Suns re-sign Isaiah Canaan after recovery from ankle surgery

The Suns announced Friday afternoon that the team has re-signed point guard Isaiah Canaan, a move weeks in the making which should provide needed depth heading into training camp.

Canaan came to Phoenix last December just before Mike James was cut, eight days after Devin Booker injured his groin and went on to miss nine games. The 27-year-old point guard went on to be one of the only positives for the Phoenix offense, notably helping their spacing more than any point guard option.

Canaan averaged 9.1 points and 4.0 assists in 19 games, shooting 33 percent from 3 but just 38 percent overall.

With only Brandon Knight, Elie Okobo and Shaquille Harrison filling the point guard depth chart at this point, it was likely Phoenix would make a move to add depth. The relationship between Canaan and the Suns, the franchise which helped nurse him back from Feb. 1 ankle surgery, surely factored into their decision to bring Canaan back to compete in northern Arizona during training camp.

With names like Shelvin Mack and Malcolm Delaney still on the board, steady options with less efficiency concerns than Canaan, it’s surprising the Suns stuck with a known quantity instead of signing a new player. Mack played under coach Igor Kokoskov in Utah.

Update: Bright Side contributor Evan Sidery reported Canaan’s deal is fully non-guaranteed, creating a real training camp competition. Harrison is on a partially guaranteed deal, which will not fully guarantee until January.