Phoenix Suns: Best candidates for 2018-19 NBA awards

Sixth Man of the Year: T.J. Warren

T.J. Warren’s calling in this league is microwave bench scorer. It just is. In a league that values 3-point shooting and capable, multi-positional wing defense, he brings neither of those skills to the table. Tony Buckets is aptly named. He just gets buckets.

Last year, Warren averaged a career-high 19.6 points per game on 49.8 percent shooting, despite converting only 22.2 percent of his long range attempts. He doesn’t spread the floor and his porous defense is only overlooked because he plays with Devin Booker, but the guy can put the ball in the hole. He’s a mid-range monster, crafty around the rim and excellent moving off the ball to find easy looks.

The problem here is two-fold: When asked about a potential sixth man role during exit interviews, Warren looked at reporters like they were speaking an alien language, and with so many wings on the roster, it’s very possible Tony Buckets is the one to go this season.

The Suns need a point guard, and trading Warren makes the most sense. He has more trade value than Phoenix’s lower-end wings like Troy Daniels and Davon Reed, and the front office probably won’t move Josh Jackson or Mikal Bridges so soon. Warren’s destiny is a Jamal Crawford–Lou Williams–J.R. Smith type off the bench. He just has to embrace it and not get traded first to actually move toward his fate as a future Sixth Man of the Year.

Odds: Pretty decent if he actually buys in and doesn’t get traded. So actually, pretty low.