Kokoskov: Brandon Knight is the starting PG for the Suns

[sunsfan88]

He wants to play right now,” Kokoskov said. “He brought us unbelievable energy and kind of positive energy for this group to understand that our starting point guard is at this camp. His presence here meant so much to these guys and myself and the staff, but also to him to get that little feel for the camp, for the game. I think it was beneficiary for both sides.”

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By nearly every statistical measure, Knight was one of the very worst players in all of NBA in the last season he played. When he was with Milwaukee, the Bucks were a much better team with him off the court than him on it. He's extremely ball dominant and somewhat of a ball hog meaning Booker/Ayton/Jackson etc will certainly get less opportunities playing alongside him.

I feel like McD is sort of screwing Igor here by not giving him a starting caliber PG through free agency. There were certainly ones like Tyreke Evans who went pretty cheap.

It's hard to see an awful basketball player being better AFTER an ACL injury but maybe Kokoskov can make Knight look at least somewhat decent. Best of luck to Kokoskov as this will easily be his biggest challenege as HC of the Suns.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

From the sound of it he would only be bringing the ball up the court and then becoming a cutter and spot up shooter after. We will have to see how it works, but it is not uncommon for a system to make players look better than they would be elsewhere. Maybe Igor's system is one of those systems.

 

[devilalum]

They can say whatever they want if he starts putting up +/- of -20 again to start the season everybody's gonna flip out.

 

[JCSunsfan]

They can say whatever they want if he starts putting up +/- of -20 again to start the season everybody's gonna flip out.

Then he sits, and we play Okobo or Harrison (whose +/- was pretty good). This is not rocket science.

And the summer is not over. McD already said there is more to do. Man, the desire to panic is strong on this board.

 

[sunsfan88]

Then he sits, and we play Okobo or Harrison (whose +/- was pretty good). This is not rocket science.

Harrison can't shoot though, can he? They can't have another non 3pt shooter along with Ayton and Jackson on the court at the same time.

It's why trading for say Patrick Beverly would've made a lot of sense. Or signing Tyreke Evans as well.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Harrison can't shoot though, can he? They can't have another non 3pt shooter along with Ayton and Jackson on the court at the same time.

It's why trading for say Patrick Beverly would've made a lot of sense. Or signing Tyreke Evans as well.

The Clips are going to have to waive/trade either Beverly or Teodosic. They are probably desperately trying to pry something from the Suns for one of the two right now, but we do not have to trade anything. Just wait until one has to be released. There are other options as well.

Patience, grasshopper. No need to panic.

 

[Phrazbit]

Harrison can't shoot though, can he? They can't have another non 3pt shooter along with Ayton and Jackson on the court at the same time.

It's why trading for say Patrick Beverly would've made a lot of sense. Or signing Tyreke Evans as well.

Or not waste resources when next year's free agent point guards are much more enticing.

If Knight is the knight of old he'll get benched, but not before you have a conniption I'm sure.

 

[AZCrazy]

Free agency hasn't even officially started yet. Give them a chance. All Igor said was that BG is the current starting PG. Well, that much is obvious. He won't get away with being a ball hog here. We've got four young scorers all around him now.

 

[sunsfan88]

Man, the desire to panic is strong on this board.

8 years of incompetence tends to do that. Check out the Kings board (only team with longer playoff drought in the NBA) and you'll see them being rather omnious of Bagley and other Kings moves as well.

Knight has just never shown he should be a starting PG and with the logjam the Suns have at forward, we have to hope one of them is traded for a PG before training camp.

 

[Ronin]

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[Hoop Head]

By nearly every statistical measure, Knight was one of the very worst players in all of NBA in the last season he played. When he was with Milwaukee, the Bucks were a much better team with him off the court than him on it. He's extremely ball dominant and somewhat of a ball hog meaning Booker/Ayton/Jackson etc will certainly get less opportunities playing alongside him.

I feel like McD is sort of screwing Igor here by not giving him a starting caliber PG through free agency. There were certainly ones like Tyreke Evans who went pretty cheap.

It's hard to see an awful basketball player being better AFTER an ACL injury but maybe Kokoskov can make Knight look at least somewhat decent. Best of luck to Kokoskov as this will easily be his biggest challenege as HC of the Suns.

I understand concern but I'd rather have Knight as our starting PG instead of overpaying for Tyreke Evans. Evans hasn't been on a winner in the NBA while Knight can at least say he's been a part of teams that played above 500 basketball. Evans is the wrong person to point to as a potential replacement, IMO.

If Knight doesn't work out, the Suns can work on a buy out. Why not let him try to regain some value first though? If he can be who he was in Detroit or Milwaukee then he's definitely better than any of the FA options that were present this offseason. He's saying all the right things and working really hard to show he'll be a team player. The people around him are saying he'll have a positive impact next season and since Igor is also saying that I think it's fair to give him a chance. If it doesn't work out, that's fine, but if it does that could be huge for us.

 

[Errntknght]

It's summer league, the time of year when coaches experiment. Harrison and Okobo are going get opportunities to show their stuff, too. I can't imagine Igor sticking with Brandon Knight through thick and thin if either of them is clearly a better option. If none of them pass muster, I'd expect him to pass that information on to McD while working with them to improve their play.

Personally, I have no faith in BK turning over a new leaf, but if he can fake it well enough to fool Igor, I'm not going to obsess over it.

 

[DevonCardsFan]

This is going to get McD fired and Igor off to a bad start, Knight has a very low ball hog IQ, he is absolutely a horrible choice to be the guy leading these young guys, it's a terrible decision to not add a PG.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Going to get McD fired, and Igor off to a bad start, Knight has a very low ball hog IQ, he is absolutely a horrible choice to be the guy leading these young guys, it's a terrible decision to not add a PG

The decision hasn't been made yet. If this is still the PG rotation going into training camp (not until late September) then I will start to worry.

 

[Phrazbit]

Going to get McD fired, and Igor off to a bad start, Knight has a very low ball hog IQ, he is absolutely a horrible choice to be the guy leading these young guys, it's a terrible decision to not add a PG

Then he'll get benched... and the off season isn't over, McD said more moves are coming.

The panic is premature.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Then he'll get benched... and the off season isn't over, McD said more moves are coming.

The panic is premature.

No one wants to wait till the last moment to panic. Preparation is everything.

 

[Hoop Head]

I can see not believing Knight has changed that much and doubting the idea he's turned over a new leaf but Igor is the guy who is building him up and saying he'll be our starting PG. I think Igor has earned the benefit of the doubt right now. Knight's play in Phoenix is quite different than it was elsewhere, so maybe we finally get to see the player we traded for? There is a chance that happens.

Which player would you prefer?
Player 1 - 18.2 ppg, 5.2 apg, 1.3 spg, 3.2 to, 37% from 3pt range
Player 2 - 17.9 ppg, 6.1 apg, 1.7 spg, 3.4 to, 34% from 3pt range

Spoiler: Player 1 & 2 are...

Player 1 is Knight during his 4th and 5th seasons in the NBA and Player 2 is Bledsoe during his 4th and 5th seasons. Those were Bledsoe's first 2 years in Phoenix and Knight's first 2 seasons here also, half of year 4 was in Milwaukee though.

 

[StreetTruckinTitan]

Well he was decent for the Bucks and the first season as a Sun. No reason that he cant be again. I'll wait and see before jumping out a window.

 

[Mainstreet]

No one wants to wait till the last moment to panic. Preparation is everything.

I've already panicked about the Suns not having a starting PG so I'm prepared to give Knight another opportunity.

 

[GatorAZ]

Knight and Bledsoe weren’t good PG’s and never will be. They can put up numbers but can’t impact the game like good PG’s are supposed to. They’re saying all the right things but I don’t think McD will pass on an upgrade if it presents itself.

 

[pokerface]

This is a transition year anyway. So BK gets a chance to prove himself. Bender and Chriss are in the same boat too. Let's see what all of them can do with a new coach/team.

 

[pokerface]

Knight and Bledsoe weren’t good PG’s and never will be. They can put up numbers but can’t impact the game like good PG’s are supposed to. They’re saying all the right things but I don’t think McD will pass on an upgrade if it presents itself.

True. But there might better options next offseason.

 

[Chaplin]

This is a transition year anyway. So BK gets a chance to prove himself. Bender and Chriss are in the same boat too. Let's see what all of them can do with a new coach/team.

Now this I agree with. A long term PGOF isn’t required this summer. Even with Bookers extension we are looking at a lot of good PG free agents next summer.

 

[DevonCardsFan]

The decision hasn't been made yet. If this is still the PG rotation going into training camp (not until late September) then I will start to worry.

Well PGs don't grow on trees and this is when you add one in the offseason, not after the fact in a few months, when you realize your current one sucks and is playing like he has always played. So my premature panic is legit, because why wait until you have a "Oh crap, we need a PG, Knight didn't make a Miraculous turnaround after all" moment, after free agency is over and all trades being discussed have passed


Knight is coming off a ACL injury and was the worst in the NBA in making players around him productive, he made them worse, not only that he is the worst in the NBA at making his players worse. Knights last season, his best attribute was sitting on the bench, because while his butt was on the bench his teammates production would increase, not playing with that Ballhog.

I don't see a me first low B-ball IQ player, eating a bunch of Alpha Brain and fish oil becoming more intelligent and suddenly realizing that sharing the ball is the way to go, instead of being a Ballhog and I dont see plan B, of Knight failing using a French 2nd Rder or Shaq Harrison to save the day, as a very solid back up plan.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Well PGs don't grow on trees and this is when you add one in the offseason, not after the fact in a few months, when you realize your current one sucks and is playing like he has always played. So my premature panic is legit, because why wait until you have a "Oh crap, we need a PG, Knight didn't make a Miraculous turnaround after all" moment, after free agency is over and all trades being discussed have passed


Knight is coming off a ACL injury and was the worst in the NBA in making players around him productive, he made them worse, not only that he is the worst in the NBA at making his players worse. Knights last season, his best attribute was sitting on the bench, because while his butt was on the bench his teammates production would increase, not playing with that Ballhog.

I don't see a me first low B-ball IQ player, eating a bunch of Alpha Brain and fish oil becoming more intelligent and suddenly realizing that sharing the ball is the way to go, instead of being a Ballhog and I dont see plan B, of Knight failing using a French 2nd Rder or Shaq Harrison to save the day, as a very solid back up plan.

The only way we are getting a decent PG at this point is via trade. That could happen now or it could happen a week before training camp. Makes no difference.