2020 NBA Draft Grade: Suns select Jalen Smith with number 10 overall selection

The NBA Draft already had a big surprise in the top 10 when the Chicago Bulls picked Patrick Williams No. 4 from the US state of Florida. Now has a second. The Phoenix Suns have selected the great Maryland man Jalen Smith with the number 10.

Smith projects as a strong offensive player in the NBA. He is a strong athlete who averaged 15.5 points per game last season. If he shoots 36.8 percent with 3 pointers, then there is optimism that he can grow into a legitimate stretch big man. However, his defense was a major problem. He still has a long way to go.

The choice is surprising on several levels. First of all, the suns have DeAndre Ayton as the center of the future. He was number 1 in the overall ranking two years ago and has largely met the bill. Second, the Suns chose to act as an above-average team this off-season to keep their rights to two other great men: Aron Baynes and Dario Saric. Where Smith fits into this group, whoever else is there, remains to be seen.

It has been commonly projected that the Suns are aimed at a 3-and-D perspective like Devin Vassell or Saddiq Bey with their selection. Tyrese Haliburton, often ridiculed as high as # 4, was also available and could have served as a long-term replacement for Chris Paul at Point Guard. Instead, the suns went with Smith and stunned the entire NBA community.

NBA Draft Note: D-

It’s a surprise at every level. I don’t get it. I thought I liked Jalen Smith more than most, but I had him in my late teens. But not in the top 10 and not in a team that already has DeAndre Ayton. It’s more like distance five than distance four, and that’s just not a position of distress or of great value. But Phoenix has done things in the past that make little sense. – Gary Parrish