Phx-Suns.Net

Probably way too premature thread on the state of Ryan Dunn. With the many injuries it seems like a perfect time for Ryan to step up. But that hasn’t been the case. What are folks thoughts on his place going forward?

Oso struggled early on this season but then found his way.

Does Dunn need to be used differently ?
Related to the bench?
Just down on confidence?
Future trade bait?
Or do We need to be more patient…

Thoughts?

I'd say if he's not got his act together by seasons end, we need to look for an exit plan.

On a side note... this is going to become "All things Ayton" for Saucy lol

I don’t have the same issues that some of y’all have with Dunn. He’s a bad offensive player, but we knew that. I thought maybe he’d make some progress, but he’s still the same as last season. His defense is good, though not exactly the elite defense we were led to believe. He’s also a former 29th overall pick and is cheap. I don’t think we need an exit plan. We can afford to hold onto him and see if anything clicks.

Dude needs to spend 12hrs a day shooting jumpers.

I don't get all the hand wringing about Dunn. I guess it's because he's been a lot better than the bums that usually get picked with the 29th pick and is slowly improving.

Ya I think it’s because in a year of absolute despair(last season), he was the one ray of hope and we’ve put big expectations on him…I don’t think the expectations are fair.

I'm not done with Dunn. I have too much invested. I'm talking about my jersey. I kid.

I do think his confidence is down a bit right now and I don't feel like he's improved this year. It feels to me like maybe he's regressed a little bit. Remember last season when we were pining for him to start? His defense seems more shaky to me. He hasn't been fouling as much lately and maybe that's why. Maybe he's too tentative now. Also, his shot seems to come and go. He had a stretch where his threes were quite accurate while lately he's been missing badly.

But we're only one and two thirds seasons into his career and he seems to be a hard worker and a really good kid. Let's give him some time to see if he figures it out. We don't want to give up on him too early like we did with Stix.

I feel it’s mostly a confidence thing with him. Whatever it is, he seems to have taken a step back instead of forwards this year. Oso has made strides. It’s the NBA, sink or swim. I wish him luck or maybe skill.

He's just not a good player. Confidence and ability. He doesn't play the in your face defense that Goody, CG and Brooks bring. He isn't physical enough yet he makes awful decisions allowing and-1s and fouling shooters.

His offense I don't even have to talk about, it's all BUNNZ no meat.

He's a 29th pick and he'll be forgotten about in a few years just like many other late first round picks. The nut busting by the dork suns base just because he was our only young prospect was premature. He's more Alton Ford than Leandro Barbosa.

I’m not Dunn with Done either.

Looking at the stats, Dunn has seen a minor regression offensively since last year.

MIN: 19.1 -> 19.8
PPG: 6.9 -> 5.8
FG%: .430 -> .424
3PT%: .311 -> .310
FT%: .487 -> .556
AST: 0.8 -> 1.5
REB: 3.6 -> 4.2

https://www.basketball-reference.com/pl ... nry01.html

It's disappointing if you want to see an improvement in his shooting or scoring. I think his corner 3-pointers have generally gotten better, but it hasn't really shown up in the stats. I think he still provides strong defense and is a situationally useful player, but last season you saw little signs that maybe he had a higher ceiling than this.

I'm not nearly as negative as some of you guys seem to be. I wanted to see better from him, but I think he's a valuable defender and I don't want to give up on him yet.

His jump shot actually looks good to me. It's his decision making and confidence that's lacking. He needs to find a niche in the NBA to make himself stick. He has the size and length and athleticism, he needs to figure out how to bring it altogether though. If I were him I'd go and and try to out hustle everyone and gain confidence from there.

Whether hes regressed overall or not he's definitely been bad this calendar year.
I don't think Ott is using him to his best but maybe he shouldn't have to.

Keep him around we need his rebounds and his height .. I think SF is the right position for him but he gets pushed out of there because we have a glut of 2's.

He's never going to be a regular starter on a good team. 15-20mpg off the bench is fine with me. Nearly every guy in the league in that role has a severe flaw or two.

Pointing out him be selected with the 29th pick is moving the goalposts by some, particularly those who were eager to make Shawn Marion comparisons.

Flagrant Fowl wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 23, 2026 7:00 pm

He's never going to be a regular starter on a good team. 15-20mpg off the bench is fine with me. Nearly every guy in the league in that role has a severe flaw or two.

Pointing out him be selected with the 29th pick is moving the goalposts by some, particularly those who were eager to make Shawn Marion comparisons.

Dunn's a very good defender, but he's not the rebounder or scorer Marion was, obviously. Everything really depends on his improvement as a shooter. Right now I'm comfortable with him as the 10th or 12th guy, but he doesn't contribute enough to make him a rotation player on a contender.