Suns Player of the Week: Marcus Morris?

Statistically speaking, player of the week should probably go to either Goran Dragic or Eric Bledsoe.

Against the Clippers, Wizards and Bulls, the Dragon put up 17 points and 4.7 assists per game on 46% shooting from the field. And then there's Bledsoe, who posted averages of 16 points and 6.3 assists on 47% shooting over the past week.

But for the Slash Brothers, that's just another week at the office. And it's almost a guarantee that they will have numerous other opportunities to be player of the week by dominating the competition.

So instead, I'm dedicating this week to one of the only main rotation players who we have yet to speak about.

Opinions on Mook Morris may differ quite a bit, as he has a volatile personality that shows on the court. In the two weeks between December 26th and January 7th, Marcus picked up 4 technical fouls. The fourth and final one came during the Suns-Timberwolves game on national TV, and led to an altercation between Morris and Hornacek on the sidelines during a timeout. Marcus was benched for the remainder of that game, and on top of that it certainly wasn't good press for the Suns.

Since then, things have been looking up. Marcus has not been slapped with another tech since that game, and seems to have committed himself to playing as well as he can within his role as the team's 7th/8th man. Over the past four games, Marcus is averaging 10.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals in only 21 minutes per game. On top of that, he converted on 8 of 16 three-point attempts during that stretch.

But has he turned the corner? Hard to say, especially while the Morris twins are being investigated for a possible assault case.

Everyone knows that Marcus is a talented player. He has a smooth jumper, he can shoot close to 40% from behind the arc, and he can score in isolation so that the offense isn't so helpless in a half court set. His defense appears to be improved as well. Those skills are easily worth $5 million per year while the NBA salary cap rises significantly due to a new TV deal.

However, if he wants to stay in the NBA for more than just the next several years he has to avoid developing a reputation as a hothead. I doubt that anyone thinks of Mook as a "cancer" right now, but it doesn't take that many mistakes in this league to reach that point. There are always talented players who are willing to take your spot the second you make a mistake.

This isn't a critique of either twin's work ethic or determination. As I said earlier, Marcus is doing much better this month and he deserves praise for it. But that doesn't mean he can afford to go back to his old ways.

And that's not just foolishness.

Anyway, here are some Marcus highlights. Vote for your player of the week below! Here are the stats from key players:

Marcus: 20.4 MPG, 10.3 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 1.3 APG, 1.3 SPG, 0.3 TPG, 46/46/75 shooting.

Bledsoe: 35.3 MPG, 16.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 6.3 APG, 2.3 SPG, 3.7 TPG, 47/36/83 shooting.

Dragic: 36.5 MPG, 17.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 4.7 APG, 1.7 SPG, 1.3 TPG, 46/33/80 shooting.

Thomas: 22.8 MPG, 16.3 PPG, 1.7 RPG, 2.0 APG, 0.7 SPG, 0.3 TPG, 36/43/89 shooting.

Len: 23.5 MPG, 10.0 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 0.0 APG, 1.0 BPG, 1.3 TPG, 68% from the field.

Brandan Wright (only appeared in 2 games): 17.8 MPG, 10.5 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 1.5 BPG, 0.0 TPG, 82% from the field.