EOTS’ No. 31 preview: Off-ball guards for Suns to add offensive punch

After running through the potential top choices at No. 16, Empire of the Suns combs through position groups the Suns could be looking to strengthen at No. 31 in the 2018 NBA Draft.

Devin Booker needs help. Most pressing, he needs help on the offensive end.

While the Phoenix Suns certainly could use relief on the defensive side of the ball, Booker’s expected rise as a No. 1 scorer nixes him from ever becoming an elite defensive player. Taking pressure off him on the offensive end by adding ball handlers and shooters will help him remain efficient with his own touches and rested enough to put an adequate amount of effort on the other end.

Does that mean the Suns need to find a ball-dominating point guard?

Not necessarily.

With the No. 31 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, Phoenix has a plethora of perimeter-oriented players available. Kellan Olson already touched on a list of more traditional point guards and will touch on 3-and-D wings that are all the craze in the NBA.

But don’t forget about the importance of combo guards, who fall into neither category.

There are a few solid options the Suns might consider at 31st overall who can score, run pick-and-rolls and complement Booker and the other Phoenix players on the offensive end.

Donte DiVincenzo, Villanova

13.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists on 48% shooting (40% 3-point)

Nobody burst onto the scene quite like DiVincenzo, whose 31 points on 10-of-14 shooting in the national championship game against Michigan kick-started his rise as an NBA prospect.

At 6-foot-5 and a strong 200 pounds, his 6-foot-6 wingspan isn’t great, but he makes up for it with enough athleticism to makes blocks like this. All that considered, he has some defensive upside, but the crux of his profile is that he can provide microwave scoring within a sharing offense.

The 21-year-old took more than half his shots beyond the arc last year and even with such a nice, high-release jumper, was hesitant to take many long twos. As a redshirt sophomore, he took the biggest steps forward proving he could create for others, nearly doubling his assist rate from 12 percent to 20 percent over his last two college seasons.

Grayson Allen, Duke

15.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.6 assists on 42% shooting (37% 3-point)

Allen’s four years at Duke were topsy-turvy. His best season came as a sophomore, and the 6-foot-5, 205-pound guard could fall to the end of the first round or even to the second round. He was one of the best athletes at the NBA combine and used the last two seasons to improve his playmaking abilities as Duke needed him to fill in at points as a point guard.

The question is whether Allen can return to his efficient, elite scoring abilities as he did when he averaged 21.6 points on 47 percent shooting and 42 percent accuracy from three-point range as a sophomore. Not coincidentally, that was his most NBA-like Duke team as he played alongside wings Brandon Ingram and Luke Kennard.

Jerome Robinson, Boston College

20.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists on 49% shooting (41% 3-point)

There will be apprehension to take Robinson because of his lack of defensive resume, and his slight 6-foot-5, 188-pound frame doesn’t help.

But the junior got buckets over the past two seasons, using the 2017-18 year to take a huge step forward in terms of efficiency (he shot just 43 percent as a sophomore and 33 percent from three). Robinson can knock down jumpers all over the court, and is especially good pulling up on the move — be it off the bounce or coming off screens.

Robinson has craftiness to finish at the rim and shot a 64 percent accuracy there, and that helped his threat from deep. No, he’s not a pure point guard, but he flashed enough ability to make him an intriguing option as a score-first lead guard.

Anfernee Simons, high school

At 6-foot-3 with a 6-foot-9 wingspan and plenty of bounce, Simons was a projected first-round pick but through workouts could be falling on big boards thanks to stiff guard competition from the mid-first round to the mid-second round of this draft class.

Simons weighed in at 183 pounds at the combine, adding to the notion he’ll be a project from a physical standpoint as well.

In high school, he showed a smooth shooting stroke and an array of scoring moves that play off his athleticism. That skillset had NBA scouts enamored enough to consider him a project who with the right environment could develop into a future point guard.

The top-10 2018 recruit fit into the loophole that Milwaukee Bucks big man Thon Maker used to enter the 2016 draft as a fifth-year high school student.

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