Toumani Camara Arrives to Suns With Immediate Expectations

The Phoenix Suns may need their second-round pick to contribute right away.

The Phoenix Suns waited - and waited - and waited - to make a selection in the 2023 NBA Draft, though it might have been worth it. 

After nearly five hours of waiting, the Suns stayed put at pick 52 (after a day of rumors that they might move up) and selected Dayton forward Toumani Camara. 

Camara (23-years-old) is a 6-8, 220 lb forward spent some time at Georgia before transferring to Dayton. His final year in school featured him averaging career highs across the board with 13.9 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 1.7 APG and 1.2 SPG on 55% shooting.

Bleacher Report gave the Suns a "C" grade for the pick but hammered home the importance of Camara finding a role quickly. 

"How many players get taken in the 52nd spot and enter the league with legitimate expectations on their shoulders? Maybe none. Until tonight," wrote Zach Buckley.

"Toumani Camara is the exception, and it has almost nothing to do with him. His outlook is…well, about what you'd expect from someone who lasted this long. He offers versatility on defense, off-ball value as a screener and slasher and major question marks surrounding his creation and shooting.

"So, why would he have pressure on him? Because the extremely top-heavy Suns have almost literally depleted their depth to bring Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal to town, and their payroll is enormous. This is Phoenix's one opportunity to add a cost-controlled contributor, and it really needs him to deliver."

The Suns have ten players set to enter free agency in a variety of ways, and their most likely avenue to add considerable talent is a trade involving Deandre Ayton. 

With recent reports suggesting Ayton could now stay after a flurry of speculation suggesting his departure, Camara may just well be called upon earlier than anticipated.