Phoenix Suns: 3 goals for Trevor Ariza in 2018-19
By Luke Swiatek
2. Start all season
The last time Trevor Ariza came off the bench, including in the playoffs, was the 2012-13 season. Since then, he’s started every game he’s appeared in.
There’s a degree of pride that comes with being a starter, but that’s not why Ariza should be trying to maintain his streak. His reasoning should mostly be that it looks good on his résumé when he hits free agency next year, and because frankly, he’s better suited as a starter.
His game is the perfect fit alongside just about anyone in the league. He can guard multiple positions and essentially can’t be taken advantage of on defense, and he can space the floor and stay out of the way on offense.
Defense and shooting are perhaps the two skills in the NBA with the least-diminishing returns. Put another way, more defense and more shooting are always helpful, whereas other skills like post scoring can become redundant if you have a lot of it.
Trevor Ariza has only had a usage rate above average (20 percent) once in his career, and that was back in 2009-10 on a Rockets team whose leading scorers were Kevin Martin and Aaron Brooks. Alongside guys like Booker and Deandre Ayton, Ariza will be able to seamlessly fit in and allow them to do all the creation.