Leandro Barbosa was brought to Phoenix for the third time to provide a veteran presence on the court and in the locker room, and he did just that.
Although his stat line wasn’t too impressive, averaging 6.3 points, 1.2 assists an 1.6 rebounds in just 14 minutes per game, his positive impact on the team was much more than his stats show.
At times last season the Suns’ offense would become stagnant and freeze up. With Barbosa’s presence on the court, scoring wouldn’t come to a screeching halt allowing the reserves a better opportunity of keeping up with the opponent while the starters rested.