Phoenix Suns are looking for someone to step up in the 2024 NBA playoffs. Drew Eubanks has not been that guy.

Unfortunately for the Suns' rotation — which has suffered tremendously in plus/minus with Eubanks, who is the only player on their roster with a negative plus-minus — Eubanks is on the depth chart ahead of bigs Thad Young and Udoka Azubuike, who had a positive stretch early this season.

Young was a team-best plus-15 with six points and nine rebounds, but he will not override Eubanks, who the Suns reportedly tampered for in free agency.

They lost a second-round pick at the expense of Eubanks, following an investigation into his free-agency discussions.

“…The Phoenix Suns violated league rules governing the timing of this season's free agency discussions and that the league has rescinded the 2024 second-round Draft pick…” read the investigation announcement.

Eubanks needs to be consistently average for Phoenix Suns to win 2024 NBA championship

The Suns dismissed former coach Monty Williams because of his reliance on players who did not perform, it appears. Phoenix played backup guard Landry Shamet, something that frustrated fans but seemingly not Williams even though he consistently was targeted as a weakness.

“I think he's someone that we can use as a scorer when we need to, pace-wise, for sure,” said Williams, who helped the Suns as they became the winningest team in basketball following the 2020 NBA bubble. Shamet scored 19 points in a Game 4 win over the Denver Nuggets but did not contribute much otherwise. He was a minus in the plus/minus for six of the Suns' 10 playoff games he appeared in.

Eubanks is a similar player for Vogel, who was expected to fill in for Williams' deficiencies, namely in game-planning. Eubanks is minus-92 for the 2023-24 season, which is by far the lowest. The next-closest player is minus-77 Nas Little, and David Roddy, who is yet to see a consistent role as Eubanks, at minus-17.

Eubanks is someone who will take away from the Suns' spacing because he is very reliant on skills as a pick-and-roll finisher. He is not a good passer, assisting the second-fewest times (0.9) per game even though starter Jusuf Nurkic operates as a pick-and-roll finisher, high-post passer and dribble-handoff facilitator when he can.

Eubanks' best skill is finishing. Unfortunately, the Suns need spacing to maximize a roster that can shoot the ball. They have not had Eubanks space the floor in any capacity.

Suns may have to rely on Eubanks to score if he's going to be effective

Since Eubanks cannot pass, he needs to find someway to be an offensive power. His best skill is to finish so the Suns need to use him in ways that open up some spot-up shooting for players outside of Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.

The Suns need Eubanks to also occupy a defensive anchor. If there is one thing he is better than Nurkic and Young at, it is blocking shots. Nurkic averages one block and Eubanks is right behind him at 0.9, though Nurkic is the primary defender in actions guarding the rim. Eubanks has had to guard the perimeter and is more mobile so he's played some four.

Eubanks, who is in his seventh season, has not been the same player since he suffered an ankle injury earlier in 2023-24. He was known for his shot-blocking with the Portland Trail Blazers, averaging 1.3 per game in 2022-23. Now, he's not been as effective until late, since he's averaged one block since Feb. 10. But in that stretch he is shooting 59 percent from the field which is below-average for his game and he does not shoot threes. He is also averaging 4.1 rebounds.

Eubanks and even Josh Okogie, who is shooting fewer than 30 percent from three, tend to get more leeway. They have to provide value on the floor because they are most likely getting minutes in the playoffs.