Alex Len...LET HIM GO!

[pokerface]

I had high hopes for this dude when we drafted him..He looked athletic as all heck for a big man. His overall build looked good...He's no skinny center.

Well...After a few years I'm still trying to figure out what he excells at or what he even has the "chance" to do good on a adequate level. Yeah he shows flashes here and there but he's no rookie anymore...I want to see a consistent SOMETHING. His numbers don't inspire me in the slightest... Why is he here?? The only reason he's here I can surmise is some elusive untapped potential and we don't want to think we flushed a number five pick.

 

[slinslin]

his numbers are very good

14ppg 11.5rpg 2.5bpg per36 50% from the field. 3rd in Winshares on the team after Bledsoe and Chandler.

He is only 23. Letting him go would be beyond stupid. Alex Len should be a beast when he is 26.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I had high hopes for this dude when we drafted him..He looked athletic as all heck for a big man. His overall build looked good...He's no skinny center.

Well...After a few years I'm still trying to figure out what he excells at or what he even has the "chance" to do good on a adequate level. Yeah he shows flashes here and there but he's no rookie anymore...I want to see a consistent SOMETHING. His numbers don't inspire me in the slightest... Why is he here?? The only reason he's here I can surmise is some elusive untapped potential and we don't want to think we flushed a number five pick.

He doesn't really excel at anything although he's a pretty good defender down low. And if we let him walk, he won't be unemployed for long. 23 is still young especially when you consider he started playing the game late and big men, on average, take longer to develop. I was hoping we'd re-sign him for 15 M per earlier this season but no agreement was reached. Instead of letting him walk, I suspect we'll end up giving him that much and more to keep him.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Alex Len is playing well. It would be foolish to let him go. Big men develop slowly most of the time.


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[leclerc]

Yeah. Keep him.

 

[pokerface]

his numbers are very good

14ppg 11.5rpg 2.5bpg per36 50% from the field.

His season RPG is 6.8 on NBA.com...What's this 11.5??

Yeah and this is considered a contract year for him and these are the numbers...No wonder the Sun's are not extending him.

 

[Errntknght]

I was having doubts earlier in the season but his game is on an uptick of late so I say we keep him. I do want to see how he does as a starter - a couple of years ago he stepped up his game when he was starting and, in fact, the team played better when he was on the floor. Hopefully we're showcasing Chandler with intent to trade him even though he says he wants to stay here - if he goes to a real contender I think he'll be happy about it. Certainly most players in his position would be.

Of course, if Len ups his game a couple of notches as a starter it'll cost us more money to keep him but I'll take that over letting him go. The other side of that coin is that if we don't give him a solid opportunity as a starter he may not want to stay here at all. I'd have been starting him from the get go this year as its crucial to know what we have in him. If we get a good haul by trading Tyson if may work out better this way but that's a big if - and its possible we've already alienated Alex. I don't have a lot of confidence in our coach and FO reading the situation right...

 

[pokerface]

He is only 23. Letting him go would be beyond stupid. Alex Len should be a beast when he is 26.

Len will NEVER be a beast...He don't have it in him to dominate. You above all ppl should know that slin. Amare looked like a beast his first day when he tried to dunk on three defenders...Len is in his fourth year.. He's yet to give me any chills.

Far as some of you bringing up his age...What real progression has he made considering all the coaching he's had? He progresses at a snail's pace...His basketball IQ is low...His desire to dominate is not there at all. He's below average at everything. He should have shown us more by now...Even at age 23.

 

[Chaplin]

His season RPG is 6.8 on NBA.com...What's this 11.5??

Yeah and this is considered a contract year for him and these are the numbers...No wonder the Sun's are not extending him.

He's quoting per36 stats.

 

[pokerface]

He's quoting per36 stats.

Yeah well it will always be per36 because he is no starter material.. He's a backup for life!

 

[AzStevenCal]

Yeah well it will always be per36 because he is no starter material.. He's a backup for life!

Yeah, sorry, this screams ill-informed to me. You're not the only Len doubter on this board but barring injury there is absolutely no chance in hell that Len won't be a starter. And he's played pretty well for us this season when he has been the starter. The biggest problem for him still is that he draws unnecessary fouls.

I worry that his agent is going to ask for 20M for 5 and that's a losing scenario for us. He's decent but he's not at that level and I don't know that he'll ever reach it. But it's hard to get ahead in this league if you let 15M players walk for nothing simply because they want a few million more. It's a tough spot, one we could have avoided back in October but Len's horrible preseason scared us away from the negotiating table.

 

[GatorAZ]

Let me see the price first.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Let me see the price first.

Yeah, that's the rub. I really think we'd offer him 15M per with no qualms, I'm just not sure that will get it done. If we can find a trade partner willing to give us decent value for him it might be in our best interest to trade him this February. I'd rather do that than have to match a near max deal for him or watch him walk for nothing.

 

[pokerface]

Yeah, sorry, this screams ill-informed to me. You're not the only Len doubter on this board but barring injury there is absolutely no chance in hell that Len won't be a starter.

Yeah I'm not the only doubter for sure...Sun's management doubts him big time.. hence the no contact extension.

If Len ends up starting it would only be by default...not because he earned it.

 

[pokerface]

A lot of you want to ship out Brandon Knight and I get it but truthfully Brandon has more desire and natural talent then Len will ever possess.

 

[Mainstreet]

Yeah I'm not the only doubter for sure...Sun's management doubts him big time.. hence the no contact extension.

If Len ends up starting it would only be by default...not because he earned it.

I'm thinking the Suns want to find his market value not because they doubt him. Len could start in the NBA and not by default. The Suns are in a unique position of having Chandler on the roster as well.

 

[pokerface]

I'm thinking the Suns want to find his market value not because they doubt him. Len could start in the NBA and not by default. The Suns are in a unique position of having Chandler on the roster as well.

On some level they doubt him that's why they are letting the market set the price. More solid sure thing players get extended....usually.

 

[pokerface]

What makes Len a starter? His scoring? His defense? His rebounding? Someone tell me what he's known for because I don't get it. Yeah he shows flashes of all the above but he's consistent with none of the above.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Yeah I'm not the only doubter for sure...Sun's management doubts him big time.. hence the no contact extension.

If Len ends up starting it would only be by default...not because he earned it.

That's not the way this works. Same thing happened when Bledsoe's initial contract expired. Happens all the time, it just means there was a difference of opinion. They did negotiate and it was only as the deadline approached that they announced there would be no early extension.

 

[pokerface]

That's not the way this works. Same thing happened when Bledsoe's initial contract expired. Happens all the time, it just means there was a difference of opinion. They did negotiate and it was only as the deadline approached that they announced there would be no early extension.

To let the market set the price in some ways slaps the players face. That's a sign of disrespect. Yeah you're right there is a difference of opinion... Suns feel Len is worth less than he thinks he's worth. That's doubt in my estimation.

 

[Mainstreet]

To let the market set the price in some ways slaps the players face. That's a sign of disrespect. Yeah you're right there is a difference of opinion... Suns feel Len is worth less than he thinks he's worth. That's doubt in my estimation.

So how much money did you want the Suns to offer Len for an extension?

 

[pokerface]

So how much money did you want the Suns to offer Len for an extension?

I don't know what the market value is for a so-so non starting center. Some value might be added due to some perceived potential upside and youth but that's speculation. This dude isn't known for anything in particular. He needs to be a no brainer deal or its going to be Brandon Knight part II

 

[Mainstreet]

I don't know what the market value is for a so-so non starting center. Some value might be added due to some perceived potential upside and youth but that's speculation. This dude isn't known for anything in particular. He needs to be a no brainer deal or its going to be Brandon Knight part II

Under a new contract I would guess Len would command somewhere in the range of 15 million annually. I think he will get it from the Suns or some other team, maybe more.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I don't know what the market value is for a so-so non starting center. Some value might be added due to some perceived potential upside and youth but that's speculation. This dude isn't known for anything in particular. He needs to be a no brainer deal or its going to be Brandon Knight part II

You don't like him, fine, but you're kidding yourself if you think he's not now or ever going to become a starting caliber center. He's already better than a few of the starting centers and there's every reason to expect him to get even better. He isn't worth the 15M I wanted us to sign him for but in the NBA that first major deal for a big man is almost always more about "will become" rather than "already is". It's frustrating that he doesn't play at the level of a number 5 pick but that's water under the bridge.

 

[pokerface]

You don't like him, fine, but you're kidding yourself if you think he's not now or ever going to become a starting caliber center. He's already better than a few of the starting centers and there's every reason to expect him to get even better. He isn't worth the 15M I wanted us to sign him for but in the NBA that first major deal for a big man is almost always more about "will become" rather than "already is". It's frustrating that he doesn't play at the level of a number 5 pick but that's water under the bridge.

I want to like him but I feel he just teases us with what he can do. He hasn't established his brand of basketball yet. Hey maybe he'll be starter caliber but not consistent enough for my tastes. I guess some want to keep him because our options are limited but overall we can't depend on him. He don't seem like a natural baller...It seems forced.