Piece by Anthony Del Trecco
Jalen Suggs has officially lived up to the hype so far. The soon to be first round pick in the NBA Draft put up quite the stat line with the Gonzaga Bulldogs in his one and done season. He dazzled the country with his all-around ability while averaging 14.4 point per game, 4.5 assists per game all while shooting 50.3% (33.7% from three-point range) and shot 75.4% at the free throw line. And of course, who can forget the half court pass that broke the Bruins hearts in the semifinal game of the tournament? Sorry UCLA fans, but it really was a great shot. Now for the fun to begin. Where could Suggs go and where would he be a good fit?
The obvious teams that come to mind here are the Houston Rockets and the Oklahoma City Thunder because, let’s be real, they need all the help they can get. OKC finished dead last in the west in scoring with 105.0 points per game. Houston was slightly better with 108.8, which was second to last. The Rockets missed Harden’s scoring touch and clutch ability and the same can be said with OKC not having Chris Paul around, granted it was only for a year but now Phoenix his reaped the benefits of it. I guess having a walking hall of famer on your time will do that for you. And finally, am I the only that one that would love to see Jalen go home to Minnesota?
The Suggs to Edwards connection is something I could get used to seeing for the next decade. Minnesota can be a true basketball hot spot if the Timberwolves and the Lynx (their WNBA team) are both in it consistently. It would certainly make winter more bearable. However, it is still worthy to note that Ricky Rubio is indicating that he is ready to move on, citing the lack of direction of the franchise and sounds like he will ask for a trade. Minnesota finished averaging 112.1 points per game as the rebuild continues.
Now, let’s turn to the teams in the east who will be in the lottery. There was no magic left in Orlando when Aaron Gordan and Even Fournier were traded as they only averaged 104.0 points per game this season and are set to begin a full rebuild. The Pistons (who averaged 106.6 points per game) and the Cavaliers (who averaged 103.8 point per game) could also use his services.
The Cavs are looking to get back to the promised land and have shown interest in building around Darius Garland and Jared Allen. That also includes moving on from Colin Sexton and most likely trading him during this offseason. With Garland listed as the point guard right now, it will be interesting to see if he transitions to more of the shooting guard role in favor of Suggs becoming the fulltime PG if they end up getting him, or vice versa. Orlando and Detroit just seem to lack overall direction even though they have some young talent on the roster. Suggs can certainly make the situation a little better, but he’ll need some help.
One dark horse team to watch may be the LA Clippers. Yes, they are in a very good playoff position and have a solid team. But Kendrick Perkins made the point that the Clippers didn’t have a true point guard, thus why they traded Lou Williams to the Hawks for Rajon Rando after he signed a two-year deal in Atlanta before the season. Rando is 35 years old and won’t play forever, so maybe the Clippers make a move either shipping Rando out to get a top pick to get Suggs. Another option is to keep Rando and create a mentorship program to help Suggs in his first year.
This of course is all hypothetical because we aren’t sure if the Clippers are willing to give anything up to make that kind of a move. But if Kawhi leaves, Paul George may want out too, and that could be a potential bargaining piece. Another is the Warriors – and everyone relax because I’m not saying it’s time for Curry to go. Klay Thompson in my mind will not play for Golden State again and is the best option to jumpstart this semi rebuild. If Suggs ends up in the Bay Area, he will transition to the shooting guard and have the best mentor possible in Steph Curry, and may eventually become his successor.
Either way, whoever gets Jalen Suggs is getting a fine young man with tremendous ability, skills, a will to win, and the ability to make his teammates better.