It’s almost that time where we get to see how college and international stars handle the bright lights of the NBA. On June 23rd, the 2016 NBA Draft will take place in Brooklyn, New York. After last season’s rookie class with stars such as Karl Anthony-Towns, Kristaps Porzingis, Devin Booker, Jahlil Okafor showing an extreme amount of potential it has led teams, especially in the lottery, to hope this upcoming rookie class can duplicate it. By now everyone knows that Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram will go 1st and 2nd in this year’s draft. Their upside has them pegged as potential superstars in the NBA. However, after Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram come off the board the rest of the draft isn’t so clear.
Leading to the Phoenix Suns who will pick 4th in this year’s draft. The Suns finished last season with a 23-59 record, their worst in franchise history since the 1968-1969 season. However, things shouldn’t be so gloom in Phoenix because of their young talent on the roster, three first round picks in this year’s draft, and cap space to spend this summer. Last year’s rookie Devin Booker emerged as the face of the franchise and adding another talented prospect should bring excitement back to Phoenix. So it brings up the question who’s the talented prospect the Suns should draft with the 4th pick? Look no further than Washington forward Marquese Chriss.
Marquese Chriss is a 6’10” athletic forward that averaged 13.8 points (53.1% FG), 5.4 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks in 24.9 minutes during his freshman year at Washington. He is by far the best athlete in the draft and may have the biggest upside after Simmons and Ingram. To put his upside into perspective he’s only 18 years old and doesn’t turn 19 until July! His athleticism is what NBA scouts love about him but adding his ability to stretch the floor to the 3-point line is why he’s been considered a top-5 prospect.
Chriss is a perfect fit for the Phoenix Suns who currently only have one power forward – Alan Williams – on their roster, Mirza Teletovic and Jon Leuer are unrestricted free agents. For someone who’s 6’10” Chriss runs the floor extremely well and is quick off his feet. A good comparison I can see that should excite Suns’ fans is a young Amar’e Stoudemire except Stoudemire didn’t have the ability to shoot the 3-ball that Chriss does. Chriss shot 21-60 (35%) from 3 during his freshman year and with time there’s no doubt he can increase his efficiency because of his nice stroke on his jumper.
His skill set allows him to be able to work in PNRs with Eric Bledsoe, Brandon Knight, & Devin Booker because of his ability to roll to the rim and finish with an explosive dunk or pop out and shoot the 3-ball. He can be used as an offensive threat as a cutter in PNR plays as well, in which he comes off the weak side. Outside of PNRs, Chriss has a quick first step and a nice handle to get him to the rim. Also, the Suns play an up-tempo pace (4th in pace last season with 100.9 possessions per game) that will benefit a superior athlete like Chriss who can outrun his defender in transition and his excellent hands allow him to be a constant alley-oop threat.
Chriss will also impact the defensive end, his ability to defend the rim as the primary defender and help defender is what makes him special. At Washington he averaged 2.3 blocks per 40 minutes. His instincts to know when to come over to block the shots from the weak side is something great to see in an 18 year old. His quick lateral movement allows him to guard his man or switch onto smaller players in PNR situations. With his 7’1″ wingspan it allows him to contain players on the perimeter and rack of steals – 1.3 steals per 40 minutes in Washington. Another nice wrinkle in his defensive game is his ability to read passing lanes and pick off passes but what makes him unique is at 6’10” he can steal the ball and use his handle to get all the way to the rim.
Adding Chriss to the young core that already consists of Bledsoe, Booker, Knight, T.J. Warren, and Alex Len will further increase this team’s overall future outlook. For a team in need of a power forward his upside is way too high to pass up on. Think about a future lineup of Bledsoe (26 years old), Booker (19 years old), Warren (22 years old), Chriss (18 years old), and Len (22 years old), they would all be reaching their prime at about the same time. Therefore, if Marquese Chriss is still on the board by the time the Suns pick 4th I fully recommend them taking him with no questions asked.
