The 2020 NBA Draft

[Crives]

No way they didn’t scout Haliburton.. ton of time since college basketball ended... we were not the only team that passed on Haliburton..

I was hoping we would have had a ton of offers for 10 when Haliburton dropped.. my guess is Jones was worried about the Pelicans and Celtics drafting Jalen at 13 or 14 (they need stretch bigs)...

[Book1Nation]

Ibaka/Turner....but with a 3 point shot.

I like the player after watching some of his tape but I just struggle to see how he's the best use of the 10th pick. We still desperately need a backup PG (sorry, I don't trust Payne), probably a backup 3, and another 4/5 man on top of Smith.

I would have just resigned Baynes if we needed a backup C, but alas...seems like a waste of an opportunity if we're just going to let him go

My guess is they want a reliable vet backup PG like DJ Augustin...and not a rookie. When they backed off taking a guard in this draft maybe it's because they kind of came to an agreement with a FA.

I hope so, would love Augustin (or Teague or Dragic or Burke)

[Book1Nation]

Ibaka/Turner....but with a 3 point shot.

I like the player after watching some of his tape but I just struggle to see how he's the best use of the 10th pick. We still desperately need a backup PG (sorry, I don't trust Payne), probably a backup 3, and another 4/5 man on top of Smith.

I would have just resigned Baynes if we needed a backup C, but alas...seems like a waste of an opportunity if we're just going to let him go

Not every draft should a GM chase for a home run and try to get a "sleeper" star.

A lot of times, you pick based on who you see will contribute and fit well.... and also a need. A role player who can become a very good role player... like the Covingtons, Ibakas, Tristan Thompsons etc. This is one of the drafts where there isnt a long list of potential franchise players, its a draft where teams should go for needs and fit... Jalen Smith fits that category and he still has good ceiling, look at his improvement from college year 1 to year 2.... so he's a good role player potentially to be an elite role player... think Mikal Bridges also.

I like the player like I said, just feel a little underwhelmed that this is what we did after adding Chris effing Paul.

Not sure what I was expecting but I wanted a big name, maybe even flip it for a vet. All the pundits are giving the Suns a D or worse for tonight, just feels like a loss.

Now he could be Cam Johnson 2.0 and ball out and I'd love him. We'll see, I'm rooting for him as a key piece for my favorite NBA franchise.

[bwgood77]

I do wonder if they just figured there was no way that Haliburton would be there so they didn't do their due diligence on him and without that, didn't feel comfortable drafting him. I doubt that's the case but they may have been a bit shocked he was there.

I also wonder if Paul had any input..like he wanted a PF who could finish...wanted to do some more lob city with the bigs. I doubt he did, but he may have had a lot of leverage with how we build the team around him when he agreed to come here.

I'm still a little shocked that we didn't take Haliburton.

I think many are underrating his ceiling. Mike Schmitz was sitting in the studio shocked that Haliburton didn't go in the top 5. Said he sees Jason Kidd in his game, and his ceiling is hugely underrated. Bobby Marks went on the record saying that he hasn't met a smarter prospect than Haliburton in 25 years. Said he'll be a starter in the league for 15 years.

Then you look at his numbers - and what really jumps out are his absurdly good steal and block numbers. This kid is going to be an absolutely disruptive team defender.

Of course his passing and shooting are very good as well.

With him behind Booker and CP3, we'd have had a better guard trio than the one OKC had with Shai, CP3 and Schroder.

Yeah, that is really disappointing. I even said before the draft a few days back that I wouldn't be surprised, based on what I know about James Jones, if they had Haliburton #1...or that he would be the guy they would most want to drop.

Seemed like a perfect fit.

I kind of expected to be surprised, but luckily we had Ghost and ImNotMcDISwear who had discussed and shown a lot of info regarding Smith earlier and I had really liked him and thought he would be a solid choice.

I just didn't expect Haliburton to be there at all. I love players like Vassell so I would have preferred him slightly I think but I wasn't sure about that funky new shot.

But not taking Haliburton is a bit shocking, but I knew (or was pretty sure) they didn't interview him or work him out..and they had probably fallen in love with some of these prospects. It's probably hard to pivot to someone who haven't talked to when you've talked to and really decided you liked a prospect.

The fact that interviews were limited to 10 might have hurt.

However, I doubt that was the reasoning....

[Revived]

Damn I really thought there was a chance that Nico Mannion might to undrafted like another wildcat PG TJ McConnell did few years ago.

[bwgood77]

No way they didn’t scout Haliburton.. ton of time since college basketball ended... we were not the only team that passed on Haliburton..

I was hoping we would have had a ton of offers for 10 when Haliburton dropped.. my guess is Jones was worried about the Pelicans and Celtics drafting Jalen at 13 or 14 (they need stretch bigs)...

Well if they did like Haliburton more they wouldn't worry about people behind them taking Jalen. It's not like they had pick 15.

I do remember thinking though, when we talked about trading 10 for 14 and 26, that Boston might want Okongwu...and I did look at who else they might want to trade for...and my next thought was Jalen Smith, but figured there was a good chance he would make it to 14.

[RedIndian]

Anyway, I hope we take a good look at Tyshon Alexander. I think he's like a better shooting version of Deanthony Melton. Definitely an NBA player in him.

[Jesus_H_Macy]

He might be an outstanding "editorial/opinion" writer but does his Columbia degree make him an expert in NBA front office management, an area where his experience is limited? Tucker Carlson, Rachel Maddow, Zach Lowe ... experts at opining.

Windhorst reported the same thing. Jones is miles better than McDonough but he has had some headscratchers.

Look I'm not saying Jones is perfect. Definitely struck out on Jerome. But guys like Windhorst and Lowe are getting paid to provide content to consumers. People can't believe everything they write is fact, much like we see on CNN or FOX. Often they write what they feel and probably don't spend nearly as much time watching or thinking about the Suns as our fans on this board.

Would it have been nice to have had our second-round pick or the Bucks/Celtics pick? Sure. Do I really care? No, because odds are late firsts and second-round picks just don't pan out that often. The last one that worked out for us was Dragic and we got him from the Spurs. Honestly, what happens next in free agency will be way more important to me than this draft. If Jones can find a quality veteran to backup up Paul and Booker he will get an A+ from me for this offseason.

Windhorst is just a guy, but Lowe is really good man. If you haven't read his stuff I recommend checking it out. He does a good job of providing reasoning for his opinions and his writing is much more interesting and entertaining than just about anyone. If you like Bill Simmons you'd like Lowe, similar sense of humor. If you don't like Simmons you still might like Lowe because he's more fact-based with his takes.

[Book1Nation]

I'm annoyed that every other team is making UDFA signings and the Suns haven't yet.

Was spoiled last year when 5 minutes after the draft ended Woj announced Lecque to Phoenix haha

[bwgood77]

I'm concerned about the long-term upside of this team. Plenty to look forward to this season, but CP3 is 35, and going to fall off soon. The league today means having a multitude of good wings and guards. Booker, Bridges and Cam are great, but we have nobody behind them. This draft gave us the opportunity to add Haliburton or Vassell (probably the best guard and wing prospects in the draft), and we passed on both. I really hope this doesn't come to bite us.

Smith is not going to bust, but man I'd have been feeling pretty good today if we'd landed Haliburton as our third guard behind CP3 and Booker.

Another thing to add about long term upside. It seems like it wasn't long ago people talked like we had this treasure chest of assets.

Tonight we didn't even have something we could trade for a 2nd rounder. Our backup guards are Payne and Carter.

We had that Bucks first from Bledsoe, but we traded it for Ty Jerome. It was used on Desmond Bane tonight...we could have used that.

And we don't have any seconds going forward.

If Chris Paul goes down, or any of our wings (including Booker as a wing)..we are in big trouble.

[Kerrsed]

I'm annoyed that every other team is making UDFA signings and the Suns haven't yet.

Was spoiled last year when 5 minutes after the draft ended Woj announced Lecque to Phoenix haha

Well we no longer own a G-league team anymore, remember we sold/traded it to Detroit.

So i think we would end up sending guys like that to one of the team-share teams like the Bakersfield Jam or something.

[bwgood77]

I'm annoyed that every other team is making UDFA signings and the Suns haven't yet.

Was spoiled last year when 5 minutes after the draft ended Woj announced Lecque to Phoenix haha

Seems to happen every year.

It's funny, the one time we do get an UDFA we sign him to a 4 year deal immediately (2 team options) and he ends up sucking.

[Kerrsed]

Another thing to add about long term upside. It seems like it wasn't long ago people talked like we had this treasure chest of assets.

Tonight we didn't even have something we could trade for a 2nd rounder. Our backup guards are Payne and Carter.

Or its because we didnt value anyone in the 2nd round.

[Slim Charless]

Ibaka/Turner....but with a 3 point shot.

I like the player after watching some of his tape but I just struggle to see how he's the best use of the 10th pick. We still desperately need a backup PG (sorry, I don't trust Payne), probably a backup 3, and another 4/5 man on top of Smith.

I would have just resigned Baynes if we needed a backup C, but alas...seems like a waste of an opportunity if we're just going to let him go

Not every draft should a GM chase for a home run and try to get a "sleeper" star.

A lot of times, you pick based on who you see will contribute and fit well.... and also a need. A role player who can become a very good role player... like the Covingtons, Ibakas, Tristan Thompsons etc. This is one of the drafts where there isnt a long list of potential franchise players, its a draft where teams should go for needs and fit... Jalen Smith fits that category and he still has good ceiling, look at his improvement from college year 1 to year 2.... so he's a good role player potentially to be an elite role player... think Mikal Bridges also.

A very smart player who is an incredibly hard worker by all accounts. I mean the 1st thing he mentioned when they asked how he helps us and he says: defense. He's not gonna care about getting stats, just wins. I'd also point out that his profile is similar to Brandon Clarke (who we all loved last year) in that he cares about helping the team and is a solid defender-except Smith is younger, taller, has a better shot coming out of college and is possibly even more athletic.

[Flying Colors]

Goran as back up PG would be fun, the prodigal sun returns.....again

[Revived]

Memphis roster is crazy. They almost have too much young talent all across the board.

[Revived]

I'm annoyed that every other team is making UDFA signings and the Suns haven't yet.

Was spoiled last year when 5 minutes after the draft ended Woj announced Lecque to Phoenix haha

Well we no longer own a G-league team anymore, remember we sold/traded it to Detroit.

So i think we would end up sending guys like that to one of the team-share teams like the Bakersfield Jam or something.

Jam don't exist anymore.

[Slim Charless]

I wish they'd do a realignment in the league and move MEM into the East. I want to like that team lol.

[Kerrsed]

So what's a good comp for Smith? A better rebounding Serge Ibaka?

Cant forget about JJJ.

[RedIndian]

I'm concerned about the long-term upside of this team. Plenty to look forward to this season, but CP3 is 35, and going to fall off soon. The league today means having a multitude of good wings and guards. Booker, Bridges and Cam are great, but we have nobody behind them. This draft gave us the opportunity to add Haliburton or Vassell (probably the best guard and wing prospects in the draft), and we passed on both. I really hope this doesn't come to bite us.

Smith is not going to bust, but man I'd have been feeling pretty good today if we'd landed Haliburton as our third guard behind CP3 and Booker.

Another thing to add about long term upside. It seems like it wasn't long ago people talked like we had this treasure chest of assets.

Tonight we didn't even have something we could trade for a 2nd rounder. Our backup guards are Payne and Carter.

We had that Bucks first from Bledsoe, but we traded it for Ty Jerome. It was used on Desmond Bane tonight...we could have used that.

And we don't have any seconds going forward.

If Chris Paul goes down, or any of our wings (including Booker as a wing)..we are in big trouble.

Yep, the only way to add long-term talent to this roster is now our 2021 pick, which will probably be in the teens or early 20s if we make the playoffs.

The thing Denver does really well for instance in the draft is continuously add high-ceiling talent while operating at a very high floor. Apart from Jokic and Murray, they have MPJ and RJ Hampton.

Dallas has gone the same route this year, by adding Josh Green and Tyrell Terry. Richardson via trade is also a really good get.

The Pels and Thunder are well off at the moment, but they have a treasure chest of assets and some very intriguing talents. Wolves have talent too, and Rubio will be good for them. Oh, and I'm forgetting Memphis.

Ultimately, these are the teams we'll end up competing with in the West over the next 5 years. I found it worrying that James Jones referenced the Lakers and their size as justification for drafting Smith. We're not in a position to compete with the Lakers or the Clippers for the title unless CP3 has an MVP type season. Our window of contention will open up only post 2022 once Booker, Ayton, Bridges are battle-hardened and have developed further. But we absolutely NEED to keep surrounding them with high-ceiling talent.

Role players are always easy to add in free agency. The draft is not for adding role players.