2019 NBA Mock Draft: Murray State’s Ja Morant is rising

Phoenix, like the Magic, has a well-documented need for a point guard they will look to fill this summer. As the names pile up on the trade market, the Suns are faced with several opportunities to upgrade at the position if they make this pick available. After looking at veterans Mike Conley and Jrue Holiday as well as younger projects like Dennis Smith Jr. or Tyus Jones, it’s highly likely the Suns contemplate trading their fourth straight top-five pick.

The far smarter option, if the Suns and their fans can stomach it, would be to continue taking promising young players and creating a deeper bucket of assets to pull from to upgrade the roster around Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton. Phoenix has gotten closer than anyone to what Philadelphia pulled off under Sam Hinkie — repeated, unflinching losing to bolster their odds at acquiring multiple franchise cornerstones. But the job’s not done yet.

Draft Culver, and the Suns are one step closer to being in the conversation not for Anthony Davis but the next great player who inevitably becomes available. Teams don’t need to worry about missing out anymore — perhaps the player won’t be as great as Davis but there will be another.

And any incumbent team forced to flip a superstar would look at Culver — a playmaking wing with solid athletic instincts and size — as a fantastic addition to any trade conversation. The Suns missed on all their picks in 2016 and 2017 but they can redeem themselves by staying dedicated to the Process.