Will the Mark Williams trade work out for Phoenix?
• Acquired Mark Williams from Charlotte for No. 29 and a 2031 first-round pick (worst of CLE, UTA and MIN)
• Selected Khaman Maluach (No. 10)
• Acquired No. 36 for two future second-round picks
• Acquired Koby Brea (No. 41) for No. 52 and No. 59
• Acquired Rasheer Fleming (No. 31) for No. 36 and two future second-round picks
Where to begin on the Suns? Let’s start with this: I loved the Maluach pick and think he’s exactly what the organization needs after battling through center struggles since moving Deandre Ayton in the Damian Lillard deal for Jusuf Nurkić. I would have had him much higher than this if I were making a board specifically for the Suns. While I’m not quite the believer in Maluach’s upside that some seem to be, I buy into him becoming a starting-caliber center with a fairly strong degree of confidence. He’s probably going to be something in between a Mitchell Robinson-style low-usage big and a Jarrett Allen-style elite rim-runner while playing nearly elite defense on the interior. I don’t think he has quite the rim-running force that Allen does, but he’s capable of more usage than Robinson. He’ll be awesome on the offensive glass, he’ll be remarkably effective with his angles in drop coverage, and he’ll hopefully continue to improve his ability to handle the ball on the perimeter. He needs to improve as a rebounder, but there are tools here.
The Suns also used several future second-round picks to get Fleming, a player whom many had rated more highly than I did at No. 32. This team desperately needed size and athleticism at the four, and Fleming could bring that. I see him as a more athletic version of Bobby Portis, a play-finisher on the interior who can step away and shoot, but a questionable defensive player with his rotations and help responsibilities. That player can be valuable in the NBA even with those questions, although you have to buy into Fleming’s jumper translating fully. Mechanically, it’s a bit funky. The team also drafted Brea in the second round, chipping up its No. 52 and 59 picks into No. 41. He’s probably the last thing that the Suns needed — another shooting guard — but Brea is a historically relevant shooter at volume. I don’t mind the gamble at the price point.
The move that I didn’t love was trading for Charlotte’s Williams. I wouldn’t have liked this move in a vacuum had the team, say, selected Coward at No. 10. But in conjunction with the Maluach pick? It doesn’t make any sense. Williams averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds this year, but those stats are often empty with him because he’s not that impressive on defense. He looks like he should be a great defender with his immense length, but he doesn’t move that well and tends to get lost in no-man’s land in ball screens between rollers and the ballhandler. Moving to a more competent defensive scheme could help him drastically, to be fair. New Suns’ coach Jordan Ott is known as a strong defensive coach. Having more diligent players fighting around screens as guards could make Williams’ life easier than it was in Charlotte and unlock some defensive improvement. But he will need to stay on the court more consistently to get those reps, as he’s only played 106 out of a possible 246 games so far in his career. He also failed a physical in an attempted deal with the Lakers in February.
The biggest issue for me is that the Suns can’t wait to find out if there’s potential for defensive improvement before paying him. Williams is entering the fourth year of his rookie deal, making him extension-eligible. Phoenix just paid a large price in terms of flexibility to acquire him, which reduces its leverage. The No. 29 pick and the 2031 first-rounder they sent out aren’t massive price tags by themselves, but they were the last firsts the Suns can send out in a trade because of the Stepien Rule.
You can make the case that the Suns can wait until next summer when Williams hits restricted free agency to pay him. But I don’t love that strategy, either. If you wait and he gets hurt again or struggles on defense, you might have all of the information you need about whether he’s a keeper. But if he does stay healthy in a contract year and improves on defense, you likely will pay full market price for a player with an injury history. If you extend him now, you at least have a chance to get contract value. But if you extend him now and he gets hurt again or doesn’t make the strides you hope for, you’re probably not happy with the contract then, either.
There are an awful lot of pathways in which the Williams deal doesn’t work out. And still, I’d probably bite the bullet and pay him at this point. By making the trade, I would hope the Suns have considered all those angles.
Even with more concerns about that trade, I think this draft week was more positive than negative for Phoenix.
Grade: B-
