Phx-Suns.Net

I am delighted to see the Suns play two play-in and four playoff games. It gives the young players playoff experience -- even if they didn't see too much playing time, you still learn. It also gives us a better sense of what the Suns have.

Just my evaluations:

Jalen Green: My views of him have changed quite a bit since the regular season. He proved that he is a big game player rather than what we saw last year in the playoffs. This was the big knock on him, IIRC. He also proved that he can play a high energy, defensive role in addition to being an offensive spark plug. He has grown on me, even if he will never be worth his contract. He has value as a sixth man on a strong title contender. Starter on a weaker team for sure.

Dillon Brooks: Another player who was impressive in the playoffs. I don't like his antics and ball hogging but he most certainly is a playoffs player.

Colin Gillespie: resign him. Hopefully he's cheaper now.

Jordan Goodwin: same. The Suns take Game 4 if he were playing instead of Booker.

Maluach and Fleming: showed that they can change games when they get PT. Enough saud on this.

Oso: Too small to be a starter at 5, but can be a good backup at 5. But...if he can change his shooting form...he would be an all star at the 4.

Grayson Allen: Still valuable in the playoffs. But his timeline does not match that of the young guns.

Royce O'Neale: Not so valuable, has trade value (?)

Mark Williams: No way the Suns get swept if he were healthy.

---

I think there are two approaches the Suns can take, trade youth to get another "star" next to Booker. Or you trade Booker, Allen, and Royce to restock draft capital and commit to the youth movement. I am very much inclined for the latter, since the Suns can't possibly build enough of a team around Booker to win a title.

Commit to Colin, Green, Fleming, and Maluach and give them appropriate roles. Give Dunn a chance and a stable role. Bring The Villain back unless you get spectacular offers for him -- and the Suns might. Resign Williams to a smaller deal as a backup given his injury history -- or S&T him.

The goal next year is to get to the playoffs with the Young Guns. Build on that with the draft and trade capital from trading away the veterans. Be a contender the year after that.

I would love to keep Booker and have him be part of the next successful Suns run. But we have to find a player that makes Book the second best on our team and I just can’t see how we do that, and then if we somehow do, still have enough left to build around it. Think the Suns need to at least listen to offers and suspect there will be a few from teams sniffing opportunity.

NBA offseason: Draft, free agency, trade targets for eliminated teams
https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/484 ... s-30-teams

Phoenix Suns

2025-26 record: 45-37
Draft picks in June: No. 46 (via PHI)

Free agents:

Collin Gillespie (Early-Bird)

Mark Williams (restricted, Bird)

Jordan Goodwin (Early-Bird)

Amir Coffey (Non-Bird)

Jamaree Bouyea (team option, non-Bird)

Koby Brea (restricted, non-Bird)

Isaiah Livers (restricted, non-Bird)

State of the roster:

Considering where Phoenix was last April, getting swept by Oklahoma City should not define its season or shape its future.

A year ago, the Suns were a graveyard for coaches, firing three in as many seasons, including Mike Budenholzer last offseason. Phoenix won 36 games and missed the playoffs last season, despite an NBA-record $366 million payroll.

More importantly, the outlook appeared even more bleak. Phoenix had no control of its future first-round picks, a result of the Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal trades. The Suns ranked last in ESPN's most recent NBA Future Power Rankings.

"I want to put a team out there on the court that everyone is proud of," owner Mat Ishbia said last April. "It has to have an identity -- an identity similar to Phoenix. Some grit, some determination, some work ethic, some grind, some joy. We just haven't had that."

To accomplish that, Ishbia veered from his game plan when he first took over. He promoted vice president of player programming Brian Gregory to GM. Gregory had one year of NBA executive experience and had been a college coach (Dayton, Georgia Tech, South Florida) from 2003 to 2023.

Instead of targeting a veteran coach, as he did with Vogel and Budenholzer, Jordan Ott was hired. The 41-year-old had been an assistant since 2016 and coached for the Nets, Lakers and Cavaliers. As for the roster, there were no flashy moves similar to the Beal and Durant trades in 2023. Instead, Durant was traded to Houston for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and rookie center Khaman Maluach. Beal was bought out of his contract and waived. The unassuming offseason also included trading for center Mark Williams, signing two-way player Collin Gillespie and claiming Jordan Goodwin off waivers.

The moves resulted in the surprise Suns winning 45 games and building a new defensive identity.

Suns Defense (2024-25 Vs. 2025-26)
SEASON OPP. PPG DEF. RATING OPP. TO PER GAME OPP. 3FG%
2024-25 116.6 (22nd) 117.7 (27th) 12.2 (29th) 37.0 (27th)
2025-26 111.1 (6th) 112.9 (9th) 16.3 (3rd) 34.7% (2nd)
But though the Suns improved, they struggled in the last six weeks of the season in clutch games. Not including the blown lead to Portland in the first play-in game, Phoenix went 2-5 in clutch games since March 15.

Offseason finances:

The roster that was once top-heavy with contracts no longer exists, as nine out of the 11 players under contract next season have a salary between $2.3 million and $20 million. The Suns enter the offseason with $159 million in salary on the roster.

However, because of the Beal buyout, Phoenix is $18 million below the tax and $24.9 million below the first apron. The Suns will likely become a tax and apron team if free agents Gillespie and Williams return. In that scenario, Phoenix would have the $6.1 million tax midlevel exception available.

Top front office priority:

Prioritizing their own free agents. Gillespie, Williams and Goodwin have value on this roster, but the franchise might not be able to retain all three without first making another deal to clear space.

Adding Gillespie last offseason proved to be one of the best deals in the league. Signed to a one-year $2.3 million contract, Gillespie averaged career highs in minutes (28.5), points (12.7) and assists (4.6). Phoenix had a plus-3.7 net rating when he was on the court and a minus-3.2 rating when the guard sat.

Because he signed two contracts with the Suns (a two-way in 2024-25 and his current one-year deal), Gillespie can sign for up to four seasons and a $14.9 million starting salary. The contract must be for a minimum of two seasons and cannot include an option.

Williams' durability issues plagued the first three seasons of his career, during which he missed a total of 116 games because of back, left foot and thumb injuries.

In his first season with Phoenix, Williams missed 10 games because of a stress reaction in his left foot but still played a career-high 60 games. Williams ranked in the top 20 in offensive rebounds per game and played a significant role in Phoenix's jump from 26th to sixth in second-chance points. The Suns were plus-8.5 points per 100 possessions when Williams was on the court with Gillespie, Devin Booker, Brooks and Royce O'Neale.

Because of the foot injury, Williams did not appear in the first round.

Williams will become a restricted free agent once Phoenix tenders him a one-year $9.6 million qualifying offer. The Suns would then be allowed to match any offer sheet.

Goodwin had bounced around the NBA since 2021, playing for Washington, Memphis, the Lakers and Suns once before. He was also traded to Brooklyn but did not play. The Suns gave up 113 points per 100 possessions when Goodwin was on the court and were a plus-4.6. Goodwin ranked ninth in the NBA in steals per game this season.

Goodwin has early Bird rights, allowing Phoenix to sign him to a four-year contract.

Extension candidate to watch: Brooks was exactly what the Suns needed, and he played a significant role in the Suns' improvement in almost every defensive category.

"He might agitate the other 29 teams, but for us, he's exactly what we're about," Ishbia said on "The Draymond Green Show" in November.

Starting the day after the NBA Finals, Brooks and the Suns can agree on a new extension. The maximum Phoenix can offer is four years and $125.4 million.

Other extension-eligible players:

Oso Ighodaro (four years, $92.8 million; eligible to sign the day after NBA Finals)

O'Neale (three years, $67.1 million; day after NBA Finals)

Green (four years, $195.2 million; as of Oct. 1)

Team needs:

The Suns are hoping for rookies Maluach and Rasheer Fleming to develop into consistent rotational players. Maluach played sparingly this season but posted 18 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks in the season finale. Fleming had his minutes increase from seven per game before the All-Star break to 18.6 after. The 6-9 forward shot 40.5% on 3-pointers in the 25 final games of the season.

Future draft assets:

Because of prior trades and their status above the second apron in 2024-25, the Suns don't control their first-round pick in six of the next seven years. They are allowed to trade a 2027 first-rounder (the least favorable between Cleveland and Minnesota) and their own first-rounder in 2033. Phoenix has three second-rounders available.

Future first-rounders owed by Suns

2027: unprotected to Houston

2028: swap with Brooklyn or Washington

2029: unprotected to Dallas or Houston

2030: least favorable swap with Memphis or Washington

2031: unprotected to Utah

2032: frozen

That list of draft picks owed is depressing

I think about the top teams in the West that the Suns didn't beat or struggled against this year. Lack of size was a major issue.

Rockets 0-4, Durant, Sengun, and Smith Jr. are all 6'11.

Nuggets 0-3, Gordon 6'8, 235 lbs. Jokic 6'11.

Thunder 2-3, One game was the in-season tournament where the winner goes to Vegas. One game was the last game of the season and another game was just before All-Star break. I believe it was back to back home games. Mavs on the first one, then OKC on the second game where a bunch of players didn't play the back to back.

Anyways, Holmgren 7'1, Hartenstein 7'0.

My point is it's time for this team to get some size. Yes, the Suns played hard. But, you can only have 6'4 or 6'5 guys play power forward for so long before it catches up. The Suns struggled against those teams on the boards and gave up too many offensive rebounds which of course led to second chance points.

How about a team up and coming for the future (IMO) like Utah.
Markkanen 7'1, Kessler 7'2, Jackson Jr. 6'10, Bailey 6'9. Filipowski 6'11.

That's four starters and a key reserve that are all 6'9 and up.

Opposing teams know that though the Suns are scrappy, they're undersized. They know you can get to the basket against this team.
More size and shot blocking is needed. Oso plays hard, but he's a PF in my opinion. If Mark Williams were healthy I don't believe the Suns get swept. Still, I'm tired of seeing SG's and SF's getting dominated at the power forward position. Fleming and Maluach will improve, but a "legit" starting PF is needed.

Some of those scores/records against the top teams are deceiving because of injuries early in the year and we lost to the Rockets on a KD buzzer beater. You point remains tho that we need more size or need to try playing the size we have.

I don't think Oso is a PF but I wouldn't have minded seeing Ott mix it up and try him as a PF opposite Maluach. Let Maluach stretch the floor, keep Oso in the dunker's spot. Run some big on big screens to take advantage of Oso's passing and throw some lobs over the top. Thought we missed some opportunities to experiment.

Generally, I think we fell into the trap I worried about before the season started where we relied too much on vets to win these games at the expense of some needed player development.

I'd still sell high on Green but I think he'll be here another season. He's a volume scorer without reliable go-to offense. Good enough guy, plays hard, just don't think he's a real winning player. Same goes for Williams as a big but he's more valuable because bigs always are. Loved what Brooks brought and I'd keep him around but I'd rather see him off the bench as an energy hustle guy which means we need an upgrade in the the starting lineup. If he's one of your only offensive weapons, you're in trouble and if he won't be a more willing passer/ball mover, it'll get sour with him quickly.

I hope we can keep CG and Goodwin but feel like at least one will leave. Both are different but equally good at what they do, just don't think they're good enough to be starters and relied too much on them over the course of the year. In a perfect world, we'd find a starter who combines the best of what they do.

It's nice that we exceeded expectations but I'm still disappointed in the choices made regarding who played down the stretch. We were locked into the 7th spot, we were too small against most teams, we knew we didn't have a chance against OKC but we still didn't make an effort to give the young guys some needed experience in these games. Let them feel playoff basketball, let them get their reps, get some gametape to look back on and use that to improve this summer. We were small, slow and unathletic and we had solutions to those issues sitting on the bench that we chose not to play. Leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

I hope this wasn't a season like the 48 win team back in 2013-14 where we similarly exceeded expectations and couldn't find a path to take the next step. This is a key offseason for us, maybe more significant than last summer.

I don’t envy this front offices job…. It’s a lose/lose situation. Moving book isn’t an option, it’s a necessity. Even if we get back some picks and front court help, we’re still looking at a 2-3 year timeline till our players are “developed”. Keeping book means we’re optioning for “malaise” and that’s not “aligned” with our team goals. Also if it was possible to get book to Detroit (his home) I think it’d be cool for him to get to play in his home state.

Kryptonic wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 28, 2026 6:41 am

I don’t envy this front offices job…. It’s a lose/lose situation. Moving book isn’t an option, it’s a necessity. Even if we get back some picks and front court help, we’re still looking at a 2-3 year timeline till our players are “developed”. Keeping book means we’re optioning for “malaise” and that’s not “aligned” with our team goals. Also if it was possible to get book to Detroit (his home) I think it’d be cool for him to get to play in his home state.

I was going to mention that Detroit might be a possible team that could actually use him especially considering the position they are in right now as the #1 in the east being down 3-1. They are definitely in a win now position and it is possible that they need that extra guy to put them over the top. He could be a great Robin to Cunningham's Batman. I don't know what draft resources they have but I do think they have young guys that we could take on to develop. I don't really follow them even though they are local as I only follow the Suns. Heck I didn't even know they had fired Monty until last year when I went to a game there when the Suns played (which btw was Nick Richards first game). But as a place the Booker might find acceptable that might be his first choice.

Gladiator wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 28, 2026 2:43 am

That list of draft picks owed is depressing

Future first-rounders owed by Suns
2027: unprotected to Houston
2028: swap with Brooklyn or Washington
2029: unprotected to Dallas or Houston
2030: least favorable swap with Memphis or Washington
2031: unprotected to Utah
2032: frozen

Ishbia's failure on display for all to see. The ONLY good news in that list is that the 2028 and 2030 picks will probably remain in our hands because Brooklyn, Washington, and (maybe) Memphis will probably all be even worse than us, so their picks will be better and they won't want to swap. So we'll at least get a 1st in those years. But we have no protection against catastrophe; if we happened to have horrible seasons those years, we would get our lottery pick taken away from us.

The list doesn't include our 2026 1st round pick, which is also traded away as part of the Beal or Nurkic trade (I forget which). So we get nothing but a mid-2nd round pick this year. Way to go, Ishbia. A 1st this year, with a strong draft class, would help this team out a lot. But oh well! So worth it to get two seasons of Slim Reaper KD and Real Deal Beal.

When I look at the OP's list of free agents to re-sign, I wonder how much room we really have to improve. It'll take all of our cap space and assets just to re-sign and retain the team we have. This is kind of what happens when you are a mediocre / fringe playoff team: you cap out and hit a low ceiling and then can't get any better.

This was an enjoyable season, but our future is still pretty dismal with all those picks missing. I really think we need to do something radical to improve our future. Trading Booker would be my #1 choice, but definitely trading Jalen Green and Royce O'Neale would be priorities for me. Re-sign Gillespie as highest priority FA signing.

I can understand the rationale of wanting to move off of Booker given his trade value, but I don't know if the return would be worth it. He's arguably more valuable in Phoenix to stabilize the team while the younger guys develop. We can't let Maluach, Fleming (and even Dunn/Oso) be forced to develop on a team without veteran leadership the way Booker was forced to do so.

Trotting out a Gillespie/Goodwin - Green - Brooks - Fleming - Mark or Man-Man line-up is hard to envision as being anything more than a play-in team year over year.

I think Green is more expendable and because of his flashes of big-game brilliance and age, teams might be willing to take a chance on him.
I don't want to see anymore 3 guards 6'5" and under starting line-ups. If you can bring in a solid 3-4 with defensive capabilities or ball handler that lets Booker play off-ball for Green, I'd do it.

JJ Slim wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 28, 2026 7:12 am

Kryptonic wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 28, 2026 6:41 am

I don’t envy this front offices job…. It’s a lose/lose situation. Moving book isn’t an option, it’s a necessity. Even if we get back some picks and front court help, we’re still looking at a 2-3 year timeline till our players are “developed”. Keeping book means we’re optioning for “malaise” and that’s not “aligned” with our team goals. Also if it was possible to get book to Detroit (his home) I think it’d be cool for him to get to play in his home state.

I was going to mention that Detroit might be a possible team that could actually use him especially considering the position they are in right now as the #1 in the east being down 3-1. They are definitely in a win now position and it is possible that they need that extra guy to put them over the top. He could be a great Robin to Cunningham's Batman. I don't know what draft resources they have but I do think they have young guys that we could take on to develop. I don't really follow them even though they are local as I only follow the Suns. Heck I didn't even know they had fired Monty until last year when I went to a game there when the Suns played (which btw was Nick Richards first game). But as a place the Booker might find acceptable that might be his first choice.

I kind of went down a rabbit hole looking at Detroit's players and draft picks. The have a ton of young guys but I'm not familiar with most of the names except obviously Cade and also Jalen Duren and Kevin Huerter. They have three players 30 and over but all the others are in their 20's. They also have ALL their 1st round picks through 2032 except for this year which they swapped with the Wolves so it is better than their own.

That list didn’t include the 2027 pick we own(worst of Utah, Minny, Cleveland)

2032 will unfreeze after next season I believe.

Uncle_Gene wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 28, 2026 4:57 am

I think about the top teams in the West that the Suns didn't beat or struggled against this year. Lack of size was a major issue.

Rockets 0-4, Durant, Sengun, and Smith Jr. are all 6'11.

Nuggets 0-3, Gordon 6'8, 235 lbs. Jokic 6'11.

Thunder 2-3, One game was the in-season tournament where the winner goes to Vegas. One game was the last game of the season and another game was just before All-Star break. I believe it was back to back home games. Mavs on the first one, then OKC on the second game where a bunch of players didn't play the back to back.

Anyways, Holmgren 7'1, Hartenstein 7'0.

My point is it's time for this team to get some size. Yes, the Suns played hard. But, you can only have 6'4 or 6'5 guys play power forward for so long before it catches up. The Suns struggled against those teams on the boards and gave up too many offensive rebounds which of course led to second chance points.

How about a team up and coming for the future (IMO) like Utah.
Markkanen 7'1, Kessler 7'2, Jackson Jr. 6'10, Bailey 6'9. Filipowski 6'11.

That's four starters and a key reserve that are all 6'9 and up.

Opposing teams know that though the Suns are scrappy, they're undersized. They know you can get to the basket against this team.
More size and shot blocking is needed. Oso plays hard, but he's a PF in my opinion. If Mark Williams were healthy I don't believe the Suns get swept. Still, I'm tired of seeing SG's and SF's getting dominated at the power forward position. Fleming and Maluach will improve, but a "legit" starting PF is needed.

Well, there's our annual FIX THE PAINT post from Unc. Still not wrong.

In will say that the Suns gave up 2nd round picks for Richards, 1st round picks for Williams, and took 3 bigs in the last couple of drafts. So at least they are aware of the need.

IMO Williams is not a long term solution, but I would keep him until someone is good enough to take his job. Oso is a good regular season backup, but I don't think he's with us for the eventual championship. I think Fleming is a starter, but not a star, and I hope that Maluach will also be at that level.

Here’s my new idea…what about a double S&T of Williams for John Collins? Thoughts?

Kinda think Oso/Collins makes some sense. Collins can shoot and finish…he’s not a great back line defender, so having a 2nd big is nice(oso or Maluach). Gives us an option to go 5 out and keep some size. Clippers may have interest after trading Zubac.

Kryptonic wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 28, 2026 6:41 am

I don’t envy this front offices job…. It’s a lose/lose situation. Moving book isn’t an option, it’s a necessity. Even if we get back some picks and front court help, we’re still looking at a 2-3 year timeline till our players are “developed”. Keeping book means we’re optioning for “malaise” and that’s not “aligned” with our team goals. Also if it was possible to get book to Detroit (his home) I think it’d be cool for him to get to play in his home state.

Well, be prepared for malaise then. You act like trading Book would be easy. Who in their right mind would trade for a declining, second or third banana that is owed 316 MILLION dollars over the next five seasons?! Detroit is the only team I could even remotely see going for it due to his home town ties and their imminent collapse.

Those in the trade Book camp, what do you think trading him does for us?

I agree that we are on a tricky situation and likely are looking at 4-5 years where we’d be lucky to make the 2nd round of the playoffs, but what about trading Booker makes our situation better?

I think it might give the allusion of hope, but unless you get a true young cornerstone back for him(which I highly doubt), you’re just making your team worse for maybe a slightly better chance you strike gold in the draft.

I think we are pretty locked in to being mediocre at best for the next 5 years. I’ll take a repeat of this year over the 2010s without our picks…reminder, the nba is also going to make tanking even harder this summer, so even if we get some of our picks back(impossible to get all), those picks will have less value.

I think we need to figure out how to maximize Book's talents. Him being the primary ball handler obviously isn't it. He needs to get back to being primarily a scorer. We need a strong PG as we know this works. See Chris Paul and NBA Finals. We also need some size and rebounding although Maluach and Fleming will help with this next season.

Whatever happens with Booker, he needs to be in the gym getting his 3-point shot back this off-season. Hopefully he isn’t too proud(or thinks he’s too good to do that). Oso and Dunn need to do the same thing to get an actual shot. I also think Oso would be best served bulking up and becoming a power forward.

I’m more in the listen to offers for Book camp, not he needs to go. Given our draft situation there is no incentive to bottom out and I’m not sure a bunch of picks in the high 20s is worth moving Book for. It is definitely a tough situation for the FO.

Without delving into what we would get back, I’d be fine with trading Green and sign and trading Williams. I feel like we should be able to get an ok veteran center that can fill in until Maluach is ready. Goodwin is my top priority to bring back of the FAs. It will be fascinating to see the roster come opening night next season.

Superbone wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 28, 2026 2:37 pm

I think we need to figure out how to maximize Book's talents. Him being the primary ball handler obviously isn't it. He needs to get back to being primarily a scorer. We need a strong PG as we know this works. See Chris Paul and NBA Finals. We also need some size and rebounding although Maluach and Fleming will help with this next season.

How many "true PGs" are even left in today's NBA? Cade maybe? (Hence why Detroit would want Book, and why he might be a really good fit there)

Long gone are the days where guys like Chris Paul, Jason Kidd, and Steve Nash ran teams. If you look at the best PGs in the NBA today, you'll see mostly scorers or combo guards. Here's a list of most team's starting PGs:

SGA
Luka Doncic
Steph Curry
Jalen Brunson
Cade Cunningham <-- "true" PG
Tyrese Maxey
LaMelo Ball
Jamal Murray
DeAaron Fox
James Harden
Trae Young
Ja Morant
Derrick White
Tyler Herro
Jalen Suggs
Josh Giddey?
Tyrese Haliburton <-- "true" PG
Jrue Holiday
Fred VanVleet
...

I could keep going. There is almost no true PG on that list. If you want guys who make great passes, you have Luka, Cade, LaMelo, Harden, Giddey, maybe a few others. But most of those guys would just as soon score as pass.

So I just don't see who you bring in and put next to Booker who can run the point and "unlock" his potential into his 30s. I think that ship has sailed. IMO the best would be to put him next to a great-passing combo guard like Luka, Cade, LaMelo, or Giddey. Doubt we can get any of those guys this summer. If anything, some of those guys' teams might want to try to poach Booker.

I agree that Book is most effective as a pure scorer/SG and not a PG. But I just don't see who you could bring in next to him who would be a true PG. The best hope of that would be to hope that Collin Gillespie takes a huge leap and can lead the offense while setting up Book. Play CG 40 minutes a night and just hope you found a diamond in the rough. And Gillespie, despite being a good 3-point shooter, does love to pass and would not be under any delusions that he's the #1 guy ahead of Book.