It dawned on me this morning that the writing might just be on the wall. The Suns have become so desperate for talent that, if you piece the recent comments from Gentry and Blanks together, a particular picture is beginning to form.
Per the GM and coach, we've learned this about their thinking:
1) the team needs frontline help
2) the team needs a go-to offensive player for crunch time, to take the load off of Nash
3) the Suns most glaring holes are PF and SG
4) yet, the first two workouts have boasted fringe prospects and SF/SG combo players
5) even Monday's workout and rumored future visitors are preponderately SF, SG and PG prospects
6) Blanks recently scoffed at the notion the Suns would only bring in defense-first players
7) Minnesota has the #2 pick - most reasonably Derrick Williams (redundant with Michael Beasley), Kyrie Irving (unnecessary thanks to Ricky Rubio) or Enes Kanter (redundant, kinda, with Milicic and Love's minutes).
8) Minnesota has been rumored to be shopping either or both the #2 and the oft-shopped Michael Beasley
9) The Suns have been rumored to be talking to Minnesota recently
How do the Suns get a frontline go-to scorer with just the #13 pick in a weak draft?
The above information opens the door for 2 reasonably viable options - take F Michael Beasley off of Minny's hands, or trade Gortat for the #2 pick
Read on, after the jump... or just vote...
I have never been any kind of fan of Michael Beasley. First, Pat Riley agonized over drafting him at #2 a couple years ago. That draft was a two-man draft of Beasley and Derrick Rose. No way could Riley pass on Beasley, and eventually he took the college hotshot with the #2 pick. But Beasley never blossomed and was eventually traded for cap relief to Minnesota for a second round pick. Ouch. And now, after a mini-breakout season on a terrible team, Minny is ready to rid themselves of Beasley for a better culture.
Yet, Beasley is immensely talented on the offensive end. Good enough for multiple all-star teams. Good enough to be a go-to scorer and solid rebounder. Good enough to hit big shots at important moments. Remember the 1-on-4 drive to the basket with seconds left against the Suns for the lead, last spring? (Minny still lost the game though)
Draft express actually has him listed at only 6'8", probably explaining why his pro rebounding numbers don't approach his college numbers.
Can Steve Nash and Grant Hill bring Beasley to the promised land of winners? Or would Michael Beasley drag this team further into the doldrums of 20-win hell, as all of his previous teams have done?
The expanded Beasley deal in the poll
In looking at the Suns and Minn roster, there's not a lot of swappability there. The Suns have a big contract (Carter) but Minny doesn't have any big ones to dump back. The Suns have some bad contracts (like Childress) but Minny would have no interest in him, I'm pretty sure. They've already got lots of wings to develop, plus Martell Webster.
So, I'm proposing taking Beasley's contract into the Amare TPE, then giving more talent back in a separate deal - Lopez for Flynn, plus a swap of 13/20 picks.
The Minnesota could take Williams or Kanter to fill Beasley's minutes and have a nice core.
And the Suns would have a scorer, a new backup PG failure to groom, and maybe a lucky pick at #20.
Or, the Gortat for #2 deal
if you don't like Beasley, do you like the prospect of Derrick Williams or Enes Kanter over Marcin Gortat? It seems that Minnesota would be unlikely to rid themselves of the #2 pick unless they get a real starter in return. There's always a chance that Minny would take less, but it's not likely at this point.
So assume Gortat has to go. Do you like a lineup of Kanter or Williams + Frye/Lopez and Hill/Dudley/Chill?
I'm of the opinion that Kanter or Williams would be good players, but not necessarily at the expense of Gortat.