Paul Coro

azcentral sports

The Suns waived Archie Goodwin – a move they tried to avoid – to keep John Jenkins and filled out the roster with Derrick Jones Jr. – a move they did not see coming.

The Suns waited until after Monday’s practice to make what General Manager Ryan McDonough called “really tough decisions” in setting a roster of 15 players, the NBA maximum, that was due 90 minutes after practice.

In the end, McDonough said they did not see a way Goodwin would play meaningful time in a fourth Suns season.

“We told Archie Goodwin and his agent at the end of last season that if there wasn’t going to be an opportunity for him to play going into the last year of his deal, that we would try to help him get to a good spot,” McDonough said. “We explored some trade scenarios throughout the summer and into the fall. We tried to help him get elsewhere in a trade.“

Unable to fulfill a trade request from the Goodwin camp, the Suns waived the 22-year-old with Jenkins sliding into the role of third-string off-guard behind Devin Booker and Leandro Barbosa.

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The Suns, still more than $3 million below the league salary floor, are set to absorb Goodwin’s $2.1 million salary because he is unlikely to be claimed off waivers. Every NBA team but Chicago went to the roster maximum Monday and teams have other options among waived guards, like Ronnie Price, R.J. Hunter, Gary Payton III and Pablo Prigioni.

“It’s tough for us, for me personally,” said McDonough, who acquired Goodwin in a 2013 draft night deal. “We had him for over three years. He’s improved as a player. He got a lot stronger. His shot has improved. He’s still got some work to do with the shooting. He’s really good in the open court. He’s excellent in transition in getting to the rim. Sometimes, a fresh start for a young guy can be a good thing, especially when he’s somewhat blocked like Archie was here. He’s still so young (22) so I hope that other teams keep that in mind.”

While Goodwin was frustrated at times, Jenkins has been steadfast about wanting to be part of the Suns in any capacity. As he did in July, Jenkins again agreed this week to delay his contract guarantee date on a $1.05 million salary. This time, it was pushed to January.

Jenkins, who has 141 appearances in four seasons due to injuries, shot 40.6 percent from 3-point range in 22 appearances for the Suns after arriving in February.

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“He’s just a guy that we think fits well with how we’re going to play in terms of trying to spread the floor, trying to move the ball around the perimeter and as a guy who can keep defenses honest and knock down shots," McDonough said. "John’s the consummate professional. He’s off the charts in terms of his work ethic, in terms of working before and after practices. He’s probably one of the best in the league with how he carries himself and his professionalism.”

Jones' route to the roster started when the Suns invited him to training camp as an undrafted rookie out of Nevada-Las Vegas, where his career was cut unexpectedly short by a dismissed ACT score in March. The Suns considered him to be a “longshot” but planned to place him with their D-League affiliate.

Then, they saw more of the 6-foot-7, 19-year-old small forward's astounding athleticism, 7-foot wingspan, defensive potential, decent jump shot and ideal approach.

Even a chance that Jones could be claimed by another team if they waived him was enough for the Suns to give him the final roster spot. He agreed to a four-year contract that could be worth as much as $3.63 million but has nothing guaranteed beyond $42,500 of his $543,471 rookie salary.

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“It’s likely that he will spend a good portion of the year in Prescott Valley anyway with the NAZ Suns,” McDonough said. “We liked what we saw from him as a 6-7, 19-year-old guy with great length and athleticism. He just had limited opportunity to play in the preseason but I thought he did pretty well in the two games he got into. We’re intrigued by his size and length and bounce and potential.”

McDonough likes the positional balance of the roster better than recent seasons. It potentially can better withstand injuries and foul issues to a 10-man rotation with a third-team squad now featuring Tyler Ulis, Jenkins, Jones, Alan Williams and Dragan Bender or Marquese Chriss.

On Monday, the Suns also picked up 2017-18 team options in the contracts for Booker (third year, $2.32 million) and T.J. Warren (fourth year, $3.15 million).

Reach Paul Coro atpaul.coro@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-2470. Follow him at twitter.com/paulcoro.