Post Paul targets

[bwgood77]

I know we may not need to address this for awhile, but given our few days wait, we could possibly use something else to discuss, and will in the offseason.

Whether it be 1, 2 or 3 years, who do you think would be good targets?

I never thought I'd say this based on my thoughts a year ago, but I think Rozier could be. He can play on or off, was a 39% 3pt shooter, over 51% from 2 and a 57.5% TS%, with 4.4 apg and only 1.9 turnover per game so almost a 2.5 ast/to ratio.

I think he could be a fairly solid target to play next to Book...now a big downgrade from Paul but with the improvement of our young players we may not need another Paul...it would obviously be phenomenal if we could get Paul as an assistant coach.

Any other youngish guys that may be underutilized, like a Delon Wright or someone like that? Tyus Jones? He's small but good.

Will Payne be the answer at starter?

Will a rookie we maybe draft now be ready to start?

We likely won't be able to break the bank on a PG, but could maybe spend $20 million or so, and obviously a young guy on a rookie contract ready would be nice, but unlikely be ready to contribute big time.

[WeekapaugGroove]

I think Paul extends so they won't really answer this question for a couple years at the earliest.

But when they do I expect they go the vet route. By that time who knows who will be available.

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[darealjuice]

I think Paul extends so they won't really answer this question for a couple years at the earliest.

But when they do I expect they go the vet route. By that time who knows who will be available.

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Yeah we probably missed our best opportunity at grooming a young point guard under CP3 after going with Jalen Smith in the last draft. Expectations for draft picks are understandably low if we're picking in the mid-late 20s from now on.

Book, Ayton, and Bridges will be in their prime at the end of CP3's contract if we extend him for 3 years, no time to be messing around with letting a young point guard learn on the job. Hopefully we don't need someone of CP3's caliber to sustain winning at that point though.

[Waylay13]

The one thing that I think is important is that we looking for pass first guard. Rubio and Paul have both shown that with this team if they pass we win more. After years of guards like Bledsoe who want to score first and only pass if they dont have a good shot it is time to focus on this fact.

[Adrao]

I would like Ricky to came back and Cam to extend his contract.

[Walt_Uoob]

Maybe we can bring back Rubio and Oubre and then trade them to OKC for Kemba

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[Slim Charless]

Rookie. Daishen Nix is 19 and has worlds of talent, also appears to be a pass first PG. Projected to be there when we draft. Take him, sit him till CP retires and he'll still be 22yrs old. He needs time to learn to shoot better, we have a few guys that can shoot lol.

http://www.tankathon.com/players/daishen-nix

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

Cam is ideal a sparkplug scoring PG off the bench - my favorite kind of backup PG. But he's not starter material. I think that's clear.

Like Waylay, I would like a pass-first PG, so while Rozier's not a bad target, he's not ideal. SGA also is more a scorer than creator (and he'll be RFA anyway). Sexton could also go on this list as possible but perhaps not ideal. As could KPJ. Garland is more of a pass-first type, but word is CLE prefers him to Sexton. None of these guys give us the defense or... everything else Chris Paul provides.

Mannion really impressed me this season, and he's the type of player we'd want to start, but he also doesn't seem like starter material. He's young though, so who knows. McConnell's proven but also not starter material I don't think.

A year ago I would've mentioned Herro as ideal but unobtainable. Now I don't know.

Lonzo Ball? Ben Simmons? Ricky Rubio? One very critical thing CP3 gives us is, like Nash, he passes first and gets everyone involved, but if the offense is breaking down, he gets buckets at will. His offense is never broken. He's an escape valve when we're struggling. That's what makes a great point guard.

Then there's the established vet superstars. Russell Westbrook? I hate Westbrook's game. He'd kill us. F that. That leaves Lillard.

Lillard would change how we play in a big way. Our offense would be lit, but he'd hurt our defense, no doubt. I don't consider him an upgrade to Paul, despite my love for his game. I certainly wouldn't say no if he'd consider us.

My favorite option is De'Aaron Fox. Sacto's been struggling and they just drafted Halliburton, so I think he's a plausible option. We'd have to trade for him, though, and that's where things get messy. We don't have the assets to pull off a deal like that. The shine on Cam Johnson has certainly worn off, though perhaps he bounces back next year and becomes a valuable asset. Even if we offered a boatload of draft picks, with Fox at the helm, we'd be a perennial playoff team, so I doubt that kind of package would be highly valued. Still, if Fox wanted to be here, there's a chance.

After Fox, Sexton and Rozier look like solid options if there's a way to get them. Maybe Lonzo if we can get another bucket-getter to make up for downgrading from Paul.

Basically, there's just no replacing a guy like Chris Paul. When he's done, he'll leave us with a gaping hole at PG, and though a ton of cash will come off the books, that won't open up any cap space. A lot of PGs might see us an ideal destination, though - except Rubio, of course - so maybe we'll be able to pull something off. I have a lot of faith in James Jones in that regard.

My best guess is we'll go through a lull for a few years after Paul leaves and rise again with a new look a few years down the line, a la the 2009-10 post-Marion/Shaq Suns. I could see Book leaving at the end of his contract once the CP3 window closes, but I'm hoping DA's a Suns lifer and we could re-tool around him. This is all pretty speculative, down-the-line thinking. A single great draft pick could change all of this.

[bwgood77]

Rookie. Daishen Nix is 19 and has worlds of talent, also appears to be a pass first PG. Projected to be there when we draft. Take him, sit him till CP retires and he'll still be 22yrs old. He needs time to learn to shoot better, we have a few guys that can shoot lol.

http://www.tankathon.com/players/daishen-nix

Yeah, if we could hit on a PG, I think it's fine to take one this year to groom under CP3 and be 3rd string behind Payne for a few years if CP3 extends.

I do expect us to go after a vet once CP3 retires, but I don't know how much cap space we will have. At that point Cam will also be in his next contract and Book may be looking at even a bigger contract.

[RunDogGun]

I don't think we can say Cam Payne is not starting material. He has changed his approach to the game. He only started one game for us this year, and his stats were 19 pts, 6 assists, 4 rebounds in 27 minutes on 50% shooting. The sample size is small, but he has played enough minutes with starters, and I like how he finds DA inside.

[bwgood77]

Cam is ideal a sparkplug scoring PG off the bench - my favorite kind of backup PG. But he's not starter material. I think that's clear.

Like Waylay, I would like a pass-first PG, so while Rozier's not a bad target, he's not ideal. SGA also is more a scorer than creator (and he'll be RFA anyway). Sexton could also go on this list as possible but perhaps not ideal. As could KPJ. Garland is more of a pass-first type, but word is CLE prefers him to Sexton. None of these guys give us the defense or... everything else Chris Paul provides.

Mannion really impressed me this season, and he's the type of player we'd want to start, but he also doesn't seem like starter material. He's young though, so who knows. McConnell's proven but also not starter material I don't think.

A year ago I would've mentioned Herro as ideal but unobtainable. Now I don't know.

Lonzo Ball? Ben Simmons? Ricky Rubio? One very critical thing CP3 gives us is, like Nash, he passes first and gets everyone involved, but if the offense is breaking down, he gets buckets at will. His offense is never broken. He's an escape valve when we're struggling. That's what makes a great point guard.

Then there's the established vet superstars. Russell Westbrook? I hate Westbrook's game. He'd kill us. F that. That leaves Lillard.

Lillard would change how we play in a big way. Our offense would be lit, but he'd hurt our defense, no doubt. I don't consider him an upgrade to Paul, despite my love for his game. I certainly wouldn't say no if he'd consider us.

My favorite option is De'Aaron Fox. Sacto's been struggling and they just drafted Halliburton, so I think he's a plausible option. We'd have to trade for him, though, and that's where things get messy. We don't have the assets to pull off a deal like that. The shine on Cam Johnson has certainly worn off, though perhaps he bounces back next year and becomes a valuable asset. Even if we offered a boatload of draft picks, with Fox at the helm, we'd be a perennial playoff team, so I doubt that kind of package would be highly valued. Still, if Fox wanted to be here, there's a chance.

After Fox, Sexton and Rozier look like solid options if there's a way to get them. Maybe Lonzo if we can get another bucket-getter to make up for downgrading from Paul.

Basically, there's just no replacing a guy like Chris Paul. When he's done, he'll leave us with a gaping hole at PG, and though a ton of cash will come off the books, that won't open up any cap space. A lot of PGs might see us an ideal destination, though - except Rubio, of course - so maybe we'll be able to pull something off. I have a lot of faith in James Jones in that regard.

My best guess is we'll go through a lull for a few years after Paul leaves and rise again with a new look a few years down the line, a la the 2009-10 post-Marion/Shaq Suns. I could see Book leaving at the end of his contract once the CP3 window closes, but I'm hoping DA's a Suns lifer and we could re-tool around him. This is all pretty speculative, down-the-line thinking. A single great draft pick could change all of this.

Yeah, I think Ball would be nice but I don't know what his next contract will look like and as I mentioned in my last post, if CP3 extends for 3 years Cam will also be in his second contract and Book will likely have an extension at a pretty hefty dollar amount...so just not sure we will have the cap space to sign someone and would likely have to trade someone like Cam and picks for someone good.

[Saberestar]

I think CP3 will play a lot of years on the Suns.

Grant Hill arrived to the Suns when he was 35 years old (like CP3) and he played five full seasons for us at a high level and always as a starter.

I can see CP3 having a similar path and extending his contract for three more years and then sign another couple of smaller deals before retiring.

So...who knows who we will need or be available in four years?

Nowadays everything changes fast in this league but hopefully we can be a bit different and stay pat in the next few years. This roster is special.

[bwgood77]

I think CP3 will play a lot of years on the Suns.

Grant Hill arrived to the Suns when he was 35 years old (like CP3) and he played five full seasons for us at a high level and always as a starter.

I can see CP3 having a similar path and extending his contract for three more years and then sign another couple of smaller deals before retiring.

So...who knows who we will need or be available in four years?

Nowadays everything changes fast in this league but hopefully we can be a bit different and stay pat in the next few years. This roster is special.

While I think that may be true, this thread was basically based on various hypotheticals. Hill had a lot of years off too.

[RunDogGun]

Grant missed a ton of games from 28-31 years of age because of his ankle injury. I loved what Grant did for the Suns, and I liked him in a secondary role behind Nash. But I would love it if Paul could play as many years with the Suns.

[RunDogGun]

I would like to see Payne get some starts with this group before I started looking beyond what we have. I would also like to see Payne work on his mid range game.

[LukasBMW]

1. Lillard
2. Fox
3. Kemba
4. Brogdon

I wonder if we could steal Curry away? Probably not. But fun to imagine.

[WeekapaugGroove]

It's got to be a pick and roll PG. You have Ayton so need someone to run that with him. So to me that's no Lonzo or a similar type.

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[Bogyo]

We won't have any money by then to sign someone really good. So either we strike gold this draft or some second rounder in 1-3 years to understudy CP or we are screwed a bit. We'll go as far as Book/Ayton/Bridges (and maybe CamJ) and their developments take us.

Payne is good, but he is the same talent level in my opinion (and some others here as I see) as TJ McConnell. Who I would loved to have here as a backup PG since forever, so this is no slender, just acknowledging reality. Talent level wise he is (they are) the Terence Ross's of PGs. Really good from the bench, not necessarily a starter.

[Slim Charless]

I think CP3 will play a lot of years on the Suns.

Grant Hill arrived to the Suns when he was 35 years old (like CP3) and he played five full seasons for us at a high level and always as a starter.

I can see CP3 having a similar path and extending his contract for three more years and then sign another couple of smaller deals before retiring.

So...who knows who we will need or be available in four years?

Nowadays everything changes fast in this league but hopefully we can be a bit different and stay pat in the next few years. This roster is special.

While I think that may be true, this thread was basically based on various hypotheticals. Hill had a lot of years off too.

Well, at least it seems like we're all in agreement that CP3 is resigning. I saw on The Jump that he commutes from LA to Phoenix (via Sarver's P.J. most like) almost daily cause his family still lives in LA. He's not going no NYC, Dallas or anywhere else. IMO it's a lock that he re-ups for that 3/100 and finishes his career in the valley. As for after, we've already rehabilitated our perception around the league.

I'm hoping that when he's done, Chris will take a front office job here and help recruit other guys. We have Booker-who seems to be loved by most other players. Depending on how this NOP thing works out, Zion might want out in 3 years (or less). If Sarver just keeps his mouth shut and writes checks I'm sure we'll be fine post Paul.

[wheezy]

1. Lillard
2. Fox
3. Kemba
4. Brogdon

I wonder if we could steal Curry away? Probably not. But fun to imagine.

Seth Curry? Would he and Book be bad defensively?