Eric Bledsoe Suns preseason

Craig Michelldyer – USA Today Sports Images

The Phoenix Suns brought in new general manager Ryan McDonough this summer to try and make sense of the mess that was created by previous regimes in Phoenix that led to them being one of the worst teams in the NBA last season. Essentially, McDonough has to come in and get rid of bad contracts while also building a roster with purpose.

McDonough and the Suns certainly made a splash this off-season when they were able to pull off a trade that landed them point guard Eric Bledsoe from the Los Angeles Clippers. Bledsoe had spent his previous three seasons in the league backing up Chris Paul and receiving a ton of praise for his performance in that role. Coming to Phoenix, though, he’s going to be their centerpiece this season.

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In his first preseason game with the Suns against Maccabi Haifa, an Israeli club, Bledsoe was impressive with his skill, speed and athleticism. In 21 minutes he managed to put up 22 points, four assists, three rebounds and five steals while shooting 10-15 from the field. Against a lesser team, he was as dominant as you would expect him to be.

As the Suns faced off against the Portland Trail Blazers in their second game of the preseason, though, Bledsoe was much less effective as a scorer. Sure, he finished the game with nine assists, five rebounds and four steals in 25 minutes, but he also managed only six points on just 3-11 shooting from the floor.

Honestly, though, that type of inconsistency in terms of scoring is an issue with Bledsoe and has been. One game he can come out and be able to hit everything at the rim and the next time he comes on the floor he’ll be throwing up bricks off of the rim. It’s really trick or treat with his scoring.

As Bledsoe steps into this larger role, the Suns are going to need for him to mature and find a cure for his inconsistency offensively. If Phoenix is going to have any kind of success this season, Bledsoe is going to need to be the catalyst and that’s not going to happen if you don’t know what you’re getting from him on a nightly basis.

Cody Williams is a Senior Writer with Rant Sports. Follow Cody on Twitter @TheSizzle20, add him on Google and like his Facebook page.

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