They could have been Phoenix Suns players
Rondo in Deng in a Suns uniform..not bad!
Since the arrival of Steve Nash in the valley of the Suns, Phoenix has been one of the strongest teams in the West. They were well coached under Mike D’Antoni with his run and gun style of play and they had a great core with Steve Nash, Amar’e Stoudemire, Shawn Marion, Raja Bell, Leandro Barbosa and Boris Diaw. Half of that core is gone now and they have a new coach, Terry Porter, for this 2008-2009 NBA season and they also have new faces but not necessarily young legs. In fact, the two players, Shaquille O’neal and Grant Hill, they’ve traded for and signed the past two years are turning 37 this year.
Former MVP Steve Nash will be turning 35 this year, and wouldn’t it be nice if the Phoenix Suns had kept some of their first round draft picks that they’ve traded during draft night the past 4 years?
I’m talking about Luol Deng, Nate Robinson, Rajon Rondo, Rudy Fernandez, and Sergio Rodriguez. Yep, they were all Phoenix Suns draft picks but none of them ever played for the Suns. They were all traded during their draft picks for various reasons but mainly to free up cap room and relieve them of luxury tax issues.
Luol Deng
Draft Pick (year): 7th pick overall (2004)
Traded to: Chicago Bulls
Career averages: 15.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1 steal
Deng was drafted by the Suns and immediately shipped to the Bulls for a future first round pick. Deng has been a steady piece in the development of the young Bulls. He was part of the trade rumor that would send Kobe Bryant to the Chicago Bulls. He could’ve been a nice addition to the Phoenix Suns roster in 2004 but his averages wouldn’t have been this high since he would be backing up Shawn Marion. He would have also been a priced free agent and the Suns wouldn’t have been able to sign him unless they traded Shawn Marion as early as two years ago and kept Deng instead.
Nate Robinson
Draft Pick (year): 21st pick (2005)
Traded to: New York Knicks
Career Averages: 11.3 points, 2.3 assists, 1.2 threes
Nate Robinson and Quentin Richardson were traded to the New York Knicks for Kurt Thomas since the Suns were looking for a serviceable big man who could help their front court against the San Antonio Spurs come playoff time. Robinson has been playing well in former Suns coach Mike D’Antoni in New York. He has also been part of the slam dunk competition and is one of the most exciting players in the open court because of his size.
Rajon Rondo
Draft Pick (year): 21st (2006)
Traded to: Boston Celtics
Career Averages: 9 points, 5.1 assts, 4.1 assists and 1.8 steals
Rajon Rondo was selected by the Suns and immediately shipped to the Boston Celtics together with Brian Grant for a future first round pick. Rondo, as we all know, has been the starting point guard of the Celtics in his first three years and helped tremendously to their road to a championship last year. He looks to be improving this year and I believe this guy could have been the backup of Steve Nash instead of Marcus Banks who they signed weeks after trading Rondo. Banks would be traded to the Miami Heat as part of the Shaquille O’neal-Shawn Marion deal.
Sergio Rodriguez
Draft Pick (year): 27th (2006)
Traded to: Portland Trailblazers
Career Averages: 3.3 points and 2.6 assists
Rodriguez was also selected in the first round by the Phoenix Suns but traded to the Portland Trailblazers for cash considerations since the Suns wanted to avoid luxury tax issues. Rodriguez was another guard the Suns could have developed but opted for the more expensive and unreliable Marcus Banks. This guy has shown that he can run a team especially now that Rudy Fernandez is his teammate. He has asked for a trade and I know that he can produce if given minutes, which is something he is not getting in Portland because of its depth.
Rudy Fernandez
Draft Pick (year): 24th (2007)
Traded to: Portland Trailblazers
Career Averages: 11 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2 threes
Fernandez was one of the fan favorites during the Summer Olympics in Beijing in 2008 where he got his soon to be coach Nate McMillain really excited. He continued his success in the NBA as a rookie now and is one the more popular players in the Blazers. He is one of the players that can be voted as the 4th dunker in this year’s all star dunk contest and will be going up against Dwight Howard, Rudy Gay and another Suns draft pick that away, Nate Robinson.
So what do you think of the Phoenix Suns players that got away?
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