The silent free agent who could finally unlock KD, Booker and the Suns’ Big 3

FOR THE MOST OF In his thirteen years in the NBA, Bradley Beal has gotten a good idea of ​​who he is as a player. An elite shooter and scorer. A willing passer and versatile defender. The three All-Star games confirmed that self-concept. That includes the annual interest in him from contenders while he played for the Washington Wizards.

But last year has been a strange one for Beal. Not just because he finally asked and traded the Phoenix Suns last August. But because he was asked and tried to play a very different position for the Suns than he had played most of his career: point guard.

“They used me more as a facilitator than a scorer and honestly, stuff like that with my head,” Beal told ESPN. “Literally the whole summer I had just had this whole reflection, just like, ‘Who are you?’

“I really had to talk to myself, you know. I took the time to look at myself in the mirror and answer, ‘What do I need to do better? Who am I?’ And then just come back to it.”

About the same time Beal was reflecting on his first year in Phoenix, the Suns were doing the same. How could a team with three superstars – Beal, Kevin Durant and Devin Booker – mean so little in the playoffs? Why had they fallen so far short of their collective parts?

Neither Frank Vogel nor the Suns had opted to play Beal and Booker as their point guard, thinking it was the best role for them. This was a result of having to trade Chris Paul to the Wizards to acquire Beal and his $46.7 million salary, and being one of five teams to receive the NBA’s new “second apron” had to go, which significantly limits a team’s ability to transact or sell. fill out the roster with players who earn more than the veteran minimum.

All season long, Beal, Booker and Vogel said they were determined to make the best of the situation. But it was clear early in the season – and beyond – that the experiment was untenable. The numbers told the story. Beal averaged 18.2 points per game last season, his lowest since 2015-16, and 72% of his touches resulted in a pass, per Second Spectrum. His usage rate (22.4%) was his lowest since 2014-15.

For his part, Booker moved the ball up the floor on nearly 30% of the Suns’ possessions per game, per Second Spectrum, the highest percentage of his career while posting his lowest overall usage (29.4%) since 2016-17 gathered. Only 25.5 of his touches resulted in a shot, the fewest of his career.

The Minnesota Timberwolves, the Suns’ first-round playoff opponent, took full advantage.

During the Suns’ last five games against the Wolves – their final game of the regular season and four-game sweep – Minnesota put pressure on the player moving the ball with a career-high 157 possessions number the Suns faced in all five. playing time last season.

“I mean, it was just a different role, a different responsibility,” Booker told ESPN. “It was something neither of us was used to, but we were willing to learn and do it.”

Vogel was replaced by Mike Budenholzer after just one season. But the Suns knew they needed more than just a coaching change to turn their fortunes around, team sources said. They needed a player who could put Beal and Booker back in the positions where they had become superstars.

“I think after a year we realized it was about optimizing those three guys,” Suns CEO Josh Bartelstein told ESPN. “I mean, Bradley Beal has led the league in scoring. Let’s get him back to that. That doesn’t mean there won’t be times this year where Brad and Devin are the guards, but when we took a step back to look at The most important thing was: if we have these three guys, how can we ensure that they become the best versions of themselves?”

Those questions were answered quietly but decisively nearly four weeks into free agency, when the Suns spent $3 million on a player they believe will unlock the as-yet-unseen championship potential of basketball’s most tantalizing Big 3.

IF ANYTHING, THE The problem became even more difficult for Phoenix to address this summer, when the new collective bargaining agreement went into full effect in July.

Phoenix couldn’t even afford to keep its backup point guard, Cameron Payne, who traded his $6.5 salary and a second-round pick to San Antonio last offseason to save money, which was used in backup center Bol Bol.

New owner Mat Ishbia told ESPN last March that his solution, if one existed, would be to create a culture that would choose experienced players over more salary elsewhere.

“I understand all the rules that come with the second platform. I understand exactly what the CBA was trying to do,” he said. “I read it, I know it inside and out, and we made the calculated decision that we think the team with the best players wins. Would I rather have Brad Beal, Kevin Durant and Devin Booker than just two of those guys? I’ve read it.” “I’d rather have all three 100 times out of 100, and I don’t think there’s another GM, owner or CEO who wouldn’t say the exact same thing.

“So how do you maneuver around that? Well, you have to differentiate yourself. … I have to create an environment where (we) try to be the best franchise in the sport where the players want to come play.”

It was an idealistic sentiment. And Ishbia understood that other owners or front offices thought he would quickly be humbled by the harsh realities of the NBA, just as other exuberant new owners have been.

But he also believed that it only took one experienced player to prove his point.

That player ended up being Tyus Jones.

THE 10TH YEAR GUARD Duke has ranked in the top five in the NBA in assist-to-turnover ratio for eight consecutive seasons. He has led the league in five of them and last season had the best ratio (7.35) since individual turnovers were first tracked in 1977-78.

In any other year, Jones would have been paid handsomely as the top point guard on the free agent market with a reputation as a mature leader. And indeed, Jones weighed more lucrative interest from the Wizards, Detroit Pistons, San Antonio Spurs and Brooklyn Nets, league sources said, with offers ranging from $8 million to $12 million per year.

But none of those teams offered the kind of role and ceiling that the Suns offered.

“The first conversation I had with my agent, I thought, ‘Man, I wish they had more money because basketball-wise, the fit was ideal,’” Jones told ESPN.

That conversation took place before free agency began. After the first week of free agency — in which the Spurs signed Paul to a one-year, $11 million contract and his other suitors began asking him for answers — Jones’ choice became clear: Take the money in a losing situation and make the best of it of it. Or sign a veteran minimum deal with a contender and test free agency again next summer.

Bartelstein broached the idea to Jones’ agent, Kevin Bradbury, over drinks at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas, thinking he was at best just doing some due diligence.

“That’s where it went from a 0.1% chance to a 1% chance,” Bartelstein said. “We just opened the door a little bit… and then it became kind of like college recruiting.”

Bartelstein got Ishbia on the phone with Jones and his wife Carrie, after which they met in person in Phoenix with James Jones, president of basketball operations. Next, Tre Jones sat down with Budenholzer to discuss the role he would play and the coaches’ vision for how the team would play with Jones as floor general.

“She was actually involved in the conversations with Josh, Bud and Mat,” Jones said. “Because this was more than just a decision for myself. It’s also about her and the family. Just deciding where we want to be, what would be a good place for them, both in terms of living comfort and organization.

“Honestly, just them, including her, and understanding our family, is a big part of the decision. We look at everything for our children, and what helps her feel comfortable ultimately helped me to my comfort with the decision.”

Beal isn’t shy when it comes to what a player like Jones does for him on the court. He probably could have skipped all that soul-searching and self-reflection if he knew the Suns would land a point guard like Jones in free agency.

Through the Suns’ first four games this season, Jones is averaging 10 points, 6 assists and less than one turnover per game, but he’s making an impact far beyond his individual production, lifting the offensive burden that both Booker and Beal’s carry last season was alleviated.

So far this year, Beal is dribbling 30% less before attempting a shot, and he’s shooting 42.1% from 3, nearly a career high, while Booker is dribbling 51% less before attempting a shot, and 41, 9% from deep, easily the best mark of his career.

“I think everyone on the outside looking in last year understood that they were being asked to do more than what they normally probably do. And so I felt like I could help,” Jones said. “I try to make their job easy. Try to set the table for them, put them in great positions to just score the ball and do what they do at an extremely elite level.”

Whether that will be enough to help the Suns win a title remains to be seen, but for the first time, this Big 3 now has a setup guy.

“Tyus makes our lives so much easier,” Beal said. “It takes a lot more weight off my shoulders. We can just do what everyone knows us for.”