I think we might be looking at what the Phoenix Suns roster might look like come opening day after the team signed former Golden State Warriors guard Pat Spencer to a two-way NBA contract, according to ESPN NBA Insider Shams Charania. Suns officials completed the contract on Thursday evening with Mark Bartelstein and Ross Aroyo of Priority Sports.
Spencer, who turns 30 on Saturday, had the best season of his three-year career last season, averaging 7.2 points, 3.5 assists, and 2.4 rebounds per game on 42.7% shooting from the field, 35.7% from deep, and 77.2% from the charity stripe. As a starter, his numbers ballooned to 11.4 points, 5.1 assists, and 3.4 rebounds per game on 45.1/40/60 shooting splits.
One of Spencer’s best games last season came against the Suns back in February, where he scored a career-high 20 points and was one of the Warriors’ main contributors in their fourth quarter double-digit comeback with Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Jimmy Butler sidelined.
Every season of his career, Spencer has increased his minutes, points per game, and games played, and has built a reputation as a pesky defender, which fits right in with the physical culture that the team is building, spearheaded by Dillon Brooks. As the season went on, Spencer’s role with the Warriors continued to expand, as he averaged 10 or more points in two of the last three months of the season, including shooting 40% from downtown in the month of February, and dished out 5.4 assists per game.
After the team resigned guards Collin Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin, picked up the team option on Jamaree Bouyea’s deal, and now signed Spencer, Phoenix has fortified its guard rotation after some concerns about its depth heading into the offseason.
Spencer joins CJ Huntley and Koby Brea as the team’s other two-way players. The roster is up to 18 players, with 15 standard and three two-way deals.
