PHOENIX -- The Suns are back at it with training camp underway, and the buzz around this team is easy to understand. Phoenix is coming off a 45-37 season and a playoff berth, and with 12 of 15 players returning plus new additions Miles Bridges, Luke Kennard and Koa Peat, there’s a clear sense that the roster isn’t starting over - it’s building.
That continuity is one of the biggest reasons there’s optimism in Phoenix. Owner Mat Ishbia believes the team is still on the rise, and the players seem to agree after spending much of the summer together. They’ve had time to sort through what worked, what didn’t and what they want to carry into coach Jordan Ott’s second season.
“We can use our experience that we had last year. We just don't want to make the same mistakes twice," Suns star Devin Booker said at media day Monday.
"We have a reference point on things that worked and didn't work last year. Even though we got swept, we got playoff experience with a lot of young guys, so we could feel what that looked like and feel what it felt like.
To start the season, we're going to be definitely ahead of where we were to start the season last year."
That experience matters, but so does the next wave of talent. Suns players have been praising the growth of Khaman Maluach throughout the offseason, and he’s expected to take on a much larger role with Mark Williams sidelined by a torn labrum. Maluach looks poised for a major jump, and Rasheer Fleming is another second-year player who could carve out real minutes and make noise off the bench.
There’s more upside beyond that pair, too. Jalen Green and Oso Ighodaro, both 24, have a chance to turn in career years. Green is healthy again after dealing with a hamstring injury last season, while Ighodaro is expected to help fill the void left by Williams after stepping up in key moments a year ago.
Then there’s the group that could give the Suns a different kind of energy right away. Rookie Koa Peat, along with Ryan Dunn and Koby Brea, are all worth watching closely, especially once preseason games start and roles begin to take shape.
The style should be worth the price of admission as well. Ott’s system already brought a tempo-driven offense and a defense that applied pressure all over the floor, and the Suns want even more of that this season. With Green back healthy and Bridges added to the mix, Phoenix has more athleticism to work with, and the team says it wants to play faster while building on the hard-nosed identity it established last year.
The best part for Phoenix is that this isn’t a team trying to figure out its identity from scratch. Everyone bought into Ott’s approach a season ago, and with another year of familiarity, the system should keep evolving. That combination of returning players, new pieces and a deeper comfort level gives Suns fans plenty to watch as the season gets going.
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As the Suns get ready for their first preseason game of the 2026-27 season, there is a different kind of energy around the group than the one that followed them into last year. The win projections are lower this time, but the tone from the organization has been notably upbeat, with general manager Brian Gregory stressing the importance of daily work, team connection and the habits that can carry a group through the grind of a season.
Mat Ishbia has leaned into that optimism, too, saying he believes Phoenix is close to moving deeper into the playoffs and back into the kind of high-level contention the franchise is chasing. For a team trying to turn internal belief into a stronger finish, the real test now is whether that confidence shows up once the preseason turns into games that count. [Read more 🡒]
Ryan Dunn Just Got Dragged Into A Suns Debate Fans Feel Strongly
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Now he has been pulled into a bigger public debate after NBA on Prime rolled out a new commercial for its upcoming coverage. The promo puts Dunn in a defensive role against elite scorers, a reminder of why the Suns still see reason to keep betting on him, but also of how sharply fans tend to split when a players upside is tied to one skill and his future depends on another. [Read more 🡒]
Devin Bookers New Suns-Themed Sneaker Has A Discount Fans Will Notice
Devin Bookers latest sneaker project keeps building on the Suns guards connection to Arizona, with Nike and McDonalds teaming up on the Nike Book 2 x McDonalds. The shoe takes its inspiration from a spot in Sedona and blends Bookers signature style with McDonalds branding details, while still being built as a real on-court basketball shoe with the kind of performance features players expect from the Book line.
The release has already created some buzz because the Friends & Family pair disappeared quickly, but the version most fans can actually buy is the general-release Sedona colorway. For Suns supporters and sneaker collectors alike, it is the kind of crossover release that ties Booker back to the state in a very visible way, with one price point now standing out for anyone looking to grab a pair before the next wave of attention hits. [Read more 🡒]