Letting Chriss go was a mistake

[AzStevenCal]

Was anyone talking about taking Dunn or Murray at the time? I sure don't remember it.

Murray was getting a lot of talk although not all of it was positive. I don't remember the buzz about Dunn either way. I know I wasn't interested in him but I didn't have much to base it on.

 

[Ronin]

Kidding or not, you might actually be right. Chriss is a HUGE long shot but he has a lot of physical gifts. If by some small chance it all comes together for him, he could become a top 20 player and think how we'll feel every time we see him then.

Same could have been said for Tryus Thomas, Hakim Warrick, etc.
If he turns it around, Chriss looks like he is going to be Feast or Famine type player.

 

[Ronin]

Was anyone talking about taking Dunn or Murray at the time? I sure don't remember it.

IIRC correctly Dunn wouldn’t work out for the suns or share his medical records with the team.

 

[Hoop Head]

Was anyone talking about taking Dunn or Murray at the time? I sure don't remember it.

I remember Dunn being hyped as the best PG in the draft and a top 5 pick. He looked awful in Minnesota and they gave up on him to bring in Jimmy Butler but he seems to have found himself with the Bulls. I'm not sure if the Suns were looking at Dunn, probably not, because we had Bledsoe and Knight already locked into longterm deals. Drafting Dunn would have come across as much worse than the Ennis pick and might have gotten McD fired while trying to make that selection. We were too close to the 3 PG mess for Dunn to be a realistic choice, even if he was BPA. Murray was more of a combo guard and taking him would have been fine but I don't remember talk about him that draft.

 

[Ronin]

https://www.nbcsports.com/boston/bo...nt-him-drafted-by-Boston-Celtics-Phoenix-Suns

 

[Hoop Head]

https://www.nbcsports.com/boston/bo...nt-him-drafted-by-Boston-Celtics-Phoenix-Suns

The mock draft there is interesting to read. #1 to Philly is Ingram, #2 to the Lakers is Simmons, #3 to Boston is Bender, with #4 being Jaylen Brown to the Suns. I could handle LA getting Simmons if we got Brown. We probably don't get Jackson and LA might still shoot themselves in the foot by taking Ball and pairing him with Simmons. That would be a very inefficient and poor shooting backcourt for the Lakers. Meanwhile Jaylen Brown would be a great compliment to Booker.

They also had Chriss falling to #17 to Memphis and the Suns taking Sabonis with #13. I remember a few posters being high on Sabonis with our second 1st rounder.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Was anyone talking about taking Dunn or Murray at the time? I sure don't remember it.

Not really. We had Bledsoe.

 

[overseascardfan]

I don’t understand why you think he’s be a hard worker when he’s always gotten everything without having to work hard. Getting traded is the first athletic consequence he’s experienced. Having his contract extension declined is the second. This late in life he may never learn consequences.

I said “you would think” he would be a hard worker not “I think” he is a hard worker.

 

[hcsilla]

Was anyone talking about taking Dunn or Murray at the time? I sure don't remember it.

I did like Dunn, even at #4.

I wouldn't have been suprised if he becomes the next John Wall.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I said “you would think” he would be a hard worker not “I think” he is a hard worker.

Forget it. You don’t understand what I’m saying.

 

[sdscard4]

Chriss is freaking horrible. Out of him .....bender and Jackson the 3 stooges . The best one was Len and of course he's gone. The last 4 years have been a complete dumpster fire. So disgusting

 

[WildBB]

McD gambled with both Chriss and Bender. Giannis was a gamble for Milwaukee. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. But second-guessing is always a constant.

These draft picks are like going for it on 4th and 1. If you make it, you are a hero, if you don't you are an idiot.

Problem is they always seem to want scorers and don't balance their draft picks well. Jackson was probably the most recent exception.

That draft they messed up not drafting Sabonis, for sure. Giannis wasn't on anyone's top 10.

 

[BC867]

That is how I viewed it. Both were raw gamble pics and if one of them panned out I would have viewed it as successful. We just weren't lucky....

Is luck ever the determining factor in whether things do or don't work out?

I say, "Not." Evaluating a player's strong points and weak points ... and putting together a roster that will make every player better is a skill.

Luck happens to you. Being a winner is making things happen.

 

[Hoop Head]

Is luck ever the determining factor in whether things do or don't work out?

I say, "Not." Evaluating a player's strong points and weak points ... and putting together a roster that will make every player better is a skill.

Luck happens to you. Being a winner is making things happen.

There is luck involved with assembling a championship roster. With the CBA and rules in the league being what they are it's a matter of getting lucky to get a top pick to draft top talent. It's also a bit of luck in a player panning out. There have been busts selected all over the draft, from #1-#60 and there will continue to be because it's not all a matter of plugging a player into a system they can thrive in. Even San Antonio, who hits on more picks in the 20's than anyone, has relied on luck to get certain prospects to work out. Sometimes they'll bring in cast offs from around the league and make them more than they've been, like how Diaw reinvented himself there in the latter part of his career. It would be nice to know for sure certain moves will work but no one does for sure.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Is luck ever the determining factor in whether things do or don't work out?

I say, "Not." Evaluating a player's strong points and weak points ... and putting together a roster that will make every player better is a skill.

Luck happens to you. Being a winner is making things happen.

There is skill in building a winning team but luck absolutely plays a role. And I would say that luck can well be the determining factor in whether things ultimately do or don't work out. Unfortunately I don't think our recent poor drafts can be blamed on luck, those are front office/scouting failures. And I'd say the same thing about our rosters of late, that also falls on the front office for the most part. Anyway, I'd say we've had some bad luck since the Nash days but we've caused a lot of our own problems too.

 

[pokerface]

Is luck ever the determining factor in whether things do or don't work out?

I say, "Not." Evaluating a player's strong points and weak points ... and putting together a roster that will make every player better is a skill.

Luck happens to you. Being a winner is making things happen.

There is always a luck element when drafting players if for no other reason than college play doesn't always translate to professional NBA. A lot on here act like we should "know" who is going to be good...we don't know but only suspect who will succeed.

 

[Mainstreet]

Is luck ever the determining factor in whether things do or don't work out?

I say, "Not." Evaluating a player's strong points and weak points ... and putting together a roster that will make every player better is a skill.

Luck happens to you. Being a winner is making things happen.

I think I agree with what you are saying... good teams make their own success in the long run. This is why I miss not having an owner like Jerry Colangelo. He made good decisions and that's not lucky.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I think I agree with what you are saying... good teams make their own success in the long run. This is why I miss not having an owner like Jerry Colangelo. He made good decisions and that's not lucky.

Except for maybe in his pursuit of a functional big man. But yeah, I miss him too. Too bad he's far too old to start again in Phoenix.

 

[Raze]

Winners ignore luck. Losers use it as a crutch.

In many ways you create your own luck. Boston being a primary example. Ainge wasn't lucky. He took advantage of the Nets stupidity. Then played the "trading game" and turned it into gold. He got a HC who can craft an Offense with all sorts of weirdos. And is looking at something like 4 1st rounders this year.

Sarver creates his own luck too. He drove a once proud franchise into the ground. His 10 minutes of being GM was a train wreck. He's cycled through losing FO after losing FO. Gone through countless HCs. And created such a toxic environment no well respected FA wants to play here without throwing the money at him (Ariza is a bit of an exception).

Because of his leadership we are always playing from behind. Trading from behind. Drafting from behind. So we have to buy Lotto tickets and hope we get lucky. It's no way to run your finances let alone a billion dollar business.

Worse, it creates a losers mentality. IOW: "we're just unlucky".

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

There is always a luck element when drafting players if for no other reason than college play doesn't always translate to professional NBA. A lot on here act like we should "know" who is going to be good...we don't know but only suspect who will succeed.

This. Philly for instance got 3 high draft picks and came away with Embiid, Simmons and Fultz. Fultz is looking quite bad despite the fact that they were quite sure he would be good (even traded up for him). Now imagine that they were unlucky with either Embiid or Simmons. They wouldn't be in nearly the shape they are currently in if only one of those three panned out.

 

[SirStefan32]

This. Philly for instance got 3 high draft picks and came away with Embiid, Simmons and Fultz. Fultz is looking quite bad despite the fact that they were quite sure he would be good (even traded up for him). Now imagine that they were unlucky with either Embiid or Simmons. They wouldn't be in nearly the shape they are currently in if only one of those three panned out.

Don't forget Noel and Okafor.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Don't forget Noel and Okafor.

Yeah and that even proves the point of getting lucky in the draft. If you decide to build through the draft you run the risk of getting a bunch of guys that never pan out. It's nearly impossible to know who is going to keep improving after reaching the NBA and who won't.

 

[SirStefan32]

Yeah and that even proves the point of getting lucky in the draft. If you decide to build through the draft you run the risk of getting a bunch of guys that never pan out. It's nearly impossible to know who is going to keep improving after reaching the NBA and who won't.

Exactly! Drafts are usually crap shoots. Sixers struck out even more than the Suns, but they got two really good players and look at them now! Suns are close. Very close. Booker is a star, Ayton is already really good, and it is scary to think about how good he will be in a year or two. Warren is very good as well. Bridges should be a really good player as well. Okobo looks decent for a young rookie taken in the second round. JJ...remains to be seen.

 

[elindholm]

Winners ignore luck. Losers use it as a crutch.

Well, winners have the privilege of ignoring the luck that they benefited from. Everyone needs to get lucky to win, because luck plays a big part, and someone will get lucky, so if it's not you, you're playing from too far behind.

 

[SirStefan32]

Speaking of luck, I'd suggest that the Suns got quite lucky drafting Booker and Warren where they drafted them. Now, maybe McD was really good picking in that range than at the top of the draft- that very well may be the case, but even when you are good, you need some luck to nail #13-14 picks. Considering how poorly they drafted (or how unlucky they were), they really are lucky (or good) to grab Booker and Warren at the end of the draft. Len, Chriss, Bender, and probably JJ at 5, 8, 4, and 4 vs. Booker and Warren at #13 and #14. 13 and 14 ended up each being better than the four high picks combined. Bridges is likely going to join them as well.