Connecting the dots: Which ‘younger vet’ could the Phoenix Suns trade for?

Monday afternoon, ESPN’s Chad Ford joined Arizona Sports 98.7 FM’s Burns and Gambo show and cited he’s been hearing an ample amount of trade buzz concerning the Phoenix Suns.

“From everything that I’m hearing, Phoenix is talking to a lot of teams about a lot of things that would have them maybe moving No. 4, to move out of the draft completely and get a youngish veteran that can come in and contribute right now,” Ford said. “Again, Robert Sarver is not a patient man, has not shown that he’s been willing to stick with a plan for very long.”

Taking that quote from Ford and running with it, who is a “younger vet” the Suns could target? Attempting to identify younger players that are somewhere in-between good enough for the Suns to aspire acquiring and not special enough for teams to be okay with trading is no small task, but here are some possibilities.

Nerlens Noel, PF, Philadelphia 76ers

The one name on our list that has been in frequent trade rumors heading into the draft, Noel has been the shining light in three years of “trusting the process” in Philadelphia. Any player from the 76ers might cause some to shy away instantly, but it’s foolish to make that mistake with Noel.

The 22-year-old has had some of the best defensive seasons we’ve ever seen from a young player in the NBA. I’ll hand it off to Liberty Ballers’ Marc Whittington to highlight how great Noel has been on defense in his two NBA seasons.

Only 13 players have put up seasons with a DBPM (defensive box plus-minus) of 3 or better in their age 21 or younger seasons. Nerlens’ rookie year was the highest of all such seasons, at 4.5 DBPM.

Furthermore, his blocks and steals per game put him rarefied company, with David Robinson and Hakeem Olajuwon as the only two players to match his ability in the minutes he has played.

Noel’s at his best playing center and that’s not a great fit with Tyson Chandler or Alex Len still on the roster, but if Phoenix is looking for a younger player with experience that’s available, it’s tough to find someone better than Noel.

There have been reports the Sixers are very high on Providence point guard Kris Dunn, who could be available at No. 4.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, SG, Detroit Pistons

Caldwell-Pope might be the most difficult sell on this list. The defensive specialist is currently in a great spot with Detroit and the Pistons wouldn’t have any reason to trade him, but he’s flawed enough to make a case.

The 23-year-old shooting guard has yet to figure out what is role is on offense. While he did average 14.5 points per game last season, he’s a lifetime 40.8 percent shooter and only 32.7 percent from three-point range.

The offense-defense trade-off with Devin Booker could work wonders for Phoenix.

Otto Porter, SF, Washington Wizards

Porter was a top-three pick that was considered to have a relatively high floor, but his first two seasons in the NBA were far below expectations. He was terrific in the 2015 playoffs, however, and that led to a much better third season.

His all-around game was the main appeal as a prospect and that has shown in his play. He’s failed to be anything but decent and for a No. 3 overall pick, that’s very disappointing.

Washington may be ready to move on and Porter is a younger player with a good chunk of NBA experience and upside. Like Caldwell-Pope, his game would contrast nicely with T.J. Warren and Booker.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, SF, Charlotte Hornets

Kidd-Gilchrist is the most alluring player on this list and is the best fit both for the tag Ford described and for the Suns roster.

The former Kentucky forward is a relentless competitor, excelling defensively and on the glass. Scouts, GMs and pretty much anyone that encounters Kidd-Gilchrist can not stop raving about his character and his chance to be special in the NBA.

There are two major red flags, however. The first is that Kidd-Gilchrist has only played 202 games in four seasons due to two major shoulder injuries, a stress reaction in his right foot and a concussion.

The other is that Kidd-Glichrist might have shown too much of his improvement to Charlotte in the seven games he played last season for the Hornets to be willing to move him. In those seven games, the offensively limited 22-year-old shot 54 percent from the field and 43 percent from deep. He was terrific in transition, on the glass and of course, defensively.

He is the prototypical player you’d want to put next to Booker, but I’d be shocked if the Hornets didn’t realize the type of potential Kidd-Gilchrist has.

Derrick Favors, PF, Utah Jazz

Gordon Hayward, SF, Utah Jazz

Utah’s roster is practically overflowing with talent. They have three of the biggest steals in the draft the past few seasons in center Rudy Gobert, power forward Trey Lyles and shooting guard Rodney Hood.

Hayward and Favors are undoubtedly excellent players. With that being said, their contract situations might favor building around Gobert, Lyles, Hood and Dante Exum.

Favors has two more years on his contract and Gobert’s extension looms the same offseason Favors heads for unrestricted free agency. Hayward has a player option for next summer and is likely to decline and time his new contract perfectly with the near-peak of NBA teams’ available cap space.

Both players are All-Star level talents, but would (a) require the necessary assets to give away and (b) the cap space to re-sign them. Both are probably unrealistic for Phoenix.

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