PHOENIX SUNS
Report: Suns ‘aggressive’ in pursuing Pacers PG Aaron Holiday
The Phoenix Suns enter Thursday’s NBA Draft with several needs to fill on the roster, the most glaring of which is at point guard.
As it turns out, a point guard the Suns had interest in for last year’s draft has come up again.
J. Michael of the Indy Star reports the Suns have been pursuing rookie point guard Aaron Holiday.
The Phoenix Suns, who were expected to take Holiday at No. 16 in the draft but allowed him to drop to the Pacers at No. 23, remain aggressive in trying to shake him loose, along with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Chicago Bulls.
Michael notes that with the Pacers’ desire to upgrade the roster, Holiday and big man Domantas Sabonis are the two most likely players on the move in order to do so.
John Gambadoro of 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station, however, says the Suns are “not interested in acquiring” the point guard.
The 22-year-old Holiday was one of a few players to come in for multiple pre-draft workouts for the Suns in 2018. The Suns wound up trading the 16th overall selection (Zhaire Smith) in a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers for Mikal Bridges. John Gambadoro reports that if the pick was to be made for the Suns at No. 16, it would have been guard Donte DiVincenzo.
Holiday didn’t get much opportunity for the Pacers as a rookie, playing in 50 games and averaging 12.9 minutes per game. He trailed veterans Darren Collison and Cory Joseph on the depth chart, which are also two names Gambadoro reports are targets for the Suns in free agency.
Phoenix has reportedly explored the possibility of trading the No. 6 pick, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, along with separate trade packages that involved wing Josh Jackson and forward T.J. Warren. Gambadoro reports the Suns are looking to open up cap space by trading Jackson and/or Warren.
Along with the sixth overall selection, the Suns pick 32nd in the second round.
