Best draft picks in Phoenix Suns history
The draft is a seminal moment for many incoming players. Putting aside competitive stakes, each young athlete's life is irreversibly altered by the fame and fortune that comes with being an NBA player. The exorbitant contract values ensures these players almost never have to worry about personal finances. Plus, these young guns get to play alongside some of their basketball idols for a living. With these high stakes, it's easy to see why the draft is so revered.
Likewise, the fortunes of a city and franchise can be completely transformed by a draft pick. LeBron James, for instance, brought Cleveland its first sports championship in 52 years and was also to the city's downtown economy. It almost goes without saying that Michael Jordan built the Chicago Bulls from the ground up into a championship team whose dynamic would reverberate through the decades.
With that in mind, 黑料社 compiled a list of the best draft picks in Phoenix Suns history using data from . Players were ranked according to a formula that approximates their career achievements, career value, and play quality. The formula encompasses Basketball-Reference.com's , career win shares, and value over replacement player, aka VORP. For players drafted before data is available for VORP, half of the player's win shares were used in its place to calculate their 黑料社 score.
Basketball Hall of Fame inductees were given a minimum of 60% for their Hall of Fame probability, indicating a worthy r茅sum茅 for their time but not up to par with some modern players. Scores were normalized to 100 based on the scoring leader. Keep reading to see where your favorite players fall on the list.
#50. Joel Kramer
- 黑料社 score: 1.4
- 63rd overall pick in 1978
- Played five seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 3.8 PTS, 2.8 REB, 1.0 AST
- Advanced statistics: 9.1 win shares, -1.3 box plus/minus, 0.8 VORP
#49. Steve Patterson
- 黑料社 score: 1.4
- 129th overall pick in 1970
- Career averages: 4.4 PTS, 4.7 REB, 1.3 AST
- Advanced statistics: 4.8 win shares
#48. Mike Bratz
- 黑料社 score: 1.6
- 66th overall pick in 1977
- Played three seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 7.0 PTS, 1.8 REB, 3.2 AST
- Advanced statistics: 11.1 win shares, -1.8 box plus/minus, 0.6 VORP
#47. Kenny Gattison
- 黑料社 score: 1.8
- 55th overall pick in 1986
- Played two seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 7.9 PTS, 4.7 REB, 0.9 AST
- Advanced statistics: 16.9 win shares, -2.4 box plus/minus, -1.1 VORP
#46. Lamar Green
- 黑料社 score: 2.1
- 33rd overall pick in 1969
- Played five seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 5.2 PTS, 6.2 REB, 0.8 AST
- Advanced statistics: 6.9 win shares
#45. Dean Garrett
- 黑料社 score: 2.2
- 38th overall pick in 1988
- Career averages: 4.8 PTS, 5.0 REB, 0.6 AST
- Advanced statistics: 14.1 win shares, -1.4 box plus/minus, 1.1 VORP
#44. Tim Perry
- 黑料社 score: 2.4
- Seventh overall pick in 1988
- Played four seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 6.8 PTS, 4.0 REB, 0.9 AST
- Advanced statistics: 14.6 win shares, -1.4 box plus/minus, 1.5 VORP
#43. Billy McKinney
- 黑料社 score: 2.6
- 115th overall pick in 1977
- Career averages: 8.0 PTS, 1.4 REB, 3.5 AST
- Advanced statistics: 15.6 win shares, -1.2 box plus/minus, 1.7 VORP
#42. Ron Lee
- 黑料社 score: 2.7
- 10th overall pick in 1976
- Played three seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 7.3 PTS, 2.7 REB, 3.8 AST
- Advanced statistics: 10.7 win shares, -0.4 box plus/minus, 3.9 VORP
- Accolades
--- 1977-78 STL Champ
#41. Alex Len
- 黑料社 score: 2.9
- Fifth overall pick in 2013
- Played five seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 7.4 PTS, 5.7 REB, 0.8 AST
- Advanced statistics: 21.9 win shares, -1.9 box plus/minus, 0.2 VORP
#40. De'Anthony Melton
- 黑料社 score: 3.1
- 46th overall pick in 2018
- Played one season with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 8.8 PTS, 3.7 REB, 2.7 AST
- Advanced statistics: 11.9 win shares, 0.7 box plus/minus, 4.6 VORP
#39. Ron Boone
- 黑料社 score: 3.5
- 147th overall pick in 1968
- Career averages: 16.8 PTS, 4.2 REB, 3.7 AST
- Advanced statistics: 11.5 win shares
- Accolades
--- 1971 ABA Champ
--- 4x All Star
#38. Cameron Johnson
- 黑料社 score: 3.5
- 11th overall pick in 2019
- Played four seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 11.3 PTS, 3.8 REB, 1.5 AST
- Advanced statistics: 14.4 win shares, 1.4 box plus/minus, 4.9 VORP
#37. Andrew Lang
- 黑料社 score: 3.9
- 28th overall pick in 1988
- Played four seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 6.0 PTS, 4.8 REB, 0.6 AST
- Advanced statistics: 28.6 win shares, -1.8 box plus/minus, 0.7 VORP
#36. T.J. Warren
- 黑料社 score: 4.1
- 14th overall pick in 2014
- Played six seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 14.6 PTS, 4.0 REB, 1.2 AST
- Advanced statistics: 20.8 win shares, -0.3 box plus/minus, 4.2 VORP
#35. Corky Calhoun
- 黑料社 score: 4.3
- Fourth overall pick in 1972
- Played three seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 5.3 PTS, 3.6 REB, 1.1 AST
- Advanced statistics: 14.4 win shares
- Accolades
--- 1977 NBA Champ
#34. Markieff Morris
- 黑料社 score: 4.5
- 13th overall pick in 2011
- Played five seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 10.6 PTS, 5.0 REB, 1.6 AST
- Advanced statistics: 27.5 win shares, -1.4 box plus/minus, 2.7 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 0.0%
- Accolades
--- 2020 NBA Champ
#33. Charles Jones
- 黑料社 score: 4.5
- 165th overall pick in 1979
- Career averages: 2.5 PTS, 4.5 REB, 0.9 AST
- Advanced statistics: 24.6 win shares, -0.9 box plus/minus, 4.0 VORP
- Accolades
--- 1995 NBA Champ
#32. Bogdan Bogdanovi膰
- 黑料社 score: 4.7
- 27th overall pick in 2014
- Career averages: 14.2 PTS, 3.4 REB, 3.3 AST
- Advanced statistics: 19.0 win shares, 0.4 box plus/minus, 6.5 VORP
#31. Alvin Scott
- 黑料社 score: 5.0
- 136th overall pick in 1977
- Played eight seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 4.9 PTS, 3.2 REB, 1.4 AST
- Advanced statistics: 23.0 win shares, 0.2 box plus/minus, 5.9 VORP
#30. Oliver Miller
- 黑料社 score: 5.3
- 22nd overall pick in 1992
- Played three seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 7.4 PTS, 5.9 REB, 2.2 AST
- Advanced statistics: 21.1 win shares, 0.6 box plus/minus, 7.4 VORP
#29. Ricky Sobers
- 黑料社 score: 5.5
- 16th overall pick in 1975
- Played two seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 13.3 PTS, 2.6 REB, 4.3 AST
- Advanced statistics: 32.0 win shares, -1.3 box plus/minus, 4.1 VORP
#28. John Shumate
- 黑料社 score: 5.5
- Fourth overall pick in 1974
- Played one season with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 12.3 PTS, 7.5 REB, 1.8 AST
- Advanced statistics: 24.5 win shares, 1.0 box plus/minus, 6.9 VORP
#27. Mike Bantom
- 黑料社 score: 6.4
- Eighth overall pick in 1973
- Played three seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 12.1 PTS, 6.4 REB, 2.3 AST
- Advanced statistics: 34.8 win shares, -0.8 box plus/minus, 5.7 VORP
#26. Deandre Ayton
- 黑料社 score: 6.4
- First overall pick in 2018
- Played five seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 16.7 PTS, 10.4 REB, 1.6 AST
- Advanced statistics: 30.9 win shares, 1.1 box plus/minus, 7.2 VORP
#25. Mikal Bridges
- 黑料社 score: 7.7
- 10th overall pick in 2018
- Played five seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 13.1 PTS, 4.0 REB, 2.3 AST
- Advanced statistics: 32.1 win shares, 1.2 box plus/minus, 10.3 VORP
- Accolades
--- 2021-22 All-Defensive
#24. Leandro Barbosa
- 黑料社 score: 7.8
- 28th overall pick in 2003
- Played nine seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 10.6 PTS, 2.0 REB, 2.1 AST
- Advanced statistics: 37.4 win shares, -0.2 box plus/minus, 8.6 VORP
- Accolades
--- 2015 NBA Champ
#23. Kyle Macy
- 黑料社 score: 7.9
- 22nd overall pick in 1979
- Played five seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 9.5 PTS, 2.2 REB, 4.0 AST
- Advanced statistics: 36.0 win shares, 0.7 box plus/minus, 9.6 VORP
#22. Robin Lopez
- 黑料社 score: 7.9
- 15th overall pick in 2008
- Played four seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 8.5 PTS, 4.8 REB, 0.8 AST
- Advanced statistics: 49.6 win shares, -1.1 box plus/minus, 4.6 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 0.0%
#21. Stephen Jackson
- 黑料社 score: 8.5
- 43rd overall pick in 1997
- Career averages: 15.1 PTS, 3.9 REB, 3.1 AST
- Advanced statistics: 36.1 win shares, -0.4 box plus/minus, 11.2 VORP
- Accolades
--- 2003 NBA Champ
#20. Ed Pinckney
- 黑料社 score: 8.6
- 10th overall pick in 1985
- Played two seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 6.8 PTS, 5.0 REB, 0.9 AST
- Advanced statistics: 42.7 win shares, 0.3 box plus/minus, 9.2 VORP
#19. Cedric Ceballos
- 黑料社 score: 8.7
- 48th overall pick in 1990
- Played six seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 14.3 PTS, 5.3 REB, 1.2 AST
- Advanced statistics: 40.4 win shares, 0.7 box plus/minus, 10.1 VORP
- Accolades
--- 1x All Star
#18. Neal Walk
- 黑料社 score: 9.1
- Second overall pick in 1969
- Played five seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 12.6 PTS, 7.7 REB, 2.1 AST
- Advanced statistics: 30.3 win shares
#17. Devin Booker
- 黑料社 score: 9.3
- 13th overall pick in 2015
- Played eight seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 23.9 PTS, 4.0 REB, 4.8 AST
- Advanced statistics: 35.9 win shares, 0.9 box plus/minus, 13.1 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 1.1%
- Accolades
--- 2021-22 All-NBA
--- 3x All Star
#16. Jay Humphries
- 黑料社 score: 9.6
- 13th overall pick in 1984
- Played four seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 11.1 PTS, 2.5 REB, 5.5 AST
- Advanced statistics: 45.0 win shares, -0.1 box plus/minus, 11.0 VORP
#15. Mark Eaton
- 黑料社 score: 9.8
- 107th overall pick in 1979
- Career averages: 6.0 PTS, 7.9 REB, 1.0 AST
- Advanced statistics: 44.8 win shares, -0.1 box plus/minus, 11.8 VORP
- Accolades
--- 2x Def. POY
--- 4x BLK Champ
--- 5x All-Defensive
--- 1x All Star
#14. Armen Gilliam
- 黑料社 score: 10.5
- Second overall pick in 1987
- Played three seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 13.7 PTS, 6.9 REB, 1.2 AST
- Advanced statistics: 58.1 win shares, -0.7 box plus/minus, 8.8 VORP
#13. Steve Kerr
- 黑料社 score: 10.6
- 50th overall pick in 1988
- Played one season with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 6.0 PTS, 1.2 REB, 1.8 AST
- Advanced statistics: 47.2 win shares, 0.8 box plus/minus, 11.6 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 3.3%
- Accolades
--- 5x NBA Champ
#12. Wesley Person
- 黑料社 score: 10.9
- 23rd overall pick in 1994
- Played three seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 11.2 PTS, 3.3 REB, 1.7 AST
- Advanced statistics: 44.0 win shares, 0.9 box plus/minus, 15.2 VORP
#11. Goran Dragi膰
- 黑料社 score: 12.8
- 45th overall pick in 2008
- Played six seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 13.3 PTS, 3.0 REB, 4.7 AST
- Advanced statistics: 56.7 win shares, 0.5 box plus/minus, 15.9 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 0.4%
- Accolades
--- 2013-14 All-NBA
--- 1x All Star
#10. Dan Majerle
- 黑料社 score: 20.7
- 14th overall pick in 1988
- Played eight seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 11.4 PTS, 4.5 REB, 2.9 AST
- Advanced statistics: 78.5 win shares, 1.9 box plus/minus, 29.7 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 2.0%
- Accolades
--- 2x All-Defensive
--- 3x All Star
#9. Alvan Adams
- 黑料社 score: 20.8
- Fourth overall pick in 1975
- Played 13 seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 14.1 PTS, 7.0 REB, 4.1 AST
- Advanced statistics: 73.5 win shares, 2.8 box plus/minus, 33.0 VORP
- Accolades
--- 1975-76 ROY
--- 1x All Star
#8. Michael Finley
- 黑料社 score: 20.9
- 21st overall pick in 1995
- Played two seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 15.7 PTS, 4.4 REB, 2.9 AST
- Advanced statistics: 85.2 win shares, 1.0 box plus/minus, 28.8 VORP
- Accolades
--- 2007 NBA Champ
--- 2x All Star
#7. Walter Davis
- 黑料社 score: 23.7
- Fifth overall pick in 1977
- Played 11 seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 18.9 PTS, 3.0 REB, 3.8 AST
- Advanced statistics: 76.9 win shares, 1.5 box plus/minus, 25.3 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 30.9%
- Accolades
--- 1977-78 ROY
--- 2x All-NBA
--- 6x All Star
#6. Jeff Hornacek
- 黑料社 score: 28.5
- 46th overall pick in 1986
- Played six seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 14.5 PTS, 3.4 REB, 4.9 AST
- Advanced statistics: 108.9 win shares, 2.9 box plus/minus, 42.1 VORP
- Accolades
--- 1x All Star
#5. Larry Nance
- 黑料社 score: 29.9
- 20th overall pick in 1981
- Played seven seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 17.1 PTS, 8.0 REB, 2.6 AST
- Advanced statistics: 109.6 win shares, 3.6 box plus/minus, 43.5 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 4.8%
- Accolades
--- 3x All-Defensive
--- 3x All Star
#4. Amar'e Stoudemire
- 黑料社 score: 31.6
- Ninth overall pick in 2002
- Played eight seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 18.9 PTS, 7.8 REB, 1.2 AST
- Advanced statistics: 92.5 win shares, 1.3 box plus/minus, 21.9 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 72.9%
- Accolades
--- 2002-03 ROY
--- 5x All-NBA
--- 6x All Star
#3. George Gervin
- 黑料社 score: 37.9
- 40th overall pick in 1974
- Career averages: 25.1 PTS, 5.3 REB, 2.6 AST
- Advanced statistics: 88.1 win shares, 2.4 box plus/minus, 29.8 VORP
- Accolades
--- 4x Scoring Champ
--- 7x All-NBA
--- 1979-80 AS MVP
--- Basketball Hall of Fame inductee
#2. Shawn Marion
- 黑料社 score: 45.0
- Ninth overall pick in 1999
- Played nine seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 15.2 PTS, 8.7 REB, 1.9 AST
- Advanced statistics: 124.9 win shares, 2.7 box plus/minus, 47.6 VORP
- Hall of Fame probability: 75.6%
- Accolades
--- 2011 NBA Champ
--- 2x All-NBA
--- 4x All Star
#1. Steve Nash
- 黑料社 score: 49.6
- 15th overall pick in 1996
- Played 10 seasons with Phoenix Suns
- Career averages: 14.3 PTS, 3.0 REB, 8.5 AST
- Advanced statistics: 129.7 win shares, 3.0 box plus/minus, 48.2 VORP
- Accolades
--- 2x MVP
--- 5x AST Champ
--- 7x All-NBA
--- Basketball Hall of Fame inductee
