The Phoenix Suns are taking a chance on an older NBA veteran. Help is needed throughout the league. But it often comes from unexpected sources. However, the Suns are going with something of a proven track record to help their playoff push. Additionally, concerns remain regardless of who is added. But due to the top-end talent on this roster alone, many are picking them to go far in the playoffs this year.
But is one of their better potential impact players being underutilized at this point in time?
Frank Vogel Limiting Isaiah Thomas?
Frank Vogel spoke with the press and answered questions about the role of Isaiah Thomas. Thomas comes after a brief stint outside of the NBA. However, he stayed ready and is looking to take advantage of this latest opportunity. A lot of fans remember him from his days with the Boston Celtics. Also, he famously played through injuries, and looking back now, it appears that that move harmed him long-term. But he’s looking to prove the naysayers wrong. Skeptics claim that he is beyond his prime and too far removed from being a useful contributor on an NBA roster.
But the latest comments from his head coach are going to do little to turn that narrative around. But that’s not what’s most important. He only played an entire 2 minutes in his debut game for the Suns. By debut, we of course mean his second with this Phoenix Suns roster. But either way, it would have been nice to see a little more of a run in his first action back with this team.
Phoenix Suns Stunning Admission
Coach Vogel explained how he sees Thomas fitting in this season.
Suns head coach Frank Vogel on Isaiah Thomas's role with the team:
"He's here for depth. When we're at full strength, he won't be in the rotation… If we have injuries/foul trouble to [Devin] Booker and [Bradley Beal] in particular, then we got to look at the point guard depth… pic.twitter.com/l9Nt2tWmw3
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 21, 2024
He elaborated:
He’s here for depth. When we’re at full strength, he won’t be in the rotation.
He would go on to clarify further:
If we have injuries / foul trouble to (Devin) Booker and (Bradley) Beal in particular, then we got to look at the point guard depth and he comes in and plays at that point.
These words indicate that you shouldn’t expect a role to the level that we saw with the Boston Celtics or anything near that. Instead, he’s more of a security blanket at this point. For those claiming that it’s due to defense, this isn’t an overstated aspect at this point. This Phoenix Suns team is overall decent on that end of the court. However, too often, offensively, they struggle.
If Durant or Booker don’t go off and have brilliant performances, then this team struggles. Therefore, it’s reasonable to expect that throughout the rest of this regular season and during the playoffs, whenever this team needs a boost, Thomas could be someone the Phoenix Suns look to.
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