Landry Shamet has breakthrough night as Suns’ 2nd unit tries to settle in

PHOENIX — When the Phoenix Suns started 8-8 last year, it was their bench that did the heavy lifting.

With backup point guard Cam Payne on the floor, the Suns were outscoring teams by 12.7 points per 100 possessions. Reserve center Dario Saric’s net rating was even higher, 19.0. Compare that to Chris Paul’s -0.5 and Deandre Ayton’s -3.8 and who knows how last season would have went if the bench wasn’t thriving.

But the Suns have not quite been afforded that luxury this season, as its bench is still putting a few things together.

Through an even smaller sample size of seven games, no one’s net rating on the Suns in the rotation is really singing outside Mikal Bridges’ 6.9, a fitting anecdote given he’s been Phoenix’s most consistent player thus far.

But it’s the numbers for Cam Johnson (-6.9), JaVale McGee (-5.9), Abdel Nader (-3.7), Elfrid Payton (-12.7) and Landry Shamet (-6.7) that are the lowest.

There are a couple of factors to consider.

First of all, a strained right hamstring for Payne forcing him to miss the team’s last five games has not helped. He’s the engine of that group and his consistent pressure on a defense allows the group to have a certain ease of getting into 0.5, quick-hitting offensive situations.

From there, it’s incorporating new players in McGee, Payton and Shamet.

Shamet is the most important player of the three, as evidenced by his shiny new four-year contract extension worth $43 million, so it was a big deal to see him have a breakthrough performance of sorts in Thursday’s win over the Houston Rockets with 19 points.

The fourth-year guard had a combined 15 points in his last five games prior to Thursday.

The common theme seems to be that Shamet needs to be more assertive in searching for shots. In Saturday’s win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, he definitely was but shot 1-of-7 from the field

Shamet was candid the day prior after practice that he was frustrated with how he wasn’t impacting the game offensively, saying it’s a disservice to his teammates if he’s not taking more shots.

As a player in a low-usage role on good teams his first three seasons, Shamet appears to be adjusting to the freedom he has now playing for Williams.

“Just want him to play,” Williams said on Monday. “We don’t put handcuffs on anybody, and I think that’s a new world for him. He’s getting used to it. The guys on the side — I don’t know how many times we hear, ‘Shoot it Landry! Go Landry!'”

Williams admitted it does take some time playing alongside guys like Paul and Devin Booker, with a natural instinct to defer.

But Shamet is at his best when he’s firing at will like he was against Houston.

As you can see, it’s not difficult to get Shamet in spaces where he can get triples off given his off-ball movement, footwork and quick release. Shamet attempted eight three-pointers in just 19 minutes of that game, a volume the Suns would love to see more often given how great of a shooter he is.

“Just letting it fly,” Williams said after the game Thursday on what he saw from Shamet. “Trying to get him to be aggressive. When he has a shot, take a shot.”

“He has good intentions but I think he has to be a bit more aggressive to keep the defense honest,” the coach added.

It looks like that process is the first step for Shamet to get comfortable, and then perhaps seeing an expanded role from there. He has yet to hit 20 minutes in a game, something that will surely change given the confidence the franchise showed in him with that money.

There was a point Thursday with Paul checking out midway through the second quarter when Shamet already had it going, and with Booker on the floor, it was a logical proposition for Shamet to enter instead of Payton.

But whether it was limiting Point Book minutes, Point Shamet minutes or whathaveyou, Payton came in (and played well in that spurt too).

Williams talked about in training camp how much they believe in Shamet’s ability on the ball and the ability the Suns have to possibly unlock that, but we’re not quite there yet at the moment. And given Shamet’s need to settle in, that’s a more than fine conclusion to currently arrive at.

Shamet getting rolling, along with Nader and Johnson, who are both shooting under 35%, will eventually have the second unit popping again soon enough.

Follow @KellanOlson