Welcome to the inaugural edition of eDraft’s NBA Season Preview. We turn our attention to the Pacific Division, covering everyone from the pretenders to the contenders. Today we take a look at the Suns. This is a young and exciting team, but do they have enough talent to make it back to the playoffs?

Key Additions: Luis Scola (F), Goran Dragic (G),
Michael Beasley (F), Wesley Johnson (G),
Kendall Marshall (13th overall, G)

With the loss of veterans Grant Hill, Hakim Warrick, Robin Lopez and, above all, Steve Nash, it would be easy to dismiss this Suns team as dead in the water. For the first time in two decades Phoenix lacks a super-star calibre player: indeed, they may not even have an all-star representative, but the future looks bright and it might not take all that long to arrive. To be clear, the Suns will be lucky to make the playoffs this year, indeed, it might be two years before they emerge from the lottery pack. The roster is filled with large holes, there are too many new faces, and there are no clear go-to guys on the squad for the Suns to hope to crack the top-eight in the West right now, but the foundation is set.

The Suns management pulled off the two smartest signings of the summer in Michael Beasley (12.9 PPG-5.7RPG-13.62PER) and Luis Scola (14.6PPG-8.4RPG-18.14PER). An amnesty victim, Scola came cheap and should be able to provide toughness and inside scoring right away. Houston let him go in hopes that they would be able to pull off a deal for Dwight Howard, and when that fell through Phoenix snapped him up. By the end of the summer every team in the league was lamenting the fact that they had missed out on the big Argentine.

Michael Beasley on the other hand, must have felt lucky to still be desired by someone. The exceedingly talented forward wore out his welcome in both Miami and Minnesota and was pursued with enthusiasm by only a handful of other general managers. Apparently his past off-court behavior, and reputation for being immature were enough to drive off potential suitors, which was all the better for Phoenix because in Beasley the Suns have one of the best pure scorers in the game. While it would be generous to call Beasley a strong defender this part of his game is slowly improving, and his rebounding numbers have always been solid. Besides, the Suns have never had a reputation for bruising basketball—Beasley is an excellent fit for the franchise.

Goran Dragic (16PPG-7.6APG-16.31PER) should also find success with the Suns if his play as a starter last season is a reliable indicator. When given the minutes with the Rockets last year, Dragic put up all-star stats, and while no one expects multiple MVP awards from the young Slovenian his PER should be above the league average this season. And if, for some reason Dragic should not work out, the Suns drafted a fine playmaker in former Tar Heel Kendall Marshall. While not the most athletic player, Marshall is an elite passer and is an extremely intelligent player who has should be playing the NBA for a long time to come.  The former lottery pick Wesley Johnson will also be in the mix, and the Suns hope that the former Syracuse standout can regain some of the college magic.

Next summer the Suns should be able to offer a max contract and secure a top-notch free agent. Signing a big man would seem to be a priority for the Suns. Paul Millsap and Josh Smith are both reasonable targets, would be excellent in the Phoenix system, and either would probably be enough to get the Suns back to the playoffs. The Suns could also aim a bit lower (and pay a lot less), perhaps signing a player like Samuel Dalembert or DeJuan Blair to help sure up their feeble defense, and still find themselves in good position in the West. Marcin Gortat (12.6PPG-10.7RPG-3.9BPG-14.71PER) is a skilled offensive player who is entering his prime, and he could conceivably be the center of the future if the Suns surround him with the right role players. In any case it’s clear that the Phoenix management, if this past summer was any guide, will choose wisely.

Reason for optimism: Jared Dudley (8.3PPG-1.9APG-38 3P%) can shoot the three and play great D. He also bravely made the ‘It Gets Better’ commercials, what more could you ask from your shooting guard?

Reason for despair: The Suns have always been weak defensively, but look for this cast to take bad defense to a new level.

Projected record: 38-44