressing in his training.

Training camp is getting closer, and Canaan’s recovery has been smooth.

“It’s been going good,” Canaan said. “I’m back playing five-on-five, and pretty much cleared to do everything now.”

“The Suns organization helped me get back on my feet and back to doing what I love to do," Canaan said. "I couldn’t ask for anything else but an opportunity and I told them they won’t regret it and I’m going to take full advantage of it.”

Once he returns to the court, Canaan said he thinks his doctors will require him to wear an ankle brace for a bit, rather than just tape. Canaan said he wouldn’t want to wear the brace but understands where the physicians are coming from.

https://www.azcentral.com/story/spo...naan-credits-suns-staff-return-nba/942814002/

 

[Yuma]

Keeping multiple wings on a team seems to be the way the league is going though.

Look at Boston. They have Hayward, Tatum, Brown, and Morris all listed as small forwards. Last year, they found extensive minutes for Tatum, Brown, and Morris. I think get stuck into thinking about "starters" too much. We get high hopes about star quality for players picked high in the draft but do not see the value of a quality rotation of players.

I was thinking that in regards to you could see JJ and Bridges on the court at the same time.

 

[Hoop Head]

I want to see Ariza, Jackson, and Bridges on the floor together some. I don't know who they'll have with them, defensively Bender might be the best big to put out there with them since Chandler can't run. Not sure about PG either, Canaan or Harrison, or even Booker at PG.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I also think we'll see a fair amount of Booker, Bridges, Jackson, Ariza and Ayton despite the comments from coach that Devin will not be the point guard. And I'm looking forward to that lineup and maybe the same lineup with Warren instead of Bridges, Jackson or Ariza.

This is the first time going into the season where much of my anticipation centers around who will be on the court together. We can put out some pretty entertaining lineups.

 

[BC867]

We can put out some pretty entertaining lineups.

But we've had 50 years of entertaining lineups. I hope the coming season is the beginning of strong lineups.

The difference? We won the #1 pick and chose a Center before a Wing. The bar has been set higher.

 

[JCSunsfan]

But we've had 50 years of entertaining lineups. I hope the coming season is the beginning of strong lineups.

The difference? We won the #1 pick and chose a Center before a Wing. The bar has been set higher.

Well. That is NOT today's NBA. STRONG line ups are sort of a 1980's thing. But we do have strong line ups none the less.

 

[AzStevenCal]

But we've had 50 years of entertaining lineups. I hope the coming season is the beginning of strong lineups.

The difference? We won the #1 pick and chose a Center before a Wing. The bar has been set higher.

And I think you know that's not what I meant by "entertaining lineups". I'm intrigued by the various lineups we can put out there. Success will determine which ones survive but it's hard to peg them before seeing them on the court. We have flexibility for the first time in quite awhile IMO.

 

[BC867]

And I think you know that's not what I meant by "entertaining lineups". I'm intrigued by the various lineups we can put out there. Success will determine which ones survive but it's hard to peg them before seeing them on the court. We have flexibility for the first time in quite awhile IMO.

Cool!

 

[Errntknght]

The best part of it, IMO, is that we should have some good entertainment on the defensive end. Heck, it might infect the whole team!

 

[leclerc]

Yeah I was most excited about the defensive intensity of the team as a whole when watching summer league, since Ayton didn't dominate and Jackson was kind of reckless. Team defense can be a huge boost for our success.

 

[Yuma]

Yeah I was most excited about the defensive intensity of the team as a whole when watching summer league, since Ayton didn't dominate and Jackson was kind of reckless. Team defense can be a huge boost for our success.

I am a Suns fan. What's defense?

 

[leclerc]

I am a Suns fan. What's defense?

It's the most fantastic thing I've seen. You can stop the other team from getting good shots instead of hoping for a miss on the put. Makes it easier to win because the margin of error on the other end can increase. We had guys pressuring people out on the wing, more than one guy at a time. Amazing.

 

[Yuma]

It's the most fantastic thing I've seen. You can stop the other team from getting good shots instead of hoping for a miss on the put. Makes it easier to win because the margin of error on the other end can increase. We had guys pressuring people out on the wing, more than one guy at a time. Amazing.

you got it all wrong. You let them score, then you score faster and better percentage. At the end of the game you outscore them! 7 seconds or less baby!

 

[Errntknght]

you got it all wrong. You let them score, then you score faster and better percentage. At the end of the game you outscore them! 7 seconds or less baby!

Believe it or not, defense works with SSOL, too!