The Phoenix Suns are staring down a painful consequence of their all-in roster-building approach: their 2032 first-round pick is frozen because of time spent in the second apron.
That detail matters because the Suns have built a reputation around burning through future draft assets, and this one comes at a moment when those picks are supposed to be doing heavy lifting for the franchise. The 2032 selection also cannot be traded, which removes another avenue the front office would likely want to use.
Owner Mat Ishbia has operated with a clear win-now mindset, constantly cycling through players and pushing picks into the roster as soon as they become available around Devin Booker. One example already on the books: the 2033 first-round pick was spent on Miles Bridges.
The bigger issue is how much money the Suns poured into landing Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal in The Valley. That spending pushed the team into second-apron territory, and the penalty is now showing up in the form of that frozen 2032 first-rounder.
The Suns have had some real success with recent picks, which only makes the loss sting more. Oso Ighodaro has grown into a rotation player after being taken in the second round, while Rasheer Fleming and Khaman Maluach, though selected by the Houston Rockets, appear likely to work out.
Not every swing has connected. Ryan Dunn missed, and the team still doesn’t know what it has yet in Koa Peat. Toumani Camara is the one that got away, and that decision was so damaging it altered the Suns’ approach to young players and helped push them toward taking and developing some of the prospects they have now.
By the time 2032 arrives, Booker won’t be the same safety net he is today. He will be 36 years old, and even if he is still in The Valley, his prime will be well behind him.
That’s why losing a first-round pick in that year hits so hard. The following year’s first is already gone in the Bridges deal, leaving the Suns even thinner when they’ll likely be trying to build their next version.
If Phoenix has a championship by then, the story changes completely. If not, Ishbia will either be viewed as public enemy number one for how he handled the franchise or he won’t be around anymore.
In Other News...
Former Suns Finals Sparkplug May Be Drifting Out Of Phoenix Plans
With training camps getting closer, Cameron Payne still sits unsigned, and the former Suns sparkplug is looking at an uncertain NBA market after last playing for the Philadelphia 76ers. Phoenixs current backcourt picture makes a reunion increasingly unlikely, especially with the team choosing to evaluate younger guards and see who can carve out a larger role before the season begins.
Collin Gillespie, Jordan Goodwin and Jamaree Bouyea are all in the mix for those minutes, giving the Suns a different kind of guard competition than the one Payne would step into. For a player who once provided energy and playoff-shotmaking for Phoenix, the door does not appear completely shut around the league, but the path back to the Suns is getting harder to see. [Read more 🡒]
Luke Kennard Could Force A Real Suns Lineup Decision
Luke Kennards arrival gives the Suns something they have been short on around the edges of the roster: another shooter who can also keep the ball moving. If his passing gains carry over, he could become more than a specialist, because Phoenix has been looking for cleaner spacing and a little more playmaking to support the scoring around Jalen Green, Miles Bridges and Dillon Brooks.
The tricky part is that Kennards value may not be limited to spot minutes. His defensive limitations are still part of the equation, but the offensive fit is good enough to make the Suns think harder about how they want their best five arranged. At some point, that kind of balance can turn a bench addition into a lineup decision, and Phoenix may have to decide how much creation it wants on the floor without giving up too much defense. [Read more 🡒]
Suns Rotation Squeeze Puts Three Players In A Tough Spot
The Suns rotation picture is getting tighter, and the pressure is starting to show on a few familiar names. With new roster additions and more competition around the lineup, Ryan Dunn, Jamaree Bouyea and Jalen Green are all in line to see less floor time than they did before, which is never a comfortable place for players trying to carve out a steady role.
For Dunn, the squeeze goes beyond simply losing minutes, because his place in the long-term plan suddenly looks less secure as the season unfolds. Bouyea is expected to have a smaller part to play than he did a year ago, and Green, whose usage is already headed in the wrong direction, could wind up sliding even further down the pecking order if the minutes keep shrinking. [Read more 🡒]