Are These Suns Players A TRICK Or TREAT AND Should Devin Booker Get More Of A Break For Slow Start?

Are These Suns Players A TRICK Or TREAT AND Should Devin Booker Get More Of A Break For Slow Start?

on today’s show. Am I too hard on Devin Booker? I’ll tell you why I don’t think so. Plus, a deep dive into Jordan Knot rotations. And it’s a Halloween edition of Locked on Phoenix Suns. Let’s talk about some of those trick-or- treat being players. Let’s do it on this edition of Locked On Phoenix Suns. You are Locked On Suns, your daily Phoenix Suns podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network. Your team every day. Welcome back into Locked On Phoenix Suns. My name is Benjamin Garcia, host of the Ben Garcia Show. Mornings Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on YouTube at 7 a.m. as well as a credentialed Phoenix Suns media member covering your Phoenix Suns 365 days out of the calendar year. That’s why we call it your team every day here at the locked on podcast network joining me today who I’ll get to in just a second because we have a lovely sponsor in FanDuel. Today’s episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Right now new customers can bet just $5 and if your bet wins will get $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. Head to fanduel.com to get started. Joining me today, my guy, you might see him on social media zone, Brandon Dwayaneous. Um happy Halloween to you. Are you a big uh It started off there. Are you a spooky edition of Locked On Phoenix? I had to make sure also I got that sponsor right because you work in the sales department here at the Locked On podcast network. I was just making sure that I showed you that your hard work does not go unnoticed. But with that being said, like it’s a Halloween edition. You a big Halloween guy. What are you dressing up as? Matt Ishpia or Brian Gregory? You’re not. Appreciate the intro. Uh but but yeah, I’m I am definitely into Halloween. I’ll be dressing up. Uh, we’re going actually as like the tune squad, me and my girlfriend. So, we’re gonna do that. That’ll be fun. Uh, you know, I was thinking about going as like the Suns injury Report, but I don’t want to scare people too much. So, that I just ended up with that. You know what’s funny? Before we dive really deep into all things Locked on Phoenix Suns, like I I truly can can’t take this stuff. I think it’s hilarious. But one of the I I don’t I haven’t talked to Brandon in a while, ever since last season. And you know, we just briefly talked and he goes, “You know, man, ever since, you know, you took over full-time, my my brother watches the show.” And and at first he was like, he’s like, “I can’t stand this Ben Garcia kid.” And you know, he told me last night, he goes, “But he’s starting to grow on me a bit.” I had to explain to him, “I don’t know what it is, but that happens. I think I’m just a harsh personality at first, but I wanted to put your brother on blast for telling you behind the scenes like this guy is terrible.” and and to let him think like it would never go on record, but it it actually did. And I just want him to know I care about him just as much as everyone else. And I think he’ll appreciate the shout out. That that is hilarious. I don’t know if I should tell him that you said that or just let him find out naturally. But either way, he’ll it’s it’s going to pop up and it’s going to be hilarious. Some people in the comment section will have some fun with it, too. The people that, you know, maybe they don’t like me either, they’ll say, “No, that guy’s right. He had it right the first time.” With that being said, just like sometimes people can be hard on me, as they should be, I think I’ve been a little hard on Devin Booker and or I think people might think I’ve been a little hard on Devin Booker. I don’t think so. Um, yeah, I know the Suns are still turning over the ball right now as we speak and it turned into I think it was 31 points the other direction. I I’m never going to put the blame on like one singular thing when you lose a game like that. so close. I’ve got to point at a player and so like this is not anti-deon Booker. This is and here’s my argument for it. The Suns told you in the offseason what they thought of Booker. He’s a super max player. So therefore, you hold him to the super max standard. I’m not asking him to be Jokic or SGA. He can’t shoot 38% from the field and then expect to win the game and then you tell me, “No, no, no. It was actually the turnovers.” You know who’s had a turnover problem to start the year? Devin Booker as well. So, what are your thoughts on the Booker stuff? And like, let me know, dude. Maybe I am a freaking loudmouth. What is What is gone wrong? Or am I too hard on Book? Look, I think I think it’s fair. Anytime you get the Supermax label, uh, the conversation is going to change naturally, as it should. Uh, but I think at the same time, we’re five games into the season. This is a new roster. They’re trying to figure a lot of stuff out. And and Booker is notorious for like Suns fans know this by now, like he starts slow like every year. like he’ll have some big games early in October, November, but typically Devin Booker is is sort of that late bloomer and like once he hits his peak, he’ll have an All-NBA month or two or a couple weeks where he carries a team. But to your point on this roster, they only they can only go as far as he takes them. So the these off nights and these slow starts are going to put them in a spot where obviously the roster construction around them is not great either, but losing these these close games is going to hurt them if their goal is to make a play in and surprise some people like these are the games we’re going to look back on in March and April and say, “Damn, we should have had that one.” So I think it’s fair to hold him to that standard because of his contract, but at the same time, we just have to let this team gel and click a little bit. um he’s averaging a careerhigh in points, but it doesn’t feel that way. I mean, it’s it’s just kind of a weird start to the season. It it really is. And like even Books himself has said it like after that first game, he scored 31 and he was like, “That was nasty.” So, I I think he holds himself to a higher standard, too. So, it’s okay to like, you know, be critical uh when things aren’t going the way we had hoped they had. Now, he’s shooting the he’s ti he’s Okay, so he’s seven three-pointers uh on average this year. He’s actually shooting 37% from three this year, which is obviously better than normal, but again, it’s a five game sample size. He is averaging the most amount of points. All those things, I agree with you, totally fine. The thing is in the biggest games that I think like I don’t think the biggest games this year are the Los Angeles Clippers or the Denver Nuggets, like those are what we call house money games. You win that game, you’re like, you pocket that, that’s something you’re going to use down the line for when you’re trying to get in the plan. The Utah game hurts to lose because there’s not going to be very many games where you could say, “Yeah, the Suns are comparable to the talent that they have, you know, playing against them on the floor. I thought they probably should have won that game.” And then the Grizzlies game hurts because once again, they’re comparable to the talent on the court. They’ve got to win those 50/50 games. And that’s why I’m so hard on Booker because that’s Booker needing to buckle his chin strap against a a Grizzlies defense that like yes has Jiren Jackson Jr. He’s very good. Uh Jaylen Wells has sometimes had his way with Devin Booker as well, but like those are the games that he needs to go off. And dude, having three points halfway through the third quarter or, you know, quarter of the way through the third quarter, like it’s not good enough. And I think a lot of it is he’s not used to the double and triple teams that are coming at him in uh uh in the painted area or in the mid area where I also think yes that’s on Booker. He’s got to adapt. He’s a super max player. But here’s the one thing that I’ll give him a break on. There is numerous times I think De Booker should be averaging like 12 assists a game. Guys are not absolutely off. They’re not paying off Deon Booker’s playmaking ability finding them in the corner or on the wing. What say you? 100%. And and I also think uh one one interesting nugget I found uh well I shouldn’t say I found I read shout out Kellen Olsson. Uh he’s shooting he’s 59th in the NBA right now shooting 32% in the first quarter. So that’s like opposite of the Booker we know. Usually he starts first quarters on point. Like that’s usually his best quarter. He’s always been among league leaders. So I think these slow starts are just uncharacteristic and it kind of it puts them in a hole right from the beginning. and we’ve seen them like fight back from these huge deficits like they they faced. And to your point, he’s he’s often times making the right basketball play, which sometimes I’d rather him be selfish and really just force the issue, get downhill and attack. That’s when he’s at his best. But he’s also generating great looks for his teammates and they’re just not not knocking it down. And so it’s kind of like the perfect storm of like, you know, he’s he’s trying to play make, but it’s it’s not, you know, people aren’t hitting open shots. and and you look at the roster around him and it’s there’s just not a lot of offense that can help him out. So that’s where I think Jaylen Green is going to help a lot. Great segue. Great segue. It’s going to help a lot. That that’s all I will say. It’s it’s just he needs more help offensively, plain and simple. I didn’t I haven’t I don’t have your opinion on this. We’re doing this on the fly right now. M are you pro I guess there is an anti- crowd or you just like let’s see what we have in Jaylen Green because I I I don’t know if I’ve told you this before. I’m very skeptical about his fit with Devin Booker until I’ve watched the last couple of games and I think I miss Jaylen Green more than I ever thought I would miss Jaylen Green. He hasn’t played a game for this team yet. Yeah. So my knee-jerk reaction to that trade, I was not happy with it. I I didn’t think especially coming off the whole Beal situation adding another guard that is not super efficient and not a great defender. You know, I had my questions, but I think at this point where we are now, why not? Let’s just see what they have. I’m all for I think Green’s athleticism, he’s still 23. His ability to get downhill and and and score like this team needs another score because it’s just we can’t continue down this path. So, I think why not? Let’s just see what they have. have give him a good run for at least this season. Uh maybe next and if it’s not a good fit, I think we’ll we’ll learn that pretty soon. Uh hopefully if they can get on the court together because uh you know just goes back to like when Bradley Beard first joined the Suns, we had a kind of similar situation where he couldn’t get on the court for a couple months. So uh just just hoping that we could see it sooner or later and just evaluate because I think he he will help a lot of these struggles that Booker’s faced early on. So, I well I I was going to say I think even with the inefficient nature of Jaylen Green, they’ve got to get someone else to handle the ball with Booker. This full-time ball handling duty is starting to make people believe Colin Gillespie should start. And like that’s a whole different story. I I won’t kill people for saying that cuz I I understand the thinking process for it. I just think Colin Gillespie, I think he’s more of a free will player. Let him come off the bench and do his thing and cook. I think putting the, you know, chains on him in the starting lineup, I think, is a little different. With Jaylen Green, they need to start splitting up the ball handling duties. I saw numerous times in last game, they’re having Grayson Allen bring up the ball. Devin Booker has had a really hard time holding on to the ball and Grayson Allen as well. I think he had three turnovers yesterday. Green’s going to help out a lot with that. And not just Green hitting jumpers in the corner where I believe he shoots 43% on catch and shoot. He his ability to be able to get to the line, get to the cup, and then dish it out to Booker for an open three is going to pay dividends for this offense. Seriously, man, I I didn’t think I’d already miss Jaylen Green when I believe I think I could be painted as someone who’s a little bit more anti-Jaylen Green than pro. 100%. And and Booker this year, another little interesting stat I found was if he’s shooting within the first two seconds of him catching it. So quick looks, he’s shooting 50% from the field and like 40, I think it’s 43% from three. So that’s another thing to just point out like having another handler that can get downhill and really take some of that pressure off him. And like my question to you, Ben, is like you look at this roster, how many players outside of Devin Booker can you say, I I’m going to throw the ball to this guy. Go get a bucket. And do you feel good about that happening? The there’s not there’s not a single person. Well, maybe maybe Mark Williams in the post, but damn, are you getting very specific if you’re talking about Mark Williams in the post? I thought you were saying who could you pass the ball to and trust that they’re going to they’re going to make the bucket. Grayson Allen. Yep. I think that’s where it ends. Like even Dylan Brooks this year, he’s been pretty I think Royce O’Neal maybe could fall into that, but you don’t trust those guys enough like you do from Grayson Allen from three. But it’s a good point, man. They need need more playmakers on this team. They need people that can score the basketball. So, even if Jaylen Green is a little inefficient, I think just naturally what he’s going to do is going to open up things a little bit better for not just Booker, but for players around the court. Let’s get to those rotations. Um, you and I were talking about this yesterday at the game. It’s one of the reasons why I wanted to bring you on the show is I was very pro- Jordan, but what the hell is he doing with those rotations? Let’s talk about it next. First, today’s show is brought to you by the lovely folks over at Robin Hood. Your ambition just met its match. With Robin Hood, you play for the win. Not just on game day, every day. Locking in every opening, betting your PR, betting it again. Channel that drive into your money. Robin Hood puts you in control of your money. Trade stocks and ETFs and options, futures, and crypto. All one platform. 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And you’re automatically entered for a chance to win the ultimate fan bag. I love that it’s not just food. You can get everything from snacks and drinks to headphones, ice, and even socks all delivered. So, next time someone goes for 50, use promo code NBA50 the next day to get 50% off your off on Door Dash with Dash Pash plus your shot at the Bagdrop Dash Pass members only. 50% up to the $10 up to $10 the day after a 50point game with promo code terms apply. No purchase necessary. Ends April 13th. Open to US residents 21 or older. Visit door-inyourbag.com for full details. Door Dash in your bag all season long. I think the epitome of Jordan not this this season is is like I’ve gotten in trouble a couple times. I I’ve been highly critical of some of his rotations, some of the things he’s done offensively. I think sometimes not putting Devin Booker in the best position to succeed. I think the one thing I think of off the top of my head is last night like it was a terrible shot by Deon Booker to end the game. You’re down by one. get in the mid-range. Maybe, you know, he was worried about the double triple teaming and then maybe having to kick it out to someone. But one of the reasons why you can’t set up a play is because they didn’t have a timeout for the final two minutes of this game. Like that’s a Jordan not issue. That’s not just a Devin Booker issue. But I’m more curious with the rotations. What is your reaction to what we’ve seen to yesterday? We saw a lineup of it was Isaiah Livers, Grayson Allen. I’d have to pull it up. Royce O’Neal. It was a atrocious. It was a monstrosity of a starting lineup. It was Grayson Allen Oso Radar, Colin Gillespie, Isaiah Livers, Nigel Hayes Davis in the first quarter, I I might add, that immediately surrendered the lead. What’s been your, you know, first kind of thoughts on Jordan A, and then of course the the rotations as a whole. So, this is kind of a two-parter for me. Like, I first off, I like Jordan. I think he’s he has really grown on me the more I’ve gotten to know him. I think he’s he’s in a very tough spot. uh you and I we’re not in practice every day. We’re not seeing exactly how things go down behind the scenes. So, I’m sure he has his reasons for for playing Nigel A Davis and Isaiah Livers. I don’t see it. Um I I think those are the two that like the center rotation is that’s that’s a whole another story. Like that that’s a very tough uh group to manage, but uh and the OSO thing we can get we can touch on too, but yeah, that lineup I just think is kind of all over the place. There’s really no identity uh within it. there’s not really I mean they’re kind of limited with the lack of scoring as well. So it’s just I think right now he’s really just trying to see what he has and that’s a tough bridge to cross when you’re this early in the season. You need these games and and they’re close games like the experimentation is like do you sacrifice in the short term to find out what works out in the long run? Like like that’s what it kind of feels like to me with with these guys down like he’s going with these older guys seeing what they have and if if they can’t if they’re not going to cut it like that’s where I think Rashir Fleming like to me he has to be playing that’s like him and Malawatch even if it even if it’s only five minute stints like just give see what they have like they they did not it’s not like they looked horrible in preseason like the moment was not too big for them there. Um, I appreciate how hard the team is playing for Jordan, but these rotations are a little tough to grasp right now to be honest. Well, the biggest one to me is Nigel Hayes Davis. That is something I I never bought into. The everydayers here know of my concerns with Nigel Hayes Hayes Davis because for every Gurchin Yabiselli who goes overseas and then comes over as a revelation for their team and uh um it most of the time it doesn’t work out like we’ve seen like with Mike James like forever for you know Suns legend you know really good overseas doesn’t really work really work well here. I that’s one thing I don’t understand the Isaiah livers thing I I I’m just not grasping it I think and the only reason why I would lean towards maybe this is why he’s not doing this and it still doesn’t make any sense because they’re still turning the ball over at an incredibly high rate. I just don’t think he trusts his rookies. I think he’s the old school head coach who doesn’t trust their rookies in crunchtime situations. In the very first game of the season, we saw no Malawatch. We saw no Fleming. And I had said, I was like, “That makes sense.” Like, “It’s the first game of the season. It’s a really close game. You’re going to throw them out there.” We saw them in blowouts against the uh uh Nuggets and whatnot, but those guys need to play. Like, we’re not talking about a season where the where it’s a top six seed bust. You got to figure out what you have in these guys. So, has there been anything that stood out to you more than anything? Maybe for me it’s O Swigodaro who again man I’ve gotten a lot of trouble for this where like what does he do that the Suns don’t already have like Malawatch might not do a bunch of things better than Oso Wiggodaro does right now because he’s a rookie but he does things better that that the Suns don’t have already in their lineup like he’s a shot blocker he can catch lobs around the rim those are things the Suns don’t have so is there a hill that you’re like all right this is the thing right Jordan Knott’s got to fix. Yeah, I I think you hit the nail on the head. Like it’s just an identity crisis right now. That that’s what it comes down to is like these guys uh they’re they’re all like they’re all hungry. They’re all trying to make a name for themselves. They’re they’re young. Uh but they don’t have that clear lane of like this is what I bring to the table. Uh I feel like it changes every game and then and that’s that’s typical for like a new team early in the season. But I think but yeah, like Malwatch, I don’t think you or I are asking for him to play, you know, 25 30 minutes a night. and get thrown straight in the fire and close games out. But it’s more like why not just see what you have. Like it’s especially in those moments when the energy’s been low or those guys are not producing. Like I think it’s good to like inject some youthful energy into the mix and and I get it if he’s one of those old school coaches. It’s like the rookiey’s got to earn it, but this is not a contender we’re talking about. Like where it’s you have to pick a lane is like are you are you contending? Are you developing? Uh I think you can do both. Uh they’re it just seems like they’re they’re kind of set on seeing what they have with with these guys for x amount of games. It it just seems like a predetermined plan. There’s not really that in-game like let’s try something new. Uh and and maybe that’s just something A’s going to have to to tap into when he feels comfortable. But I I would like to see more rookie minutes to be honest. Dude, to me it feels more like Aught has a system and he’s gonna run it do or die. like the like I think he wants really smart basketball players out there to run his system, his scheme, his plays. And like that kind of makes sense because I don’t deny that Nigel Hayes Davis is a smart basketball player. I demi I I deny that I think he’s an actual NBA caliber level player skill-wise. Oso Gdaro I think is very smart. I think he’s a very good passer. I think he keeps the ball moving. It does not stay stagnant in his hands. Um, I think he’s got decent footwork. Like he likes those players that are like maybe he just doesn’t trust young guys. But at some point, you know, the rubber’s got to hit the road where you’re like, you got to find out what you have in Malawatch because you kind of have a rookie extension that’s massive and Mark Williams who again has really been really good this year. We can get to in the second segment a little bit. But the biggest thing that’s that’s super to asinine to me, man, is the Osoidaro stuff. In no world should he be starting or in the game over Nick Richards, over Kaman Malawatch, over Mark Williams. Where’s your Where are you at in the OSO Gadaro stuff? I know you’re a big Isaiah Livers guy, so I’ll leave that out of the fold, but I want to go. Definitely not. Uh, but yeah, Oso, I like Oso. I I don’t think he’s a center. I think he’s he’s a bench player that is situational for for some small ball teams. I think against the Warriors, like going against Draymond in those small ball lineups, he’d be perfect. I think alongside Kaman Malawatch, he’d be perfect, especially if Malawatch is spacing the floor because he can move. He can, you know, as that small ball four. I think there’s some stuff he could do like the playmaking, but to your point, like he doesn’t he’s not a perfect fit next to the the group they have. He can’t space the floor. The shot is atrocious. Uh but he he’s he’s athletic. He can dunk. He can jump out of the gym. And he’s he’s strong for his size. like we saw he stonewalled uh Zubac which I thought was just very interesting and Jokic didn’t even attempt a shot on him in the first quarter after we all were terrified he was starting against him. So I think defensively like there’s some stuff there and he should play but starting and getting over 20 minutes like I’m I’m just not there yet. I I just I think Mark Williams, Colin Gillespie and Devin Booker need to be on the court together more like that trio that’s those are the three I want to see get heavy minutes together and see what they can do. insert whoever other two players you want there. Ryan Dunn, Royce O’Neal, Dylan Brooks, whoever. Just I want to see those three get extended run together and just see what happens. It’s not report card time for the Phoenix Suns. It’s not even really progress report time, but let’s just say that the parents are checking in on the grades a little bit. Maybe because the Suns have flunked before they got to make sure before the progress reports, before the report cards come out, that they’re that they are on track. So, let’s do that a little bit, but with a Halloween twist. What Suns players are a trick? What Suns player have been so far have been a treat? Let’s do that. Next. First, today’s show is brought to you by the lovely folks over at FanDuel. The NFL season is here, or the NBA is back, and there’s no better place to get in the on the action than FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Even if you missed the start of a game or want to ride the hot hand, FanDuel has live bets on everything from who will score next to fourth quarter comebacks. Plus, you can even combine your live bets in the same game parlies for a bigger shot at payout. It keeps it keeps every game exciting, especially when your team’s making that late push. Listen, it’s not just NBA. Just like how we mentioned a second ago, the NFL is going on right now, too. You want to bet on the Cardinals? You want to bet on the Chiefs? Listen, FanDuel’s got a nice little offer for you right now. Right now, FanDuel is giving new customers $300 in bonus bets when your first $5 bet wins. So, head to fanduel.com to sign up and play your game with FanDuel, the the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Listen, all right, it’s a little corny, but in spirit of Halloween, I wanted to put a little twist in there. When Thanksgiving comes around, maybe I’ll start relating players to Thanksgiving foods. When Christmas comes around, we’ll probably talk about what presents we’re going to get each player. But let’s talk about this for players that we haven’t talked a ton about and maybe a little bit of front office, too. We’ll get to them as well. Mark Williams, has he been a trick? Meaning, is this the Mark Williams we’re going to get or is he a treat? someone that you’re like, “Uh-oh, Sun’s got to bargain for this guy.” And he might be someone that changes everything for the Suns down the line. Like, I actually think at this point, like, you could be talking about this guy potentially getting all NBA votes towards the end of the year if he stays healthy. Trick or treat for my guy Mark Williams. Absolute treat. I think it’s been like, look, Mark Williams problem has been health. like he’s he’s been good when he’s healthy, but I think this year just based on what I’ve seen, especially defensively coming off like, you know, injury management and everything, like the way he’s moving defensively like is is better than advertised. Like there’s some concerns with that. I think I have to go treat here. Uh if he keeps it up and stays healthy, we you know upgrade that to super treat. Lost the audio. You let me talk that entire time without audio. I was making sure it was uh my head and I really I really appreciate that there’s 20 seconds of dead air right there and people are all just think I’m a crazy person. But with that being said, no, I would agree with you too. He’s obviously been a treat and it’s not been him offensively. Like I knew what he was going to be. I knew he was going to be a double double player. I I didn’t think he’d be like a mid potential mid20s player, you know, 22 23 points and 12 rebounds a game. Like I didn’t think he had that sort of arsenal offensively. However, one of the things like I had Jason Timon from hoops tonight. Defensively, he was terrible in Charlotte. I said he was terrible on this pod multiple times. He’s been an anchor, a catalyst for this team defensively. So, Mark Williams, like we can get deeper into him, you know, a different time. But another player, Colin Gillespie, I think this is really interesting. Is this who Colin Gillespie is? Like, is he the player that I tried to tell everyone? You don’t want 40-year-old Chris Paul here. You want young, vibrant, kind of spry uh uh Colin Gillespie to come in and run this offense fast. Trick or treat Colin Gillespie. Tell me what you think about him. Another treat. I I think uh he’s he’s been everything we could hope for and more. Uh to me, his ability to space the floor, make really smart plays, bring that energy, like he he’s exactly what they need. And uh you know I was super high on Gillespie. I said this from the second they signed him. Like there’s a tweet I had that this is back when they had Taius Jones, Monte Morris and everyone was in love with them and I I said keep an eye on Colin Gillespie. I think he’s going to earn like he’s going to develop but I think he’s their future backup point guard. This is a couple years ago. So absolute treat. He’s been he’s been great. Uh looking forward to seeing more minutes from Gillespie. Jordan not to this extent. We kind of talked about him a second ago through five games. Again, we’re not out on him, but like I’ll start it off here. Kind of been a trick so far. And I don’t think it’s not a damning thing for Jordan not as we continue down this road. He’s not a like I don’t think he’s going to be a bad head coach. I think he’ll figure it out. But I think he is shar like I if there’s blame pie going around like last night I thought Booker Jordan not turnovers. You want to give each of them an even slice. I I’m okay with that. Jordan not to this point I think has been a little bit of a trick. I think he can be a treat, but I’ll let you go to Jordan not as well as we kind of analyze him after, you know, we talked about him just a second ago, too. This is our first disagreement. I’m going to go treat just because Oh my god. Really? Okay. Which is a crazy thing to say. One and four. I get I get it. But you look at the context. They’re missing two key players right now. Uh just load management, Mark Williams. They had the backto-back Clippers Nuggets. Like, it’s just been a weird, very strange start to the season. They’re playing hard. They’re playing really hard. They are playing hard. They are. So, for now, it’s a treat, but it’s like he’s it’s it’s wavering back and forth right now. I say we go kind of rapid fire here. Um because I want to mention him because it’s been something I’ve been warning people since the end of last year. Like, I was never against like trading this guy. I was totally okay with trading this guy. I just probably wasn’t for it with Jonathan Kaminga given the fact that it was one never going to happen and two it just didn’t fit the mold of what I thought the Suns were trying to do this year and it’s a lot of moving pieces. Do you want to add another thing to that? Um oho I’m going to be honest with you man and it’s I always say this stuff towards the end of the show so like the real everydayers that listen fully all the way through hear this and they get it’s almost like bonus content. Not only is he a trick, he’s become bor borderline unplayable. Borderline unplayable at times. I’ll let you take it from there. Yeah, I’m gonna go trick as well. Uh it’s it’s been pretty disappointing. He he’s a zero on offense at this point outside of the playmaking. He didn’t improve on anything. Yeah, it’s it’s disappointing, but it’s the good news. It’s a long season. There’s room for it to to change, but it’s a trick. Let’s go to uh two other guys really quickly because I just think it’d be fun and I’m just curious to hear what you’d have to say. Let’s go Brian Gregory first. I’ll call it a treat because of what he because of what he was given. I didn’t think he’d be able to put together this good of a roster. I’m not saying the roster is top 15, but you could convince me it’s somewhere between 18 and 21. And I think that’s better than what I thought the Suns were going to be when the season started. So, I’ll let you take Brian Gregory and then we’ll go to someone else who we’re we’re just gonna set up for failure. We’re gonna go treat it again. Like I I agree. I I agree with you. Uh I think I I was skeptical of that hire at first to be honest. And I I think they they nailed this off seasonason given the circumstances and the the flexibility they had. Like this roster today obviously like injuries aside and everything is is much better than I thought it would have been before you took over. I got in trouble because I said uh I didn’t get in trouble. I say things and sometimes it comes back to bite me in the ass. Like sometimes that happens with me, but one of the things I had said was like I gave him all the praise, but I was like this dude’s got a personality of a potato. Like he is so boring to listen to, but like like people got mad at me and I was like I said he put together a good team. I don’t care how he speaks, but he’s just he’s an older guy. He’s very chill, very mellow, but holy cow is uh uh could he I’m sure he could talk your ear off about absolutely nothing. Again, good roster that he built, but I always like to mention like, oh my goodness, who let this guy in front of a podium sometimes. Um Matt Ishbia, trick-or- treat, I will go to this point in his career, he’s been a bit of a he’s been a bit of a trick, but I still believe in Matt Ishbia. There’s people out there that are like, “Oh, go back to the Sarver days.” is I’m like, “Okay, tell me you’re a 2021 Suns fan without telling you’re a 2021 Suns fan because you didn’t live through losing Shawn Marion and Joe Johnson for nothing.” And then letting Amari start walk, but that was, you know, the right move at the end of the day. You know, firing coaches, Mike Danton long time ago, Gentry, trick-or- treat Matt Ishbia this far. I’ll go Trick just because of what’s happened in his time, but I I do believe in him to be a very good owner. Yeah, I think assembling the air quotes for the audio people. Uh, super super team is a absolute trick, but as as a whole like owner as far as like caring about the city, doing all the right things, taking care of people, spending money. He’s not afraid to spend money. I give him a treat on that end. And I’m willing to give him a second chance to rebuild this from the ground up and learn from his mistakes. So, I think people need to not take for granted an owner that’s willing to spend and admit when they’re wrong. Oh my god. And it’s easy to sit back and look at how things have gone and just point all the blame at him. At the time he did those moves, everyone was on board. Everyone was praising him. 100%. 100%. It’s it’s a tough It’s one of those things. You get all the credit when things happen and then all the blame when they go wrong. Um just that’s reality. But I I think there there’s a long way to go. I And I’ll give him some more time. So, let me let me um obviously so when did you start watching the Suns? Like how like what was your earliest memory of the Suns? Is it 7 seconds or less? Is it there earlier? I I mean I was like a small child. I mean I I was three or four years old. But like seriously understanding probably Yeah. 7 second or less. Uh even even the Stefan Marberry days back like before that a little bit. Do do you remember what it was like to have Robert Sarver knowing that they are not going to pay someone? Now the issue with Matt Ishpia is that he tries too hard. He thought he could just microwave success and I don’t think people understand how good they actually have it. I’d rather have this and him have to learn through his trials and tribulations that he didn’t have to go through but he is going through than an owner and Robert Sarver that would legitimately go as cheap as possible. There’s no shot they dip into the second apron to go get Bradley Beiel and Kevin Durant. So people like Sarver would never do this. I’m like yeah but not for the reasons why you think he wouldn’t do it. 100%. Yeah. If NBA Twitter existed when Rob Sarver was an owner there would be Yeah. He is very lucky social media is not as accessible. Imagine the AI photos. Oh man. Yeah, it’s that era. People like do not understand to the extent that his his unwillingness to spend cost the Suns at least one ring, maybe two. You can argue him and Tim Donnie both cost the Suns ring. With that being said, guys, uh for my guy uh Brandon Duaneius, myself, Benjamin Garcia, everyone in the chat tuning in, be on the lookout. I will be at the Suns Jazz game tomorrow while Brandon’s out trick-or-treating. I’m gonna be out actually scouting, analytical, diving deep into the game more really. My boss is going to be there and I want to shake hands with my guy David Lock from the Utah Jazz. That’s really the main reason why I’m going to be there. And I just don’t have any plans anymore at this age. But with that being said, for Brandon, for myself, for everyone tuning in, thank you so much for doing so. Please have a safe and happy Halloween. And hopefully we’re talking about a Sun’s W next time we’re talking. But be on the lookout for a show potentially tomorrow. Talk to you guys then.

The Phoenix Suns are 1-4, and supermax player Devin Booker is shooting just 32% in first quarters. Is the criticism fair, or are fans overreacting to a slow start?

Benjamin Garcia and Brandon Duanes break down Booker’s early struggles, the surprising impact of missing Jalen Green, and head coach Jordan Knott’s puzzling rotation decisions. They question why rookies aren’t getting minutes while veterans like Nigel Hayes Davis and Oso Ighodaro struggle to contribute. The hosts also evaluate Mark Williams’ defensive transformation from Charlotte liability to Phoenix anchor, and debate whether the front office deserves credit or blame for the current roster construction. A Halloween-themed “trick or treat” segment rates key players and front office personnel Matt Ishbia and Brian Gregory based on their early season performance.

Tune in for honest analysis of what’s working, what’s broken, and whether the Suns can turn around their disappointing start before it’s too late.

0:00 Intro
1:40 Halloween costumes and brother’s feedback
2:56 Is Ben too hard on Devin Booker?
5:35 Booker’s shooting struggles in key games
8:31 Missing Jalen Green more than expected
11:57 Jordan Knott’s questionable rotation decisions
15:48 The Nigel Hayes Davis problem
19:12 Identity crisis with the current roster
23:00 Mark Williams: Trick or treat?
27:18 Colin Gillespie exceeding expectations
28:40 Jordan Knott’s coaching: Treat or trick?
31:07 Matt Ishbia’s ownership: Learning from mistakes
33:27 Sarver era vs Ishbia’s willingness to spend

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