2019 NBA Mock Draft: March is here
What the Suns’ front office did this year ignoring the point guard position completely was malpractice and hurt the team’s other young players’ development. Phoenix drafted Elie Okobo and traded for De’Anthony Melton but for several reasons, neither was really ready to compete. Okobo came from a low-level league overseas while Melton was fresh off a lost season after being dismissed from USC based upon the FBI’s investigation into college basketball.
The Suns traded for Tyler Johnson in February to help plug the hole, but it was too late. Sixty games of damage had already been inflicted upon the likes of Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton and Mikal Bridges. The future is brighter.
Should the Suns use Okobo in a trade and keep Melton and Johnson, the guard depth could organically improve. That could make drafting Morant less of a risk. Insulating him with better talent would make his development sooner and his struggles less disastrous. In fact, the Suns could still spend at guard in free agency and draft Morant, giving them more bites at the apple at that position than they’ve ever had.
Everything is on the table for the Suns. No one outside of Booker, Ayton and Bridges is untouchable. Morant clearly is a great talent and someone who is worth reorganizing a team’s structure. But don’t underestimate the Suns’ sudden flexibility at guard. Drafting Morant doesn’t mean they won’t keep their other young playmakers just as signing another guy is not an indication they might move someone.
For bad, rebuilding teams, things are fluid. You find talent and figure it out.