The Phoenix Suns missed the playoffs for almost the entirety of the 2010s, spending the decade at home once the calendar turned to April and May. Part of their problem was that they missed far more than they hit during each year’s NBA Draft, with two or three Josh Jacksons and Dragan Benders for every Devin Booker.
Since the 2020s started they’ve fared much better, making the playoffs in each of the past three seasons and making it all the way to the NBA Finals in 2021. This season they’re one of the top teams in the Western Conference again, sitting with the No. 5 seed midway through the year despite a shaky start to the season. Given their improved success, one would assume that they’ve had a much better track record when drafting, but that hasn’t been the case: here’s a look at the Suns’ team-building efforts, and how it has impacted the club through their recent success.
Draft Day Disasters
Suns’ General Manager James Jones has etched his name among the NBA’s top executives, ascending from his initial role as interim GM during the 2018 season to eventually becoming the President of Basketball Operations. His pivotal role in revitalizing the franchise during the 2021 offseason earned him the prestigious title of NBA Executive of the Year.
However, even with Jones’ meteoric rise and the team’s success, there are certain areas where he faces challenges, particularly in the realm of draft day decisions. Over the past five years at the helm, Jones has only made three first-round picks. Regrettably, only one of those selections, Jalen Smith, briefly donned a Suns’ uniform before being traded to the Indiana Pacers after just five starts and 56 games played. Notably, the other picks, Jarrett Culver and Day’Ron Sharpe, were swiftly dealt immediately after their draft selection.
Despite these challenges on draft day, the Suns have defied the odds, evolving into one of the league’s premier teams. Their current +1300 odds of winning the NBA Championship, prominently featured on ESPN BET Arizona, rank them as the sixth-best in the league. This underscores the Suns’ ability to overcome drafting setbacks and remain formidable contenders in the NBA landscape.
Be Like James Jones: Know Your Strengths
James Jones’ best quality as an executive might just be the fact that he knows his strengths. Instead of getting himself in over his head in situations that don’t suit him—namely, the NBA Draft—he makes moves that suit his talents, swinging trades and signing free agents.
Trading Jarrett Culver brought in Dario Šarić, who played a key role in the 2020 NBA bubble playoffs as a sixth man. It also brought Cameron Johnson to Phoenix, where he established himself as an excellent option off the bench, gaining playing time in each of the four seasons he played for the Suns… until 2023 when Jones traded him to the Brooklyn Nets for Kevin Durant.
Such is life under Jones, who continues to wheel and deal to maximize the talent on his team.
Other major trades include this past offseason’s trades for Bradley Beal and Jusuf Nurkić or the 2020 trade for Chris Paul that helped CP3 revitalize his career and resulted in their playoff successes in the bubble and in 2021.
Jones signed center Bol Bol to a one-year ‘prove it’ deal this offseason, and the move has started to pay dividends because of his 7-foot-3 presence down low: much of the team’s recent hot streak can be attributed to him.
Phoenix Suns: What’s the Outlook?
Of course, the main question with Jones’ unorthodox approach is whether it can pay off and bring the team their first-ever championship.
Given the talent disparity in basketball, draft picks aren’t as valuable in the NBA as they are in other sports. With five starters playing the vast majority of minutes, there simply isn’t as much depth to go around.. As such, there’s less of a risk involved in trading those picks, especially if you know it might not be the best approach for your franchise.
The Suns only have three first-round picks through the rest of the decade, but again, those are easier to come by if they switch their strategy. Devin Booker could easily command four first-round picks or more toward the tail end of his career if the Suns feel the need to restock, or if they suddenly fall out of contention.
Jones and the Suns are relying on an aggressive strategy, but it’s certainly one that could result in a championship… and given their drafting struggles, it seems well worth it.
