“Need that motherf*cker cooking!”: Kevin Garnett stresses Phoenix Suns to sign new point guard to unlock Devin Booker’s full potential
Devin Booker is currently averaging a career-high 7.7 assists per game, helping to fill the gap left by Chris Paul in the team's offense. The team is in eighth place in the Western Conference, sitting 2.5 games behind the seventh-place New Orleans Pelicans. While Devin Booker has been doing his best to facilitate, Kevin Garnett believes the Suns need a true point guard.
Although the West has continued to be increasingly competitive in recent years, this year also notably features plenty of new contenders. Throughout the first half of the season, the Timberwolves remain atop the conference, with the OKC Thunder just behind.
In addition, with teams who started slow, like the LA Clippers, now surging, it appears the Suns will have to make some moves before February 8th. During a recent episode of his and Paul Pierce's podcast, Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett weighed in on the situation, offering some advice to the Suns.
He feels that to unlock Booker and Bradley Beal's full potential, they can't let Booker default to the point guard position:
"They need a point guard, bro. That's why that shit looked like that, bro. they need a real point guard. Bradley Beal, let's keep this real. Bradley Beal is a two. Booker is a two. Guess what they want to do? They want to score the ball bro. I don't want Booker coming down consolidating, I need that motherf****r cooking! (00:00:45 )"
Kevin Garnett names the player he believes the Phoenix Suns should get to handle point guard duties for Devin Booker
Jones, who has led the NBA in assists-to-turnover ratio for five straight seasons, currently plays for the Washington Wizards. He is averaging a career-high 27.9 minutes, 12.6 points, and 5.5 assists per game.
After seeing the efficiency of Tyus Jones with the Memphis Grizzlies last season, Garnett believes he could be a quality point guard in Phoenix:
"You know who Phoenix need to go get? [Tyus] Jones. ... that motherf****r other than Halliburton, he is prolific when it comes to being effective and taking care of the ball. ... He does not turn the ball over bro. He don't turn it over. ...
"And then when you think about Memphis, when they was playing without Ja, bro, he was the head of that."
ESPN's NBA trade machine can show what a potential Jones-to-Phoenix trade may look like. Should the Suns pursue a deal ahead of the 2/8 deadline, they would have to match the $14 million Jones is making this year.
Looking at their roster and salaries, one possible trade would see the Suns sending Grayson Allen, Bol Bol and Chimezie Metu to the Wizards. Whether the Suns decide to heed Garnett's advice remains to be seen.