What last element for the Suns’ major five?

With the setback for Team USA and the end of the World Cup looming, the NBA will gradually regain its place in American news over the coming weeks, and the Suns should in particular be the center of attention. How could it be otherwise?

The Arizona franchise has been in turmoil since the takeover of Mat Ishbia which caused an overhaul of the workforce, with the arrival of Kevin Durant then the departure of Chris Paul, replaced by Bradley Beal.

With its Beal-Booker-Durant-Ayton quartet, the major five which will be conducted by Frank Vogel already looks great. But who will be the fifth element? Which player will come out of the hat around this quartet? Questioned by the Arizona Republic, the former Lakers coach raised the subject, of course not denying himself any option.

For now, it’s more a question of profile than of a specific name.

“I think he will be the player who suits best,” he replied. “We will have a lot of players who will have the opportunity to be that fifth player. You will need versatility, being able to defend in several positions or being an elite shooter. Maybe it’ll just be another creator. I think we have a lot of guys with different qualities and we’ll try a lot of different combinations throughout the year, but I think all of those qualities would suit the four guys you mentioned. We’ll see how it goes.”

The right to trial and error

The first pre-season matches will be used in particular to test different fives in order to find the right balance and install the best possible rotation. The back trio Gordon-Okogie-Lee will of course have their say, but so will wingers Keita Bates-Diop and Yuta Watanabe. Obviously, the question of the opponent’s profile will also come into account. For now, it is therefore still a little too early to make a definitive decision.

“When you’re a brand new team like this, the team that starts on opening night isn’t necessarily the team that’s going to be there for all 82 games. There is room for trial and error. You have to give opportunities to certain players with certain groups, not because one of them succeeds or fails, but because throughout an 82-game season you want to explore every possibility you have in your team in order to be as well armed as possible at the time of the playoffs. I think there will be several guys who will have those opportunities.”

It will actually be necessary to analyze the good cohesion of the four players in question, so that each can express themselves in their role, as well as the way of incorporating the other pieces of the puzzle as best as possible.

“We want most of our possessions to be done at a steady pace. Giving the ball to the closest guy, running him across the field with passing, pindowns and quick screens. The fewer half-court attacks, the better for our group.”concluded Frank Vogel. “Throughout my career, I had an offense that was kind of run by a point guard. But the game has changed over the last five, seven, eight years. Now there are more players capable of having the ball in their hands. That’s what we’re going to incorporate into our team.”