Report: Suns to meet with Texas Tech’s Jarrett Culver on Friday
Jun 5, 2019, 3:50 PM
(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
The Phoenix Suns had their first batch of pre-draft workouts at Talking Stick Resort Arena at the start of June, bringing in 36 prospects over three days.
The top names in the draft that are expected to be in consideration for the team’s No. 6 overall pick, though, were not present.
The Suns, however, will be meeting with those names and will be traveling to Texas to have a workout with Texas Tech wing Jarrett Culver, per Chris Level of RedRaiderSports.com.
Culver is currently ranked by ESPN as the draft’s sixth-best prospect.
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Culver, 20, was the Red Raiders’ leader in points (18.5), rebounds (6.3) and assists (3.7) per game as a sophomore. As a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, Texas Tech made a run all the way to the NCAA Championship where they fell to Virginia in overtime.
The 6-foot-7 wing was on NBA radars after his freshman season playing alongside 2018 first-round pick Zhaire Smith, but a growth spurt and all-around improvement in his game the following season has him in the conversation for the top-five of the 2019 NBA Draft.
Culver scored in double digits in 37 of his 38 games, including 19.6 points per game in the NCAA Tournament. A make-or-break skill for Culver will be his shooting, as Culver’s 3-point percentage improved dramatically in non-conference play (45.2%) only for him to shoot 30-for-119 (25.2%) once conference and postseason play were underway.
The Suns’ roster is deepest on the wing. In the past two NBA Drafts, the Suns have added Josh Jackson and Mikal Bridges. They also signed T.J. Warren to a four-year extension that has three years remaining and in-season acquisition Kelly Oubre Jr. is a restricted free agent.
