NBA Best Young Cores

[itlnsunsfan]

https://hoopshype.com/2019/01/16/best-young-cores-nba-2018-19/3/

6. PHOENIX SUNS
Young core: Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, Kelly Oubre, Mikal Bridges, Josh Jackson, De’Anthony Melton, Elie Okobo, Jawun Evans, Dragan Bender, George King

Nagging injuries have prevented Devin Booker from finding a good rhythm this season, and even so, he’s still proving to be worth every penny of that five-year, $158 million extension he signed last summer. Booker is averaging 24.8 points, a career-high 6.9 assists and 3.7 rebounds, showing that he’s far from just a volume scorer, but also a pretty good playmaker in his own right.

What’s more, according to more than one advanced stat, Booker has been even better this year than he was in his breakout 2017-18 season, which means he might not be done developing just yet. And considering he just turned 22, why would he be?

Besides Booker, the Phoenix Suns also added the impressive Deandre Ayton to their young nucleus in the 2018 draft. He may not get the buzz Doncic does, but Ayton has had a great start to his career thus far – at least on the offensive end. Ayton is putting up 16.6 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game this season, and shooting 59.7 percent from the floor. He still needs to get better defensively, as Phoenix gets lit up in the paint with Ayton on the floor, but he has all the tools to be a special big man.

Besides the two main pieces, Phoenix’s trade for Kelly Oubre looks like a savvy move, with the Kansas product averaging 13.2 points and 3.5 rebounds as a Sun. Oubre’s two-way play has proven to be a good fit for what Phoenix lacked on the perimeter, and it’ll be interesting to see what the two sides come up with when Oubre hits restricted free agency this offseason.

The other former Kansas wing on the roster, Josh Jackson (9.6 ppg and 4.0 rpg) has been a disappointment in his second season, as he has seemingly regressed after what was already a pretty
weak rookie debut.


By: Frank Urbina | January 16, 2019