Jalen Smith

[Dr. Jones]

That stix poster in Charlotte had SERIOUS Amare vibes. Inject that in to all of my veins please!

 

[Cheesebeef]

Doesn’t that lend more credence to the idea that james Jones and Monty simply didn’t like what they saw from the kid?

Not in my opinion. I mean... do you think JJ and Monty don’t like what they see from Ayton, either? We’ve seen Sarver pinch pennies before when contending.

And even if they didn’t like what they saw of the kid, it doesn’t take away from the fact that it was a mistake not to tender the qualifying offer at this point so it’s pretty immaterial. They blew their chance of retaining a young, athletic 4/5 at a small cost/making him any kind of tradable asset. The why or how doesn’t make a difference to the end result.

 

[JCSunsfan]

No one is suggesting the Suns go on a spending spree but if the Suns can't afford to extend the 10th pick something is wrong.

I'm tired of the Kurt Thomas type moves. The Suns wouldn't even pay Ayton the max.

Even Robert Sarver said he is willing to pay the luxury tax.


By Dave King Bright Side of the Sun:


“That’s gonna come with the territory here,” Sarver said of paying the luxury tax soon. “I don’t know if that’s next season (2021-22) or the one after that (2022-23), but we know it’s coming. We see ourselves as a taxpayer, and that’s just part of what it’s gonna take to bring home a championship.”


This is an important admission by the owner who actively avoided luxury tax payments during the Nash years. Sure he paid luxury tax in three of those six years, but the ‘overage’ was small each time and the Suns made head-scratching moves to specifically reduce their tax payments. One of those moves was to trade center Kurt Thomas AND a pair of first round picks to rid the team of his 2007-08 salary that could have cost the team almost $20 million after tax calculations.

Suns owner on bringing Paul and Payne back, paying luxury tax, biggest team needs

Phoenix Suns managing partner Robert Sarver talked about the Suns off-season needs and wants

www.brightsideofthesun.com

So, then its not about what they CAN afford but if they WANT to pay THIS kid that much. They are willing to spend the money.

Where he was picked is meaningless.

 

[eastcoastSUN]

That stix poster in Charlotte had SERIOUS Amare vibes. Inject that in to all of my veins please!

Now imagine if DA actually played with 10% of that aggression every time he drives to the hoop, instead of those sissy layups and floaters he normally goes with

 

[Mainstreet]

So, then its not about what they CAN afford but if they WANT to pay THIS kid that much. They are willing to spend the money.

Where he was picked is meaningless.

It's not meaningless where Smith was picked. Earlier first round picks get paid more than later first round picks.

Obviously the Suns did not want to invest more guaranteed money in him by not picking up his option.

 

[Finito]

Which is why I said earlier this year that Jared Allen, or Miles Turner could do 80-90% of the job ayton does at a lot lower contract cost.

Our system - and Chris Paul - is very big man friendly

You were wrong then and you are wrong now. Center is a lot more than a few flash plays.

Ayton is better offensively and light years better defensively.

We’ve seen McGee(who was also part of your argument) start and play extended minutes and it’s not pretty

 

[Chaplin]

Not in my opinion. I mean... do you think JJ and Monty don’t like what they see from Ayton, either? We’ve seen Sarver pinch pennies before when contending.

And even if they didn’t like what they saw of the kid, it doesn’t take away from the fact that it was a mistake not to tender the qualifying offer at this point so it’s pretty immaterial. They blew their chance of retaining a young, athletic 4/5 at a small cost/making him any kind of tradable asset. The why or how doesn’t make a difference to the end result.

Quite a leap comparing DA and Smith. Especially since we do still control DA.

 

[Raindog]

With you on that. Suns made the wrong call in drafting him and the right call not extending. Live with it and make him serviceable enough for the playoffs IF needed. I doubt he would get minutes anyway considering how Monty for some reason really shortened his lineup in the playoffs.

Regardless of whether Smith has a long term impact in the league or not, it still looks like a dumb move not to extend him now. As soon as he got meaningful minutes, he proved he has some potential... and by not extending him, the Suns essentially invalidated any genuine trade value he might (and now has proven to) have.

Again, I am 100% this is on Sarver - it fits his MO since he got here to be penny wise and pound foolish. This is just the latest example, I am sure. I have no idea if Smith will turn into another Keon Clark, or end up being someone the FO kicks itself for letting go in the future. But the point is they have failed to maximize the value they could have gotten from a fairly valuable asset (10th pick)... which once again is a hallmark of Sarver's tenure of polluting the franchise's history.

 

[NashDishesDimes]

Not to mention passing on Haliburton to get this guy who they are now forced to let walk for nothing. The fact james jones/Sarver have full time jobs to deal with this stuff and end up making these decisions is so frustrating…

 

[ASUCHRIS]

Not to mention passing on Haliburton to get this guy who they are now forced to let walk for nothing. The fact james jones/Sarver have full time jobs to deal with this stuff and end up making these decisions is so frustrating…

Meh, on the whole they have made some ******, but the roster is a really good one top to bottom. Even the best FO's aren't perfect.

Lol, apparently b0ners is verboten?

 

[Bobster]

Meh, on the whole they have made some ******, but the roster is a really good one top to bottom. Even the best FO's aren't perfect.

Lol, apparently b0ners is verboten?

Exactly, they have one of the best, if not the best, rosters in the NBA and people complain about who they didn't draft or sign or trade for. Well, point one one NBA executive who's never made a mistake.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Exactly, they have one of the best, if not the best, rosters in the NBA and people complain about who they didn't draft or sign or trade for. Well, point one one NBA executive who's never made a mistake.

I think the FO made some financial/contract mistakes this off-season, but overall, they’ve done a pretty great job building this roster.

 

[Mainstreet]

I think James Jones is better at finding players in free agency/trade than the draft although the players he drafted are looking solid: Cam Johnson, Ty Jerome and Jalen Smith.

He reminds me a bit of Steve Keim of the Cardinals in this regard.

 

[Proximo]

You were wrong then and you are wrong now. Center is a lot more than a few flash plays.

Ayton is better offensively and light years better defensively.

We’ve seen McGee(who was also part of your argument) start and play extended minutes and it’s not pretty

I have never said any of those guys are as good as Ayton - they aren't.

What I was saying is from Sarver's perspective I understand why paying Ayton 15 million a year extra may not seem like a great idea, especially when it is in tax territory.

As a fan, I want Ayton resigned.

 

[Mainstreet]

The Suns are bringing back the importance of the center position one player at a time.

Who would have thought... the team that never really had a dominate center until Ayton.

 

[Finito]

I have never said any of those guys are as good as Ayton - they aren't.

What I was saying is from Sarver's perspective I understand why paying Ayton 15 million a year extra may not seem like a great idea, especially when it is in tax territory.

As a fan, I want Ayton resigned.

Oh I see. Cause I mean at the time it sounded like you were saying you could get the same production out of Allen, McGee and Turner that Ayton was giving us.

That’s just silly right. Course you wouldn’t say that

 

[Yuma]

I know a lot of people were mad at the Shammet contract, but similar shooters were paid that much or even more. We paid market value, or maybe a bit shy. I got no problem with that. I just want him to shoot better is all.

 

[eastcoastSUN]

I know a lot of people were mad at the Shammet contract, but similar shooters were paid that much or even more. We paid market value, or maybe a bit shy. I got no problem with that. I just want him to shoot better is all.

Is it just me or does Shamet seem to rush his shot every game this season... it's literally a catch and shoot within 5 milliseconds of him getting the ball. I wonder if the coaches are preaching this. Compare this to someone like Cam who has the ability to catch, set his feet, and get into a good rhythm prior to a shot.

Maybe it's just his first year jitters with the Suns (granted he is a 4yr vet)... not sure if he is pressing to justify his limited minutes but he needs to settle down with our highly touted second string

 

[95pro]

Is it just me or does Shamet seem to rush his shot every game this season... it's literally a catch and shoot within 5 milliseconds of him getting the ball. I wonder if the coaches are preaching this. Compare this to someone like Cam who has the ability to catch, set his feet, and get into a good rhythm prior to a shot.

Maybe it's just his first year jitters with the Suns (granted he is a 4yr vet)... not sure if he is pressing to justify his limited minutes but he needs to settle down with our highly touted second string

He does rush some but his main issue is leaning and not making a true jump shot.

 

[Chaplin]

Is it just me or does Shamet seem to rush his shot every game this season... it's literally a catch and shoot within 5 milliseconds of him getting the ball. I wonder if the coaches are preaching this. Compare this to someone like Cam who has the ability to catch, set his feet, and get into a good rhythm prior to a shot.

Maybe it's just his first year jitters with the Suns (granted he is a 4yr vet)... not sure if he is pressing to justify his limited minutes but he needs to settle down with our highly touted second string

Shamet's main issue is that he doesn't catch and shoot as much as he should. I'm all for putting it on the floor if you don't have a shot, but he's pretty bad at stepping into the shot. If he plants, he's money.

 

[JCSunsfan]

It's not meaningless where Smith was picked. Earlier first round picks get paid more than later first round picks.

Obviously the Suns did not want to invest more guaranteed money in him by not picking up his option.

Well, yes. Of course, this is true. But the fact that he was the 10th pick should not fit into the evalua. . . . you know what I was saying.

 

[Phrazbit]

I still have hope for Shamet finding his stride. I think he has been pressing, rushing shots, ect. If our bench rotations get more consistent as we (hopefully) get healthy again and with more bigs to set screens he may find his groove. He is a good shooter, he is just not taking the type of shots our other good shooters are taking. Too many pull ups, not enough off ball work.

 

[95pro]

It’s like the jitters went away, the deer in the headlights look is gone, the fog has cleared from his goggles.

Still not a 4 though.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Jalen wears #10. I wonder if that is because he was the #10 pick. If so, that is pretty bold to put that pressure on himself.

 

[Muggz]

One thing is for sure out of the last 5 ish game I've gained a ton of confidence in this kid.
We all knew he could hang in the NBA. I for one thought he was farther behind than he is.
I think he could be a role player on a good team next year.(hope its here)