Round 2 - Pick 34 - Phoenix Suns

Unlike the first two picks that generated so much controversy and debate in the war room, the Phoenix Suns looked quite calm as pick #35 became #34 due to the Philadelphia 76ers' clock running out.  Although their primary targets all went off the board in the few picks before them, there were nonetheless a few players who still intrigued to take and see what could be made of them.  That didn't mean the decision was swift to arrive however.  Considerable discussion centered around a big man, two point guards, and a wing, although it was without the fire and rancor of the previous selections.

"Point Guard #1 is a no go," said one person. "Doesn't have the passing or the smarts to run the offense, and I'm really not seeing him as a two guard.  On the other hand, Point Guard #2 may not be the most amazing player on the planet or have any ability to play defense, but he's smart as hell and has a lot of things we look for in a player.  He also had a pretty damn good, underrated draft camp, too.  I don't think he'll be there at #45, to be honest."

"But we need a big," countered the same one who called for AJ Hammons or Kaleb T at #10.  "We should take that guy we really liked at the combine for this range."

"He didn't even make the fucking draft camp," retorted the point guard analyst, "That's way too early to be going #35.  No, if we're going a big, we're going a guy who actually participated in the tournament."

"What about the wing?" a third interjected. "He looks like a great shooter."

"And couldn't defend you in a pickup game," grinned Jestor, to the laughter of the room.  "Let's be honest.  We've got two bigs we wouldn't mind, a wing who has some great things and some major flaws to him, and a point guard who I think will really fit in our setup, even if we do pry Isiah Thomas away from the Miami Heat.  Plus, I think this kid we're taking is a guy who can play 1-3, and you all know how much I love versatility."

"With the 34th overall pick in the 2014 draft, the Phoenix Suns select...



















Leo Westermann, point guard, France

At the press conference announcing the pick:

The old saying is, you can't teach height, and as a 6'7, natural point guard, Leo really impressed us at the combine with his basketball intelligence and more polished than expected floor general skills.  He went on to further demonstrate his ready ability to run an offense as a bench player with a strong draft camp, and also alleviated some of the concerns we had about his shooting, with an acceptable tournament in terms of accuracy.  With his length and size, we envision him lining up anywhere from 1-3, depending on matchups, and hope he can become at least an adequate defender in time, though we're not sure about his upside.  We just know that we felt he was one of the most ready-now and best system fits left."

Draft Camp Numbers:
- 5.7 points (45% shooting - 9/20, 25% from 3 point - 1/4), 4.2 assists, 2.4 A/TO ratio

Not bad, actually scouted this guy and looks alright.

yaeh, he will be a great backup I believe

I scouted this guy a bit, but really didn't see anything there. But I guess in the beginning of the 2nd, it's about as good as you're gonna get.

I know I scouted him once and realized he wasn't a target for me at my draft spot so didn't give him much of a look. He's got tremendous size and could be a good facilitator from the three.