The Nets still have room to keep swinging this offseason, and one name remains on their radar: Peyton Watson.
Brian Lewis of the New York Post reported that the restricted free agent is a player Brooklyn has “been in their sights” as the offseason drags on. Getting him won’t be simple.
Denver can match any offer sheet after giving Watson a qualifying offer, and reports have said the young forward is looking for a deal worth at least $25 million per season. If the Nuggets can’t lock him up, a sign-and-trade could enter the picture.
Brooklyn’s appeal in the chase is straightforward. Lewis pointed out that the Nets still have plenty of flexibility and extra future first-round picks, which gives the front office room to keep pushing for upgrades. After already reshaping a big chunk of the roster, they may not be finished.
In Philadelphia, there’s a much cleaner decision on the table. Adem Bona is staying put. Adam Aaronson of PhillyVoice reported that the Sixers will guarantee Bona’s $2.3 million salary for the 2026-27 season by keeping him on the roster past Tuesday’s deadline.
That move lines up with how Bona has carved out his role. Over the past two seasons, he has steadily earned more trust in Philadelphia’s rotation, playing in 71 games and starting 18 last year while averaging 4.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 blocks.
With Andre Drummond now in New York, Bona is set to battle newcomer Ariel Hukporti for backup minutes behind Joel Embiid. The Sixers also control Bona’s future beyond next season, with a team option for 2027-28 and the ability to discuss an extension later this month.
Phoenix is bringing back one of its young guards, too. Koby Brea has officially re-signed with the Suns on another two-way contract after becoming a restricted free agent, as first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Dana Gauruder of Hoops Rumors added that Brea likely accepted the qualifying offer Phoenix put out in June. The former second-round pick got into 12 NBA games as a rookie, but most of his work came with the Valley Suns, where he averaged 16.4 points and kept showing off the outside shooting that made him one of college basketball’s top marksmen at Kentucky.
With Brea back, Phoenix has now filled all three of its two-way roster spots.
In Other News...
Suns Just Made The Kind Of Move Fans Have Been Begging For
The Suns spent the early part of the summer making sure two of their most useful pieces were not going anywhere, re-signing Collin Gillespie and Mark Williams on multi-year deals that lock in backcourt steadiness and frontcourt size. Gillespies rise was one of the quieter success stories on the roster, a breakout season that gave Phoenix a reliable shooting presence and a new franchise benchmark from beyond the arc, while Williams gave the team the kind of interior production it has long needed when he was on the floor.
For a front office that has been under pressure to get value and continuity right, both contracts look like the sort of business fans have been asking for. Analyst Steph Noh viewed each deal as favorable relative to the impact the Suns can reasonably expect, which matters for a team trying to build around players who can actually fit together. The bigger question now is how much more of the roster Phoenix can stabilize after checking off two important boxes. [Read more 🡒]
Two Young Suns Suddenly Face A Brutal Fight To Stick
With the Suns roster now set for the season, the attention has shifted from building the team to sorting out who actually fits in the nightly rotation. Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro are both expected to get a longer look, but the path to steady minutes is anything but clear, especially with the front office having added more bodies who can crowd the same spots on the floor.
Ighodaro has the cleaner case right now because of his versatility and the way he can fill different roles, while Dunn is facing a tougher climb as the competition tightens around him. If either player gets squeezed out of the rotation, the pressure only grows from there, because the Suns are already in a position where every developmental decision has to be weighed against immediate help and the possibility of moving pieces before the deadline. [Read more 🡒]
Suns May Have Just Reopened A Problem Fans Thought Was Gone
The Suns latest swing has already drawn plenty of second-guessing, and its easy to see why. Phoenix sent Miles Bridges to Charlotte and brought back Grayson Allen, Royce ONeale and an unprotected 2033 first-round pick, a package that gives the roster more shooting, more wing depth and a future asset to point to if the move works out.
Still, the reaction around the deal has been far less settled than the Hornets side of it, where the focus has been on veteran help and draft capital after moving on from players viewed as bad influences. For Phoenix, the bigger question is whether this was a clean basketball upgrade or the kind of transaction that reopens old concerns about whether the Suns are buying into a short-term fit without much certainty about what comes next. [Read more 🡒]