Jordan Goodwin didn’t generate the splashier headlines in the Phoenix Suns’ offseason, but his return might matter just as much as any of the team’s more talked-about moves.
While the Suns drew attention for keeping Collin Gillespie and Mark Williams and adding 3-point shooter Luke Kennard, re-signing Goodwin quietly preserved a key piece from last season’s bench group. He also brought back the reigning Dan Majerle Hustle Award winner, a player whose impact showed up in ways that don’t always jump off the page but absolutely shape winning.
Goodwin did something rare for a Suns guard, and rare anywhere, really. By finishing with at least 100 steals and 100 offensive rebounds, he became the first Suns guard in the last 30 years to reach those numbers, joining Hall of Famer Jason Kidd.
Kidd did it in 1997-98, when he piled up 162 steals and 108 offensive boards during his All-Star season. He started all 82 games and finished 13th in MVP voting. Goodwin’s version came in a very different role - just 10 starts in 70 appearances - which makes the accomplishment even more striking.
“Goody represents everything the Suns want to be about in terms of grit and toughness,” Gerald Bourguet of Suns After Dark said while appearing on the Third Apron Podcast. “He was the best offensive rebounding guard in the NBA, pretty much.”
That last part isn’t much of a stretch. In Zach Kram’s offseason grades for ESPN, Goodwin’s signing earned a B+, and Kram noted, “One of the most incredible statistics of last season is that the 6-foot-3 Goodwin ranked 15th among qualified players with a 9.4% offensive rebounding rate.”
Everyone ahead of him in that category was a center.
Phoenix picked up Goodwin off waivers in July 2025 after the Los Angeles Lakers let him go. He had played 29 games for Los Angeles, including five starts, before landing in the Valley. Once there, he settled in as exactly the kind of bench weapon the Suns needed: a guard who attacks the glass on offense and can also stretch the floor.
“I think he’s exactly what (the Suns) want and you couple that with his improvement as a 3-point shooter … it is something that he’s hopefully able to build on,” Bourguet said.
Goodwin knocked down 37.1 percent of his 3-pointers while taking a career-high 4.3 attempts per game from deep. That shooting, paired with his relentless work on the offensive boards, gave Phoenix extra possessions and made his contribution a bigger part of the Suns’ season than it might have looked at first glance.
Now he’s under contract for three years and $19 million, and he has a chance to climb a short Suns list of multiple Dan Majerle Hustle Award winners that includes P.J. Tucker with four, Mikal Bridges with three and Grant Hill with two.
If Goodwin keeps turning missed shots into second chances, he’ll have a real shot at owning that award conversation for a long time.
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Suns May Have Found A Steal If One Concern Holds Up
The Suns added Luke Kennard on a two-year, $12.4 million deal this offseason, a move that fits exactly what they need around a roster built around shot creation. Kennard is coming in with a reputation as one of the leagues best pure shooters, and Phoenix expects him to absorb some of Grayson Allens minutes while giving the second unit a needed perimeter lift.
Still, the appeal of the signing comes with a familiar caveat for Phoenix: the question is whether the offensive upside can outweigh the defensive concerns. Kennards player option in the second year gives him some flexibility, but it also makes this more than a simple low-risk flyer for a team trying to clean up its overall defense without sacrificing spacing. [Read more 🡒]