Jalen Green gets another shot in Phoenix, and the Suns are the ones under the microscope just as much as he is.
That’s the tension Brendan Mau of NBA on SI pointed to while digging into Green’s second season with the team. Green was limited to 32 games last year by hamstring problems, but he still put up 17.8 points per game while shooting 42.2 percent from the field and 31.3 percent from deep. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin has already pegged Green’s fit as the biggest question facing Phoenix heading into the season, and it’s easy to see why.
The Suns already have Devin Booker, Miles Bridges and Dillon Brooks, and all of them need touches. Green does too.
There’s only one ball, and that makes the fit messy on paper. But Mau noted a role that could make Green especially valuable: when some of the starters head to the bench, Phoenix can simply turn him loose.
Let him attack, run, score and be Jalen Green.
He’s 24, so this isn’t a case of closing the book. But after arriving as a major part of the Kevin Durant trade, this is the kind of season that should tell Phoenix what it really has.
Kelly Olynyk is still on the market, and the Knicks could be one of the teams to watch.
Isaiah De Los Santos of Knicks on SI floated New York as a possible landing spot for the 35-year-old center, though not necessarily on a guaranteed deal. Olynyk had been tied to the Warriors before they filled their final standard roster spots with Brandon Williams and Georges Niang, which may make him more open to a training-camp look elsewhere.
For the Knicks, the appeal is straightforward. They could use another big, and Olynyk still brings floor spacing along with 57 games of playoff experience. He’s not going to solve some major problem, but as a potential third center, there are plenty of worse options.
De Los Santos suggested a camp battle could be the right setup, giving the defending champions a chance to evaluate him without much commitment. At this point in August, that sounds about right for where Olynyk’s market is sitting.
Cleveland’s trade-down in the first round made more sense once the full picture came into view.
Josh Poloha of Cavs on SI pointed to a behind-the-scenes team video that showed the Cavaliers were seriously weighing Meleek Thomas with the 29th pick before Sacramento offered No. 34 and a future second-rounder. After the deal, Cavs president of basketball operations Koby Altman said, “We might get him at 34, now that we have a day to work on it,” and that’s exactly how it played out.
Altman had already called Thomas one of college basketball’s best shot-makers, and the rookie backed that up in Summer League. Thomas averaged 27.3 points while shooting 50 percent from the field and 43.8 percent from three.
The obstacle now is the roster in front of him. Cleveland already has James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Sam Merrill, Craig Porter Jr. and Tyrese Proctor among its guards, so Thomas may need some patience. But if you’re going to tuck a 19-year-old behind that group, having a pure scorer makes plenty of sense.
The Cavs believed Thomas had first-round talent. They moved down, picked up another asset and still ended up with him. On this one, the plan worked.
In Other News...
Suns Just Turned Devin Booker Criticism Into A Public Statement
A recent podcast take on Devin Booker quickly spilled beyond the usual noise cycle, and the Suns made sure it did not hang in the air unanswered. On Players Choice, Suns Valley Podcast co-host Gabe Guerrero questioned whether Bookers game impacts winning enough to carry a team to a championship, and the reaction from within Phoenix was immediate. The Suns own social media team followed by highlighting Bookers playmaking, a clear nod to the value he brings beyond scoring.
Collin Gillespie also chimed in by reposting the clip in support of Booker, giving the pushback a little extra weight from inside the locker room orbit. Guerrero later offered a clarification on his comments, saying he was talking about Booker in the context of playing point guard, even though that framing was not explicit in the original segment. For a player whose role keeps expanding, it turned a debate about style into a broader reminder of how closely Phoenix is watching the conversation around its star. [Read more 🡒]
Suns Season May Ride On 3 Young Names Fans Are Overlooking
A quieter storyline around the Suns this offseason has centered on three young players who could end up shaping the rotation more than casual fans realize. Fleming is in position to see a larger workload, Goodwin has already shown he can bring useful defense when healthy, and Maluach is viewed as a center whose development could matter if Phoenix needs more size and steadiness up front.
The appeal here is that none of the three needs to become a headline-grabbing star for the Suns to get value out of them. Flemings path opens after the departures on the wing, Goodwin is working back from an injury that cut short his postseason minutes, and Maluachs upside at center gives Phoenix another long-term variable to watch as the season unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Mat Ishbia Just Drew A Firm Line On Devin Booker
Mat Ishbia used a fan Q&A to make one thing clear about Devin Booker: the Suns are not treating their franchise scorer like a name to be shopped around. The team owner, who is originally from Michigan, said he has no interest in moving Booker despite a fan request, reinforcing how central Booker remains to Phoenix after being drafted in 2015 and becoming the face of the clubs long-term plans.
The exchange also carried a little extra edge because of the destination involved, with the Pistons mentioned in the request and Ishbia drawing a firm line in response. For a team trying to keep its identity anchored around Booker, the message mattered less as a headline-grabber than as a reminder that Phoenixs most important player is still being treated as untouchable from the owners seat. [Read more 🡒]