Phoenix Suns: Owner Robert Sarver turning a new leaf

Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver has developed a reputation over the years, but it appears as though he’s ready to turn over a new leaf.

It’s no secret that Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver is less than revered by the team’s fanbase.

After years of siphoning off draft picks for cash considerations, regretful comments about millennials and a notorious impatience that prompted several ill-fated, build-through-the-middle attempts, Sarver has done little to endear himself to Suns fans.

With Wednesday’s announcement that Phoenix was extending general manager Ryan McDonough’s contract through the 2019-20 season, and that three-time NBA champion James Jones would be joining the front office as vice president of basketball operations, the biggest takeaway was Sarver’s commitment to an long-running, yet entirely new vision.

"“We want to win a championship,” he said. “We have a couple ways to get there, obviously through free agency and trades, but the way we can control it the most, and I think, have the ability to have more sustained success, is through the draft and through player development.”"

That alone does not redeem Sarver for years of dealing draft picks for cash, nor does it make him a committed owner. “We want to win a championship” is a phrase you’d expect to come from the mouths of all 30 owners at some point.

But the manner in which Sarver wants to get there represents a stark contrast from recent years, not to mention the pressure he undeniably placed on McDonough to assemble a competitive team sooner rather than later.

With a young core including Devin Booker, Dragan Bender, Marquese Chriss, Josh Jackson, Tyler Ulis and T.J. Warren (all drafted by McDonough) and a three-year contract extension for his GM, Sarver has alleviated a great deal of that pressure to make shortsighted moves.

"“I feel real good about the players we added in the draft this year and I think we’ve got a good, young, talented crew that can grow to be elite,” Sarver said. “But we have to execute on that, and in order to execute on that, I want to make sure this organization is surrounded with the most talent possible to help these players get to that level. [McDonough and Jones] are an important piece of that.”"

In 2004, the Suns selected Luol Deng with the seventh overall pick in the draft, but traded him to the Chicago Bulls for Jackson Vroman, cash and a 2005 first round pick. That 2005 first-rounder (No. 21 overall) was used on Nate Robinson, who was traded to the New York Knicks with Quentin Richardson for Kurt Thomas and the draft rights to Dijon Thompson.

In 2006, the Suns dealt the No. 27 overall pick, Sergio Rodriguez to the Portland Trail Blazers for cash. They also traded the 21st overall pick, Rajon Rondo, with Brian Grant to the Boston Celtics for a 2007 first-rounder.

That first-rounder became Rudy Fernandez, who the Suns traded with James Jones for — you guessed it! — cash considerations from the Blazers. It’s no surprise that Sarver’s reputation hasn’t improved with the team being continually bad since Nash left. According to ESPN, he was ranked as the worst owner in the association just a year ago.

Exactly 10 years and eight days since Phoenix shipped off Jones and yet another draft pick for cash considerations, it’s only fitting that Sarver announced Jones was joining the front office to help usher in a new era of Suns basketball, this time focused on long-term growth.

The James Jones hire isn’t going to change anything overnight, but it’s a great step in the right direction for a franchise that developed a bad reputation over the last few seasons with how it treated its players.

https://twitter.com/Espo/status/887735960577822720

Perhaps the biggest takeaway of the day, though, was Sarver’s honest admission about his failures over the years.

"“I got a little spoiled early on,” he said. “The first four or five years, a lot of success. The team James [Jones] was on, we went to the finals of Western Conference. The reality is I thought the business was easier than it was. That’s what happens sometimes in this business when you have a great player on your team.“I remember Mike D’Antoni used to say it all the time: ‘Steve Nash makes me look smart.’ Well, Steve Nash made me look smart. So I think over time I learned more about the business, I’m more comfortable understanding it. I think I’m a better owner today and I know what we need to do in order to get back to that position and I think this is our best way to do it.”"

The majority of the Phoenix Suns fanbase seems to be onboard with the team’s youth movement, affectionately dubbed as #TheTimeline. But there’s still a sizable contingent itching to see the NBA’s fourth all-time winningest franchise return to the postseason.

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For a fanbase that’s seen legends like Connie Hawkins, Alvan Adams, Walter Davis, Kevin Johnson, Charles Barkley, Steve Nash, Shawn Marion and Amar’e Stoudemire don the purple and orange over the years, patience was never going to be a virtue.

That’s especially true for a team facing a franchise-record playoff drought of eight years if it misses the postseason this year, let alone the longest active championship drought in the league with the Suns entering their 50th season as an NBA organization.

And yet, for a man who’s been notoriously impatient, even Robert Sarver is now onboard with the youth movement. A focus on player development seems like a more prudent approach, allowing the team to wait out the ongoing holy war being waged by super-teams like the Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs.

"“I’m not a patient person, to be honest with you,” Sarver said. “But I want more to try and win a championship for this city than I want to worry about being impatient.“I’ve learned a lot over the last 13 years. I’ve learned through some things that went well and I’ve learned through some of my mistakes. Right now I think we have a clear vision of what we want to do and how we want to get there, and so I have no choice but to be patient.”"

Extending McDonough was the right move, even for the critics who only focus on the Brandon Knight trade, the Isaiah Thomas trade and a possible draft bust in Alex Len.

Giving the current GM time to continue building a talented core through the draft — McDonough’s strongest suit thus far — is a far better option than bringing in a new hire and placing immediate pressure on the new arrival to make this team competitive again.

Only time will tell if this approach actually brings the Phoenix Suns their long-awaited first championship. Other young cores are on the rise around this league, so nothing is guaranteed.

But the Suns have a tantalizing young core, a GM who’s been empowered to continue building the right way after so many build-through-the-middle failures, a revered and respected VP of basketball operations to help with a potential LeBron James pitch, and an owner who’s finally seeing the bigger picture.

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Laugh at #TheTimeline if you must, but with Robert Sarver buying in and seemingly ready to turn over a new leaf, this organization is finally, openly on the same page.