Archie Goodwin is getting playing time for the Phoenix Suns, and he’s making the most of it — which is creating a good problem for the organization
Logjams occur all the time in the NBA, as having 15 players on a roster and only five spots on the court means some talented players will find themselves riding the pine. Archie Goodwin has finally received an extended chance as a result of injuries to Brandon Knight, Ronnie Price and Eric Bledsoe, and his rise has given head coach Jeff Hornacek a lot more options.
As the No. 29 pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, Goodwin was expected to be a project. In his lone season at the University of Kentucky, the 6-foot-5 Goodwin showed a terrific ability to get to the basket (and the foul line), but many questioned his ability to shoot the ball and wondered if he’d be able to shake professional defenders.
At first, the detractors were right. Goodwin’s shooting line of .440/.266/.637 in college didn’t improve much in his rookie campaign (.455/.139/.673) and got worse in his second year in the league (.393/.293/.735). His free-throw rate (free throws per field goal attempt) was a paltry .329 in his rookie year and has since risen to a robust .641 this season.
While this season’s per-game averages are nothing to get overly excited about (16.0 min, 7.7 pts, 2.2 reb, 1.6 ast, 44.4 FG%, 28.1 3P%), Goodwin’s numbers as a starter are a whole different story (34.1 min, 18.8 pts, 2.8 reb, 4.0 ast, 46.9 FG%, 37.5 3P%).
It’s not that I can’t shoot, I just haven’t gotten the opportunity. — Goodwin
This opportunity is creating a problem that many teams would like to have, as it appears a player who was an afterthought for the majority of the season is showing that he has the skills to be at the least a regular rotation player and perhaps a starter at the 2-guard spot.
Although that 2013 NBA Draft featured some electric guards taken in front of Goodwin (Victor Oladipo, Trey Burke, C.J. McCollum, Michael Carter-Williams, Dennis Schroder) and a handful of other talented players (Rudy Gobert, Gorgui Dieng, Mason Plumlee, Kelly Olynyk, Steven Adams, Giannis Antetokounmpo), Goodwin is holding his own with the class this season:
- Tied for No. 5 in points per-36 minutes (17.5)
- No. 1 in free-throws made per-36 (5.3)
- Tied for No. 1 in free-throws attempted per-36 (8.2)
Goodwin has started at point guard in his last four games, with averages of 20.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.8 steals on a shooting line of .464/.400/.800. Oh, and you may have seen this:
Where to go from here? When Knight gets back, he’ll almost certainly grab the starting point guard position. Goodwin has proven he deserves playing time and could certainly come off the bench as the first point guard, but in reality, he’s best suited to be a playmaking 2-guard. The only problem with that is the Suns have a budding star in Devin Booker taking up that spot.
Add Bledsoe back into the mix next season and suddenly the Suns have another problem — too many players that have earned court time and not enough minutes to go around.
Coach Hornacek has talked about using a more standard lineup with a legit shooting guard as opposed to the two point guard system, but that was out of necessity (injuries). If the Suns choose to play the standard lineup, they could pair Bledsoe/Knight with Booker/Goodwin however they see fit.
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Another option is to trade one of the point guards in order to shore up some other holes the Suns have sprung (in a Markieff Morris deal, perhaps) and let Goodwin split time at both guard spots.
Let’s hear it, Suns fans, what’s the best course of action?