‘Grown man’ Bazley rejoins Paul on Suns
Darius Bazley is newest member of the Phoenix Suns, but he’s familiar with their point guard — Chris Paul.
They were teammates in Oklahoma City in 2019-20 when Bazley was a rookie.
So, when the Suns (31-27) traded Dario Saric and a second-round pick to Oklahoma City for Bazley right before last Thursday’s 1 p.m. trade deadline, Paul called him.
“It’s just crazy how this league works, how life works,” Paul said.
Bazley and Paul have reunited as the listed 6-8 forward will be available for Tuesday’s game against Sacramento (32-24) at Footprint Center.
“It was good, it was all smiles when I saw him,” Bazley said. “He called me when I got traded. It was good seeing him.”
The Suns shook up the league with trading Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder, four first-round picks and a pick swap to Brooklyn for Kevin Durant and T.J. Warren late last Wednesday night.
Later the following Thursday afternoon, they made a move for Bazley, who is in his fourth NBA season.
“Baz is a grown man now,” said Paul, who was traded to Phoenix after his one season in Oklahoma City in 2019-20. “I’m excited for him coming into our team and also with a guy like KD so he can really see what the work looks like.”
Bazley is averaging a career-low 5.4 points this season two years after averaging a career-high 13.7 his second NBA season in 2020-21.
“He’s a young guy that just hasn’t found his consistent niche if you will in the NBA,” Suns coach Monty Williams said. “We look at his body, we look at his skill set, we look at how he was viewed when he came out and some of his early success he had at OKC, you have to ask yourself what can we do help him get on a path that’s more consistent.”
Bazley didn’t play college ball as he was a standout out of Princeton High School in Cincinnati. The Utah Jazz drafted him 23rd overall in 2019 before trading him to the Thunder.
Now he’s with the Suns looking to help contribute to a championship run.
“My versatility defensively,” said Bazley when asked what he can bring to the Suns right away. “Being able to guard one through five. Offensively, bring my athleticism to the game. Being able to knock down shots.”
Bazley is shooting a career-best 40% from 3 this season.
“He’s 6-9, long arms, athletic,” Williams said.
“Can make a shot. Has defensive capabilities to affect the game, it’s like, how do you help him become a part of your program. It may take us a while to figure that out. We hope we can, but he’s got some tools and attributes that not many NBA players have. We’ve got to figure out how we can help him.”