Al McCoy comments on the development of Suns’ youth

Phoenix Suns radio broadcaster Al McCoy appeared on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM’s Doug & Wolf on Thursday and discussed the development of rookies Dragan Bender and Marquese Chriss and second-year shooting guard Devin Booker.

Booker has been dominating since the calendar turned to 2017. In seven games in January, he’s averaging 27.6 points per game while shooting 50 percent from the floor and 50 percent from deep. He’s been especially strong closing games recently, shooting 54 percent in the fourth quarter this month.

“I think what has happened is he has realized that he has the ability not to just shoot outside shots, not to just get open for mid-range jumpers, but take the ball to the hoop,” McCoy said. “He has the size. He has the quickness. He can finish with either hand, and I think that really is what’s has really elevated his game in the last few weeks.”

McCoy also commented on Booker’s attitude off the court, calling him “a very friendly, very personable young guy.”

While Booker, especially due to his recent outburst, draws most of the attention, there are several other young players on this Phoenix squad, including Bender and Chriss.

“I think Bender has shown an increase in his game in just the last few weeks,” McCoy said. “I think as far as Chriss, you know he’s up and down. We saw some of the great things he can do but it’s still a learning process for him.”

Bender has played 14.2 minutes per game since January 1. While he has not shot the ball well, making around 33 percent of his field goals, he and Alex Len have come on strong as a defensive duo. Both stand 7-foot-1 and have wingspans of about 7-foot-3, making them tough to deal with because of their length.

Meanwhile, Chriss has seen a slight uptick in his numbers since the new year. His rebounds per game are up from 3.9 to 4.1, and he’s averaging an assist per game after only putting up 0.5 in December. He’s also shooting 90 percent from the foul line, a dramatic improvement over December, where he shot 62 percent.

Both have been coming along slowly, and some fans may feel like they’ve disappointed, but McCoy thinks they’re about on par with preseason projections.

“If we were to go back to the beginning of the season and you were to ask where those two would be, I think they’re about where we thought they would be,” McCoy said.

The Suns (13-28) begin a three-game, four-day road trip on Thursday in Cleveland for a rematch with the defending champions. From there, they’ll have a back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday against the New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors.