Phoenix Suns’ Jeff Hornacek: Trading 13th overall pick could make sense
May 29, 2015, 8:16 AM | Updated: Jun 2, 2015, 4:10 pm
Another year, another late lottery pick for the Phoenix Suns.
General manager Ryan McDonough and staff are currently scouting players who could be available with the 13th overall selection in the NBA Draft, which takes place June 25 in Brooklyn, NY.
Of course, the Suns would have the option of trading that pick, most likely for a more established NBA commodity. McDonough brought up that possibility earlier in the week and head coach Jeff Hornacek is on board with that thinking, if it works out for the Suns.
“Everyone wants to get in the playoffs and in the West, it’s extremely difficult. I think that’s where Ryan is saying ‘hey, if somehow we get a veteran guy that can help us in the near future, we’ve got enough young guys to build from,’ then yeah, he’d consider that,” Hornacek told Burns and Gambo Thursday on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.
“From the coaching standpoint, it’s tough to win with young players in this league and we have several of them already. They’re growing and they’re getting better and better. We probably, at this point, need more veteran guys, so yeah, if the opportunity like that comes up, I think Ryan would do it.”
Eight of the Suns’ top 13 players in terms of minutes played in 2014-15 were aged 25 or under. Only two players who saw the floor last season — Earl Barron and Shavlik Randolph — were over the age of 30.
Suns president of basketball operations Lon Babby has taken responsibility for not blending more veteran talent and leadership in with the team’s youth. That lack of experience, along with other issues — like a mid-season roster overhaul, chemistry and a tough Western Conference — led to a decrease in victories and a fifth straight year of missing the postseason.
Hornacek says he could certainly use the help in nurturing the young talent at his disposal.
“Veteran guys, who have been through things. They’ve played enough games, they know all the players, they know how to handle 82 games,” Hornacek said. “We’re hoping some of our guys like Markieff Morris and Eric Bledsoe and Alex Len, who played a ton, they’ve gone through it for the first time of having to play 82 games at a starter’s position.
“It takes some years for guys to really learn that.”
