September has arrived, and with it comes the annual SunsRank exercise for the Phoenix Suns.
That shift on the calendar carries its own kind of buzz. Basketball is still a month away from taking over again, but the ramp-up is already here.
Media Day is set for September 28, the Suns’ first preseason game comes on October 5, and Phoenix opens the regular season on October 21. Summer is still hanging around, but the next season is close enough to feel real.
This year’s ranking game starts with a look back at where things finished after the 2025-26 season. The final 2026 SunsRank from the community and the writing staff both had Devin Booker at No.
- After that, the lists diverged a bit, with Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Collin Gillespie, Grayson Allen, Jordan Goodwin, Mark Williams, Oso Ighodaro, Rasheer Fleming, Khaman Maluach, Royce O’Neale, Ryan Dunn, Jamaree Bouyea, Haywood Highsmith, Koby Brea, Amir Coffey, Isaiah Livers, and CJ Huntley filling out the rest of the order.
Phoenix’s offseason didn’t bring the kind of upheaval that forces a complete reset. The organization leaned into continuity and development, and the moves reflected that.
The Suns traded up in the NBA Draft and took Koa Peat out of the University of Arizona with the final pick of the first round. They sent Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale to the Charlotte Hornets for Miles Bridges.
They also moved on from Isaiah Livers and Amir Coffey, then added Luke Kennard in free agency and Pat Spencer on a two-way contract.
That leaves the roster in a place where a tiered approach makes more sense than trying to force a flat 1-through-18 list right away. The idea is simple: sort the group into buckets first, then work through each tier and sort the players inside it.
Tier 1 is reserved for the Cornerstones, the stars the Suns are building around and the players expected to matter every night. Tier 2 is the Pillars, the reliable rotation pieces who keep the roster steady.
Tier 3 is the Wild Cards, the players with enough upside to surprise and maybe crack the rotation in a bigger way than expected. Tier 4 is the Depth Pieces, the end-of-bench options whose roles may be small but can grow if injuries, matchups, or circumstances create openings.
From there, the next step is to place every player into a tier and then build the full SunsRank for the 2026-27 season. For now, though, this is the starting point - the first move toward getting basketball back on the table.
In Other News...
Suns Are Still Paying For Their All In Durant Beal Gamble
Phoenixs push to go all in around Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal came with the kind of price tag that does not disappear when the games end. The Suns gave up multiple draft picks and players in separate deals for the two stars, then watched the hoped-for playoff breakthrough never arrive, leaving the franchise to sort through the basketball and financial fallout of trying to shortcut the climb.
The consequences have lingered well beyond the court, with the teams asset cupboard thinner and its flexibility tighter than before the gamble. Even now, the lingering cost of the Beal move continues to shape what Phoenix can do next, a reminder that the hardest part of a star-driven swing is often the bill that comes due after the spotlight fades. [Read more 🡒]
The Suns Are Doing One Thing NBA Fans Desperately Want
While Cleveland fans are bracing for a shift to a paid streaming setup for local broadcasts, the Suns have taken a route that still feels almost old-school in todays NBA media landscape. Phoenix moved its games to free over-the-air television, a setup that makes it easier for local viewers to find the team without adding another subscription or app to the mix.
For Suns fans, the appeal goes beyond convenience. It keeps games accessible for older viewers who may not want to wrestle with streaming platforms, and it gives the team a broader reach in its own market at a time when access has become a growing issue around the league. As more teams experiment with paywalled options, Phoenixs choice stands out as one that puts local fans first. [Read more 🡒]
Suns Just Got A Ceiling Their Roster Might Be Ready To Crush
Phoenix spent last season winning 45 games and getting to the playoffs while juggling injuries and a new coaching staff, so there is still a decent case for optimism around what Jordan Ott inherited. The Suns also added Koa Peat and continued shaping a roster built around getting better in the paint and pushing more player development, which makes the next step feel less about reinvention and more about whether the group can build on what already worked.
Even so, the outside temperature on the Suns remains cooler than the internal buzz. ESPN has them slotted for 42 wins and an eighth-place finish in the Western Conference for 2026-27, a reminder that the league still sees this as a team with a pretty defined ceiling unless health and young players move the needle. With second-year expectations on Ott and the core still needing to prove it can stay available and keep growing, Phoenix enters the season with enough talent to matter and enough questions to keep the pressure on. [Read more 🡒]