Locked On Suns - Daily Podcast On The Phoenix Suns

On today’s episode, we finish off the news from the weekend’s NBA DraftCombine in Chicago, and dive deep on a few players who stood out.

From a Suns perspective, the versatile, athletic wings seem to be the starting point at each of their selections, with so many of those guys standing out in this class. The team reportedly spoke with several over the weekend, including Zhaire Smith, Troy Brown, Hamidou Dialloand Bruce Brown Jr.

The list at No. 1 also may have expanded to include Jaren Jackson Jr.we discuss the possibility that the Suns’ lack of interest in Jackson prior to the combine was a smokescreen from Ryan McDonough.

Finally, we broke down two candidates for the 31st pick, Donte DiVincenzoand Josh Okogie, who showed out at the combine.

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On today’s episode of Locked On Suns, Evan went solo as he was joined by two knowledgable Suns in Max and David to discuss the biggest debate in recent memory: Deandre Ayton or Luka Doncic?

All three of us watched Doncic against CSKA Moscow so we broke down what stood out during his 16 point, 7 rebound, and 2 assist outing in the EuroLeague Final Four.

What are the main strengths and weaknesses to focus on for both prospects over the next month? Who fits better within their current roster construction?

Not only did we take deep dives on Ayton and Doncic, but we noticed this tweet went out during our debate from Devin Booker related to Karl-Anthony Towns

Reports surfaced earlier on Friday about news of possible friction between Towns and Minnesota, so could the Suns strike while the iron is hot with all their assets this summer? Would Minnesota actually want to do this built around the swap of likely Towns for Ayton?

We covered all of the bases Phoenix could go with their decision atop the draft, so tune in to this one!

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On today’s episode, we take a break from the tireless internet debate over Deandre Ayton and Luka Doncic to interpret comments from Ryan McDonough about how the team might attack the 2018 draft.

With picks at 1, 16, 31 and 59, the Suns have an opportunity to move up, take multiple versatile rookies, or stash players overseas. In Chicago this week, the team’s decision-makers are gathering intel that will help them make draft decisions that could define #TheTimeline.

We discuss a great article by azcentral’s Scott Bordow with many quotes from McDonough about the team’s current plan.

We also break down some of the most interesting pieces of news from the combine, including Melvin Frazier’s rise and Trae Young’s fall.

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On today’s episode, we react live from Talking Stick Resort Arena following the Suns’ historic win on lottery night, securing the No. 1 overall pick. We also recruited Gerald Bourguet of Hoops Habit onto the podcast for his instant analysis.

The Suns will pick first for the first time in franchise history, and after a moment of celebration, debate will surely begin over who the team should take with the top pick. We discuss where the Deandre Ayton vs. Luka Doncic debate stands today. 

Finally, we interpret comments from James Jones and Ryan McDonough tonight about the way that locking in the top pick affects their plans for the summer, and outline how we would attack things going forward into the summer.

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On today’s episode, we give our impressions of new Suns coach Igor Kokoskov based on his introductory press conference today at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

Attending the event in person, we got to hear a lot from Kokoskov, Ryan McDonough and James Jones about their vision for the team moving forward and how Kokoskov’s ingenuity and work ethic can help build that in Phoenix.

All three Suns decision-makers also referred often to the prospect of significant roster overhaul this summer, toward a scheme that fits Kokoskov’s philosophies more thoroughly and unlocks the young players’ talent.

Finally, some last thoughts before tomorrow’s draft lottery.

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On today’s episode, Jackson Hoy of The Stepien joins to talk all things draft, and give his insight as to how the Suns should attack things come June.

The show starts with a Luka Doncic update, reacting to his historic triple-double and our impressions of him over the course of the season.

Then we talk about a guy Jackson has become higher on since the season wrapped up, Kevin Huerter of Maryland, who we also briefly discussed on the show earlier this week.

Looking at the middle of the draft, we talk about guys The Stepien has been leading the charge on all season, Zhaire Smith and Jontay Porter. We also discuss other options at No. 16, like Lonnie Walker IV and Robert Williams III.

Finally, we end with a discussion of Deandre Ayton based on what we have seen in the playoffs and what works for the best teams around the league.

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On today’s episode, we dive into two guys from the second tier of big men in this year’s lottery, Mohamed Bamba and Wendell Carter Jr.

At Texas, Bamba went from one of the most exciting young prospects in the draft from a physical standpoint and as a prototypical versatile Suns piece, to being talked about in the back half of the lottery. He didn’t exert his advantages nearly often enough in college, but has gotten right to work this summer developing his jump shot with Joel Embiid and Embiid’s trainer.

Carter is a high-floor guy who has garnered Al Horford comparisons as an all-around big man, but will probably need to be in a perfect system to be maximized. He balances out Dragan Bender in interesting ways, but may never be a valuable enough offensive player to be a great starter in the NBA.

Who makes more sense for the Suns based on what we know about their needs and priorities?

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On today’s episode, Chris Stone of The Sporting News joins to discuss all things 2018 NBA Draft as we near next Tuesday’s lottery.

We begin with a breakdown of Chris’ big board, including Deandre Ayton falling to No. 5 behind Marvin Bagley, what he sees in Trae Young and Luka Doncic and the value of play-makers in the modern NBA, and who he believes are the Suns’ best options at the top of the second round.

Then, we make a pit stop talking about Zhaire Smith, whom we all agree is curious and terrifying and magnificent, all at once.

We finish by discussing what Chris would do in Ryan McDonough’s shoes at the draft next month, as well as a discussion of his overall philosophy when judging prospects.

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