Phoenix Suns: Isaiah Thomas, Goran Dragic Style Clash
The Phoenix Suns are struggling to adapt to their point guard-rich lifestyle, and it’s revealing that Isaiah Thomas is better off alone
When you’ve got three point guards that all deserve time and only two guard positions available, you’re essentially trying to fit the proverbial square peg into the round hole. Such is life for the Phoenix Suns these days, as they’re trying to find ways to get Eric Bledsoe, Goran Dragic and Isaiah Thomas to fit together.
A season ago, Bledsoe and Dragic figured out how to best play together — they were each able to play to their strengths and it never really felt like one was stepping on the other’s toes. There’s only one basketball, but if felt like there were plenty of touches for each player.
The Suns weren’t happy with their third point guard in the rotation (Ish Smith) and set out to strengthen that spot. Thomas fell into their lap and general manager Ryan McDonough appeared to make a move that would elevate the Suns into the next tier of the Western Conference.
Thomas has certainly done his part, as he’s been one of the best bench players in the entire league. He’s the sparkplug off the bench that pairs perfectly with Gerald Green to form one of the league’s best benches (2nd in scoring with 43.3 per game). What’s troubling is how Thomas’ game hasn’t meshed well with Dragic, and to a lesser extent, Bledsoe. Take a look at the three so far this season:
| Player | G | MP | FG% | 3P% | 2P% | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goran Dragic | 12 | 32.3 | .480 | .316 | .535 | .867 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 1.9 | 2.0 | 15.3 |
| Eric Bledsoe | 12 | 31.5 | .448 | .355 | .479 | .796 | 5.1 | 5.4 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 3.2 | 2.6 | 13.8 |
| Isaiah Thomas | 12 | 23.8 | .405 | .326 | .443 | .891 | 2.3 | 4.1 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 1.9 | 2.1 | 14.8 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 11/21/2014.
As you can see, Dragic and Bledsoe are well below the 20 points and six assist level that each of them achieved in 2013-14. We can look to the improvement of guys like Markieff Morris and Alex Len as part of the reason, but I want to take a deeper look at how the three point guards affect each other.
THOMAS THRIVES AS A LONE WOLF
At the beginning of the season, I wondered how Thomas would adapt to not being able to start. It seemed like each guard would be able to get their fair share of minutes, but that would mean more than one of the three point guards would likely have to be on the court at any given moment.
That’s what’s happened, but it hasn’t been going well. As it turns out, Thomas is the kind of player who needs to have the ball in his hands and he really hasn’t fared as well playing next to the other guys.
Thomas w/ Dragic on the court: 33.9 FG%, 29.4 3P%
Thomas w/ Dragic off the court: 45.8 FG%, 34.6 3P%
Thomas w/ Bledsoe on the court: 38.1 FG%, 30.8 3P%
Thomas w/ Bledsoe off the court: 41.6 FG%, 33.3 3P%
Thomas w/ Dragic and Bledsoe on the court: 33.3 FG%, 50.0 3P% (2-for-4 from 3P)
Thomas w/ Dragic and Bledsoe off the court: 50.0 FG%, 41.2 3P%
It’s clear that Thomas is not well suited to play with a ball-dominant point guard like Dragic — and while he’s been better with Bledsoe — he’s been terrific when he’s able to get out on the floor by himself.
Coach Jeff Hornacek has been the kind of coach to go with whatever lineups are working. Bledsoe has sat late in games and Dragic has gotten extended breaks in the fourth quarter. Those are in large part a result of the success that Thomas has had on his own.
In the Suns win 88-86 over the Pistons, no lineup with Dragic/Thomas was better than a plus-1. For the season, of 5-man lineups with at least 10 minutes played together, the two worst lineups feature Thomas and Dragic together. The best lineup? Thomas and Bledsoe, with Dragic on the bench. Of the top three lineups, Thomas is in all three, Dragic is on one.
COULD IT PUSH DRAGIC OUT OF TOWN?
This is my biggest concern. Luckily, we’re just 12 games into the season and there’s plenty more basketball to be played. Still, chemistry is a real issue and it’s something that’s earned throughout the year. However, there’s the elephant in the room in the form of Dragic’s opt-out clause at the end of this season.
Bledsoe and Thomas are locked up to longer-term deals. It’s not obvious — and certainly it’s not a foregone conclusion — that Dragic and Thomas don’t mesh well. If the Suns are winning and coach Hornacek is able to juggle lineups appropriately, then we can overlook these little issues.
However, put yourself in the shoes of Goran or Isaiah. Goran has seen his numbers fall and his value could be tarnished. Thomas can’t seem to get his offense in rhythm when he’s on the court with Dragic and at some point that style clash will be more apparent.
It’s fitting that Dragic and Thomas’ lockers are almost as far away from each other as possible in the lockerroom — because that’s about how well they’ve meshed when they’re on the floor.
Stats acquired from basketball-reference.com and nba.com.