The Suns already got a taste last season of what can happen when Jordan Ott’s offense gives players room to breathe. Dillon Brooks, Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale all turned in career years, and that kind of lift could show up again in 2026-27.
There are a few obvious candidates to make that jump, starting with Jalen Green. His first year in Phoenix was derailed by a hamstring injury that cost him 50 games, but the 24-year-old now heads into his second season with a much bigger responsibility.
He’ll share the backcourt with Devin Booker, and if he settles in, stays within the system and becomes more willing as a playmaker, a career scoring high is well within reach. The biggest hurdle is efficiency: Green shot 31.3% from deep last year, and he’ll need more consistency to get past the 22.1 points per game he posted with the Houston Rockets in 2022-23.
Still, the setup is there for him to tap into his full offensive ceiling after a frustrating debut in the Valley.
Luke Kennard is another name that fits this conversation perfectly. He comes to Phoenix as one of the league’s best pure shooters, having led the NBA in 3-point percentage last season and done the same in two other years.
He also showed more of a playmaking side late in the year while the Los Angeles Lakers were dealing with injuries. The Suns don’t have a surplus of 3-point threats, which means Kennard may be asked to fire away more often than he has in the past; his career average is just 4.3 attempts per game.
That could be a recipe for a big season if he embraces the volume. Now entering his 10th NBA season, Kennard’s career best in points per game, among players with at least 30 games, is 11.9 with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2021-22, and after signing a two-year deal that includes a player option for next season, he has plenty of reason to make a real impact off the bench.
The Suns also have a couple of second-year players who could take off if the minutes open up. Rasheer Fleming appears closest to getting an immediate crack at rotation time, while Khaman Maluach may have a tougher path because the center spot is crowded with Maluach, Mark Williams and Oso Ighodaro.
Even so, Maluach’s strong Summer League only added to the intrigue. Both players will need to make the most of whatever chances they get, and either one - or both - could turn into a breakout story if their tools start coming together on the court.
In Other News...
Suns Still Have One Problem That Could Erase Last Seasons Progress
The Suns spent last season trying to build something sturdier around a roster that still feels awkward in key spots, and the early read on 2025-26 suggests the same question keeps hanging over them: can the talent be made to fit? Phoenix added Miles Bridges and can point to the growth of its younger players, but the bigger issue remains the construction of the group as a whole, especially when the starters are not bringing enough shooting and the lineup balance still looks shaky.
That matters because the NBAs new anti-tanking rules leave less room for a team to drift once the season goes sideways, and the Suns do not appear built to bully opponents on the glass or in the paint for long stretches. If the outside shot is unreliable and the interior defense stays vulnerable, the progress from a year ago can disappear quickly, which is why this roster still feels like it has one unresolved problem that could define the whole season. [Read more 🡒]
Dillon Brooks Is Making Houston Regret This Suns Gamble
Houston thought it had a clean answer in the Kevin Durant deal, swapping out Dillon Brooks and expecting Dorian Finney-Smith to step into that role with comparable impact. Finney-Smith never really got on track, hampered in part by recovery from offseason ankle surgery, and the fit never gave the Rockets what they were looking for on either end.
Brooks, meanwhile, has turned the move into a win for Phoenix. He settled in as a productive scorer for the Suns and put together a career-best 20.2 points per game, enough to put him in line for a new three-year commitment as Houston watched its replacement plan unravel and eventually ship Finney-Smith to Charlotte. [Read more 🡒]
Khaman Maluach Is Forcing His Way Into The Suns Conversation
Khaman Maluach is heading into his second NBA season with a different kind of attention around him. After a strong Summer League showing, the Suns are looking at him as a young piece worth monitoring, and the way the roster has been shaped around him suggests there may be a real path for him to carve out a role in the rotation rather than spend time developing elsewhere.
Maluach still has work to do, though, because the next step is not just about flashes in an offseason setting. He is expected to improve statistically and stay with the big club, but the competition for minutes will be real, and the Suns will want to see steady progress before they trust him with a bigger piece of the frontcourt picture. [Read more 🡒]