Bledsoe’s playmaking key to team’s success

When Eric Bledsoe’s old team visited his new home last week, Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan dunked and asked Bledsoe, “You miss that, don’t you?”

Eh, not so much. Bledsoe said he loves his old teammates but has moved on. He got to be the playmaker on those dunks only during Clippers backup time. Now, with the Suns, he has more minutes to be a playmaker, just as soon as he figures out when and how to do so alongside Goran Dragic.

In the Suns’ four preseason games against NBA teams, Bledsoe averaged 5.8 assists and 2.3 turnovers but shot only 38.9 percent from the field, including making 2 of 10 3-point tries. Bledsoe is a major two-way contributor as one of the league’s better pressuring, rebounding and shot-blocking guards, but his maturation as a floor general will go a long way in deciding how much the Suns progress.

“Even in the San Antonio game (when he missed his first eight shots), I thought I played pretty good,” Bledsoe said. “As far as shooting, I’m not worried about that. For me, right now, it’s trying to help the team win. I’m going to get my shots. I’m trying to feel out the game and execute plays. I go off the flow of the game. Everyone runs pretty much the same plays, but the NBA is about reads, like if a guy is sitting back and I’ve got the jumper or if a guy comes up and now I have to pass.”

When Bledsoe plays off the ball with Dragic, two concerns were how much Bledsoe would get posted up and how well he would shoot from the perimeter. One sequence in Thursday’s loss at Sacramento eased both concerns.

Suns forward P.J. Tucker came from the help side to steal an entry pass for Greivis Vasquez when he posted up Bledsoe. Moments later, Bledsoe made a 3.

But the mix of Bledsoe and Dragic still has kinks, like figuring out which player gets outlets to push the tempo or inbounds to run offense.

Dragic asked Bledsoe to play off the ball during Thursday’s game to get him shots.

Bledsoe raves about playing alongside Dragic’s competitiveness. But Bledsoe has shown more court vision than advertised during camp and relishes that role too.

One of his first plays in Saturday’s open practice was driving down the baseline and trying a behind-the-back pass that was deflected out of bounds. The Suns’ Eric Bledsoe (right, vs. the Clippers on Oct. 15) is expected to be a playmaker. ROB SCHUMACHER/AZCENTRAL SPORTS

Practice scrimmage

A crowd of at least 1,500 fans attended the free open practice that culminated with a 10-minute scrimmage.

Markieff (eight points) and Marcus (six points) Morris scored most of their team’s points for a 26-22 win. With Bledsoe and Kendall Marshall as their point guards, that winning team scored nine of its 13 baskets on layups or slams. For the losing team, Miles Plumlee scored six points in seven minutes with a jump shot, a hook shot and a fast-break slam off Gerald Green’s pass. The defensive highlight of the scrimmage was when Archie Goodwin chased down Dionte Christmas on a fast break and blocked his layup from behind.

Dragic on the mend

As expected, Dragic did not practice Saturday because of the mild-to-moderate left-ankle sprain he suffered when Sacramento’s Jimmer Fredette stepped on his foot and fouled him during Dragic’s fast-break finish.

Dragic worked out on a stationary bike and made an open-practice appearance with his ankle wrapped. He is progressing and might be available to play in the final two preseason games Tuesday and Wednesday.

Coach outshoots team

After the open practice and scrimmage, each of the team’s players took a half-court shot on behalf of a fan for a prize. Every player missed until head coach Jeff Hornacek was encouraged to give it a try. Swish.