The second Haywood Highsmith article in as many days? Your eyes do not deceive you, Brighsiders. The HH hive is forming.
Haywood Highsmith’s statline last night may not have jumped off the page, but his impact ran deep. So deep that another Bright Sider (Bruce Veliz) decided to write about him too, which you can read here.
In his first true stint with the Suns, he posted 3 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal in 21 minutes off the bench. He was a plus-19 on the night, the highest on the Suns.
Again, not a line that will stand out for the box scores browsers out there, but if you watched the game, you saw the impact. It was the little things. All the things this Suns team has preached during the offseason and lived by for (most) of this season.
Was there some rust out there? Of course. He’s been sidelined for quite some time now, and no, his brief 45-second stint with the Suns doesn’t count as actual runtime.
His defense was as advertised. He is disruptive, he turns opponents, he works hard, and he seems to be a magnet for the ball. I truly cannot wait for Jordan Goodwin and Haywood Highsmith to share the floor together. The amount of “winning plays” made would be through the roof.
Brian Gregory and company certainly have a type, and by all accounts, Haywood Highsmith is the “glue guy/swiss army knife” type of role player that they love to target. Coming from Miami, Highsmith understands what it takes to be a part of the system and play a specific role that keeps him on the court. He knows he is likely going to be the 4th or 5th scoring option every time he steps on the floor. Getting buckets isn’t what will keep him on the floor. Making the right plays will.
Jordan Ott already rewards Royce O’Neale over the likes of Ryan Dunn or Rasheer Fleming late in games for that reason alone. Ott already praised Highsmith last night, stating: “Fantastic. From the jump, you could feel his physicality, his aggressiveness on the basketball… you could feel him.”
His wingspan makes him a threat defensively at all times. He can jump in the passing lanes and create havoc while applying constant pressure up top. He has active hands, and you saw a glimpse of that on display last night.
Adding another capable wing defender with high IQ is a welcome sight for a Suns team battling some key injuries. Luckily for them, reinforcements could be on the way. Jordan Goodwin has been upgraded to questionable, and we could see Grayson Allen return as well.
At full strength, there’s no telling how large or small Haywood Highsmith’s role will be, but boy, is it nice to have him around for depth purposes. The same goes for Amir Coffey. The Suns are bringing in professionals on the margins. And he’ll be around next year too, if they want him. And I think they will.
Another tip of the cap to Brian Gregory.
