Suns’ Brandon Knight could have the opportunity to reclaim his future

Reading between the lines three days into NBA free agency, it’s already apparent the Phoenix Suns picked their priority.

Agreeing to sign forward Trevor Ariza for almost all of the available cap space within an hour of the moratorium filled only one of two obvious holes. The Suns prioritized forward over point guard. Though the official signing period has yet to pass, it’s doubtful general manager Ryan McDonough is expecting any significant trade offers to slide across his desk.

It’ll probably end as one more summer of the Suns passing on spending big or pulling the trigger on a deal that’s enough to push them into the playoff picture.

Considering the loaded Western Conference, that’s probably fine, aside from Suns fans’ acceptance of another postseason-less year.

Take all that in, and the last three days have signaled a lot about the Suns’ X-factor heading into the 2018-19 season, Brandon Knight. That is, Phoenix is willing to go all-in on a reset with the point guard who lost his starting job two years ago before tearing his ACL last summer.

How do we come to that conclusion?

For one, the top free agent point guards are off the market. Avery Bradley agreed to re-sign with the Clippers, Rajon Rondo will join the Lakers and Fred VanVleet will re-up with Toronto.

Restricted free agent Marcus Smart appears likely to re-sign with the Celtics, and the Suns have no money to pay him without offering Boston a sign-and-trade deal.

Maybe there is a trade on the horizon, but most of those options wouldn’t threaten Knight’s hold on the starting point guard slot.

In all this decision-making, don’t forget McDonough’s glowing remarks about how Knight bonded with his teammates, grew as a leader and prepared for his return.

“Just when, unsolicited, you have a number of people telling me, you know, ‘Don’t sleep on this guy, he’s going to bounce back next year and help you guys,’ that’s encouraging,” McDonough told Doug & Wolf on 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station in June.

There are reasons why handing Knight the keys makes sense.

Last July, before Eric Bledsoe forced his way out, before the Suns fired head coach Earl Watson and before the team ran through too many starting point guards to name, the future between Knight and the Suns looked grim.

But as the season went on, Knight quietly went about his business in Phoenix. Things changed.

As Knight sat on the bench, it became clear how much the Suns missed an NBA-level lead guard.

Meanwhile, Knight self-reflected, admitting to ArizonaSports.com’s Craig Grialou that he’d let the disappointments aggravate him. The ACL injury proved to be a turning point in his approach.

“I’m blessed to be here,” he told Grialou in April. “I’m blessed to be in Phoenix, and I think there’s a lot of positivity that can still come out of the situation.

“It’s all about helping us move forward,” he added. “I just know I’m going to come in and work my tail off and lift guys up, and make guys around me better and just try to take Phoenix where it needs to be — that’s my biggest goal. The fans and the city, they deserve that.”

Knight is not only the last man standing but the best option.

At least, that’s what the Suns hope. Will Knight play closer to the man who in 2016-17 ranked as one of the worst players in the league, or the one who, during his season in Milwaukee before being traded to Phoenix, was a near-All-Star?

Even in 2015-16 with the Suns, all but 10 of his games came under then-coach Jeff Hornacek. Knight got off to a fast start, averaging 22 points and six assists per game on 43 percent shooting and 40 percent accuracy from three in November before injuries began piling up, eventually ending his season.

A hot-and-cold scorer by nature, Knight averaged 19.6 points, a career high, with 5.1 assists in 54 games. Injuries limited him, paving the way for Devin Booker’s rise. The following season before being shut down due to more injuries, Knight averaged 11.0 points and 2.4 assists on sub-40-percent shooting under Watson.

Knight missed all of last season due to his ACL tear.

Suns fans might groan at the thought of Knight earning a starting spot with those memories freshest in mind.

Put yourself in his shoes — being demoted by a coach who’s out of the league altogether and suffering a serious injury — and Knight at least deserves another chance.

His self-awareness is there. By all accounts, so is his effort to fight for his career.

Knight failed to find footing in Hornacek’s over-dribbling offense that didn’t help that trigger-happy nature or in Watson’s schemes that never looked structured for any player — blame the coach or the young rosters. Perhaps it’s first-year Suns coach Igor Kokoskov’s reaction-oriented offense that will bring the most out of Knight as a combo point guard.

Kokoskov is challenged with developing the likes of youngsters Josh Jackson and Deandre Ayton, and bringing even more out of Booker. Arguably no task is more important than putting Knight in a position to succeed.

Knight is, after all, never going to be a super-efficient scorer. But after Booker, no player on the Suns has the potential to create for himself more than Knight. On paper, Knight should thrive in a system that promotes ball movement but allows for talented one-on-one players to hunt down shots without pounding the ball into the floor.

From the team’s perspective, the Suns appear poised to put all their eggs in the free agent basket of 2019.

Kemba Walker, Ricky Rubio and Terry Rozier are among the point guard options on the market. By then, Knight’s deal will only have one year at $15.6 million remaining.

As it stands, the Suns’ chances don’t look great in 2018-19.

Without better point guard options on the table, what’s the harm in letting Knight find stability?

If all goes well for him, maybe Phoenix’s chances aren’t so gloomy.

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