Miles Bridges changes the look of the Suns’ offense in a real way, and that shift puts Dillon Brooks in a different spot than he was in last season.
Bridges is set to replace Royce O’Neale in the starting lineup, and that alone tells you something about the direction Phoenix wants to go. O’Neale’s main job on offense was simple: catch and shoot.
He averaged 2.63 seconds per touch last season, the fourth-lowest figure on the team among players who appeared in more than 50 games. Bridges brings something else entirely - downhill pressure, rim attack, and more versatility.
Phoenix will give up some three-point shooting in the starting five, but it gains another way to stress a defense.
That’s where Brooks becomes the interesting piece.
He just finished a career year at 20.2 points per game on 17.1 shots a night, and plenty of that came because the Suns had to survive stretches without Jalen Green, Devin Booker, or both. Brooks stepped into the void and took the load.
He did more than just fill it, too. His confidence, paired with the fact that he could keep producing at a 20-point level, made him one of the season’s biggest surprises and even got him into the All-Star conversation.
The catch is that Brooks can slow things down when he has the ball too long. He likes isolation.
He likes to create his own shot. And he was effective doing it, averaging 0.98 points per possession while using 12.4% of his possessions in isolation.
The problem is that a version of the offense built around that style too often could bog things down.
Bridges gives Phoenix another path. When he attacks downhill, defenses have to collapse.
That opens up kickouts, which open up threes, which can lead to another closeout attack and another drive. It’s the kind of chain reaction that can force defenses into scramble mode and create clean looks at both the arc and the rim.
If that becomes the Suns’ preferred approach, Brooks’ role should change with it. He averaged 20.1 passes per game last season and received 37.3, a 17.2-pass gap that ranked second on the team.
Only Devin Booker received more passes than he gave. That’s part of why the ball-stopping style probably won’t be the best fit anymore.
The Suns are going to need more movement, more penetration, more quick decisions.
Brooks may be the one who has to adjust the most, and that could mean a drop into the fourth option offensively. That’s not a punishment.
It’s probably a win for Phoenix. With Green and Booker both capable of getting downhill in different ways - Green with pure athletic burst, Booker with craft and touch - Brooks shouldn’t need to carry the same burden he did a year ago.
And if he’s the fourth option, the Suns are in a better place than most teams are with theirs. Brooks has already proven he can score when asked.
He just needs to do it less often and with better timing. In this version of the Suns, the ideal Brooks is not a different player.
He’s a more selective one. When Bridges, Booker, and Green create the opening, Brooks can still go get his.
In Other News...
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Chris Paul remains central to that frustration after being sent home early in the season, effectively closing the book on his run with Los Angeles, while Bradley Beals recent switch to No. 3 added another layer of noise. The number choice set off reactions from fans and brought a quick defense of Pauls legacy from Beal himself, a reminder that even a jersey change can turn into a referendum when the Clippers are already under the microscope. [Read more 🡒]
Suns Trades With Charlotte May Be Fueling A Twist Fans Wont Like
Phoenix has spent the past couple of seasons doing business with Charlotte in a way that has quietly reshaped both frontcourts. The Suns brought in Nick Richards, Mark Williams and Miles Bridges from the Hornets, moves that helped stock the roster with size and options up front while giving Charlotte a fresh batch of pieces to work with as it keeps tinkering with its own direction.
Now there is a new layer to watch, and it could give Suns fans pause. The Hornets have remained in the conversation for Domantas Sabonis, and the path to getting there may be tied to some of the very players Phoenix has already sent their way. Nothing is official, and Sabonis has not been moved, but the idea that the Suns' recent swaps could end up helping Charlotte chase a former All-Star adds an unexpected twist to a familiar trade partner relationship. [Read more 🡒]
Miles Bridges Already Faces An Awkward Suns Question In Camp
Miles Bridges arrived in Phoenix as one of the more notable additions of the Suns offseason, a move that signaled how aggressively the team was willing to reshape its wing rotation. The trade brought him in as part of a deal built around a 2033 first-round pick, and it immediately put him in the middle of a roster conversation that has been going on since camp opened.
The wrinkle is that Bridges may not be stepping into an uncontested role. Rookie Koa Peat has already emerged as a name to watch because of his defensive tools and the way his game can fit the Suns style, giving the coaching staff a real decision to weigh as it sorts through the lineup. Nothing is settled yet, but the competition around that spot gives Phoenix one of the more interesting camp battles to monitor. [Read more 🡒]