Phoenix Suns: 5 goals for Marquese Chriss in 2017-18
1. Improve defensively and limit fouls
On the court and on the stat sheet, Chriss noticeably struggled on the defensive end. That’s not surprising for a 19-year-old rookie thrust into the starting role, but when ESPN‘s Zach Lowe is describing his defense as “‘Which way did he go?’ cluelessness,” that’s a pretty fair indicator of how much ground needs to be covered.
Chriss’ defensive rating of 113.3 ranked dead last on the Suns roster last year, and per NBA.com, they were a whopping 7.2 points per 100 possessions stingier on that end whenever he sat. That large gap marked the difference between a league-average defense and what would’ve been the worst defense in the association by a huge margin of 2.7 points per 100 possessions.
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Simply put, the Suns bled points whenever Chriss was on the floor, and opposing teams absolutely bullied him in pick-and-roll coverage. Couple that with his low rebounding and the fact that opponents shot 64.3 percent on shots from less than six feet with Chriss defending (3.0 percent better than they’d normally shoot), it’s no surprise defense should be his No. 1 focus in 2017-18.
This goal goes hand-in-hand with limiting his foul trouble — especially early foul trouble, which was a recurring theme for Chriss as he adjusted to the life of an NBA starter. His 3.2 fouls per game were the ninth-most in the association.
In fact, his 263 total fouls on the season ranked second in the NBA, trailing only DeMarcus Cousins. That’s a major problem before you consider Chriss played 722 fewer minutes than Boogie and only trailed him by 15 fouls.
That comes with a lack of experience, but Chriss hinted at an overeagerness to block shots as a cause for his near-constant foul trouble in addition than just taking his rookie lumps.
"“Sometimes it was just lack of focus and being out of position. Obviously I have to learn our defensive schemes and things like that, but just trying to stay on task and try to focus in and pick and choose when I go to get a block or when I just kind of stay straight up.”"
Improving on his 9.2 points per game, notching double-doubles and improving his 3-point efficiency are all obvious goals in his sophomore season, but none is more important to his all-around development than striving to become at least a passable defender who’s not constantly in foul trouble.
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That starts in the upcoming campaign. From increased effort on the boards to improved rim protection to at least being competent in pick-and-roll coverage, Marquese Chriss’ biggest improvement as a sophomore needs to come from the defensive end of the floor.