HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT – MARCH 23: Ja Morant #12 of the Murray State Racers celebrates his three point basket against the Florida State Seminoles in the first half during the second round of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at XL Center on March 23, 2019 in Hartford, Connecticut. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
The Phoenix Suns need a point guard badly and they like Ja Morant, but they won’t go against logic to draft him.
The Phoenix Suns had another bad season, at 19-63, and they are tied with the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers with a 14 percent chance at getting the No. 1 pick in June. They also need a point guard desperately, which may put Ja Morant atop their draft board.
The idea anyone but Zion Williamson will go No. 1 overall in June’s draft is lunacy, but when it comes to the Suns nothing can be ruled out if they were to get the pick. On that note, Sam Vecenie of The Athletic suggested (via league sources) that Phoenix would prefer Morant over Williamson if they won the draft lottery.
Suns’ general manager James Jones is known to be a fan of Morant. So if they got the No. 2 pick, taking the former Murray State star would presumably not require much deliberation.
But the idea the Suns would actually take Morant over Williamson has been roundly dismissed by John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 in Phoenix.
The Suns have the same odds as the Knicks and Cavaliers to get each of the top four picks, and they can’t fall further than seventh. Their single-best odds to get a pick is No. 6 overall, with a 26 percent chance (via Tankathon.com). But anything outside the top-three, or arguably the top-two, would be a big disappointment.
The Suns invite plenty of scrutiny for the way they do business, centered mostly on owner Robert Sarver, including firing a head coach just one season in already this week. Things may line up perfectly in this year’s draft, with a top prospect that fits their No. 1 need and the exact pick they’ll need to have on hand to take him. If not, though, and the Suns do get the first pick, sanity stands to prevail in any fake, trumped-up Morant-over-Williamson debate.