Reports of Phoenix Suns Summer League signings trickle in
Jun 23, 2023, 8:42 AM | Updated: 9:27 am
Marcus Carr #5 of the Texas Longhorns reacts to a play against the Xavier Musketeers during the first half in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at T-Mobile Center on March 24, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
The NBA Draft ended Thursday with the Phoenix Suns hanging onto their 52nd pick and drafting Dayton forward Toumani Camara.
And now it’s on to filling out a Summer League roster around him and searching for diamonds in the rough to join the finalized Phoenix roster. After the Bradley Beal trade and draft, that roster includes eight players plus Ish Wainright’s team option.
There are roster spots to fill with re-signings, veteran minimum contracts and youngsters. A pair of two-way contracts remain open.
Which players are among the known candidates to fight for opportunities to play with Beal, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant?
Here’s a rundown of the reported Summer League invites for Phoenix:
Phoenix Suns 2023 Summer League invites
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Texas PG Marcus Carr
Reported by Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes
6-foot-2, 195 pounds
Stats: 15.9 PPG, 4.1 APG, 1.6 SPG, 43 FG%, 37 3FG%
Already 24 years old with six years in college, Carr spent a year at Pitt, sat out a transfer year before the pandemic, then played three years at Minnesota and two more at Texas.
Last season was Carr’s first of five played seasons where he shot above 40%, and his turnovers per game ticked down every year in school, so there is a steady improvement that showed even this late into his collegiate career.
UAB C Trey Jemison
Reported by DraftExpress.com’s Jon Chepkevich
7-foot, 260 pounds
Stats: 9.1 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 1.7 BPG, 59 FG%, 64 FT%
A five-year college player, Jemison appeared sparingly in two years at Clemson before turning it on at UAB. He’s a classic rim-rolling center with great size, physicality and activity.
Oklahoma PG Grant Sherfield
Reported by OUDaily.com’s Colton Sulley
6-foot-2, 190 pounds
Stats: 15.9 PPG, 3.3 APG, 40 FG%, 39 3FG%
Sherfield bounced from Wichita State to Nevada and finally to Oklahoma over a four-year college career. His assist numbers nearly got chopped in half from his last year with the Wolf Pack to the single season for the Sooners, but while the field goal percentage dipped as well, the three-point shooting on a pretty high volume (6.5 attempts per game) was impressive.
Borac Mozzart G Hunter Hale
Reported by AZCentral’s Duane Rankin
6-foot-3, 185 pounds
Stats: 22.2 PPG, 3.9 APG, 1.4 SPG, 46 FG%, 37 3FG%
Playing for the Serbia squad in the Adriatic League, the 25-year-old has developed into a sniper overseas, taking nearly half of his 15 shots per game from deep, though he’s a bit turnover prone with 3.2 per game. He jumped around in college between Central Michigan, Grand Valley State and Winthrop before going pro in 2020.
Cairns Taipans F Keanu Pinder
6-foot-11, 227 pounds
Stats: 16.9 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 2.4 APG
Pinder, 28, played with Suns center Deandre Ayton with the Arizona Wildcats in 2017-18 as a sparingly used role player. He’s developed rapidly in the past few years in the NBL and will do energy big-man stuff.
