The Phoenix Suns have already kicked off the Miles Bridges chapter, with his introductory press conference taking place earlier this week and General Manager Brian Gregory making a cameo.
It is still far too soon to know whether Bridges will justify the move in Phoenix, but the price tag already stands out. The Suns gave up an unprotected first-round pick for him, and that kind of outlay looks even steeper when a cheaper option has suddenly become available.
Mario Hezonja would have been a fascinating short-term swing. If you asked a typical fan to choose between sending out that valuable pick, Grayson Allen and Royce O'Neale for Bridges or taking a chance on the former fifth overall pick, there would be plenty of support for the Croatian forward.
The salary-cap and roster-flexibility side of the deal complicates things, since Allen and O'Neale had to be moved. Even so, there was still a path where both could have left and returned at least a couple of second-round picks. For a team that seems willing to move future draft capital, that would have been a respectable haul, especially with the Suns beginning to see real value from their selections.
Hezonja, paired with Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green, would probably get targeted defensively. Still, the former Orlando Magic lottery pick could have provided bench scoring and given Phoenix a lower-cost option for one season before the team decided on the next step.
There is also a clear reason some people would reject that idea. Nigel Hayes-Davis is the cautionary tale.
Another scoring forward brought to The Valley with plenty of buzz last season, he made no real impact, was dealt by the deadline and quickly left the league before heading back to Europe. Hezonja has been out of the NBA for five years, so the skepticism is easy to understand.
Bridges is a different kind of bet. His off-court history is complicated, but he is also a proven player who can start for the Suns. He gives Devin Booker a better shot at getting back to the playoffs next season.
Still, the fit question lingers. It is not clear how Bridges will mesh with his new teammates, and the clean vibes that helped make last season’s group so enjoyable are part of what made the Suns compelling. Hezonja may not have been the answer, but Phoenix never even got the chance to explore that route after choosing Bridges.
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Miles Bridges Just Validated What Suns Fans Knew About This Team
After trading Kevin Durant in the 2025 offseason, the Suns still found a way to make the playoffs, with Devin Booker carrying the offense and Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green giving Phoenix real support around him. The run ended quickly with a first-round sweep by the defending champions, but the season still offered a clearer picture of a team that did not fall apart the way plenty of outsiders expected.
Miles Bridges has now added an outside voice to that internal belief, and his view of Phoenix is part of what makes the next chapter interesting. He has been impressed enough by what he has seen to sound genuinely optimistic about joining the group for 2026-27, a sign that the Suns' identity may be stronger than the post-Durant skepticism suggested. [Read more 🡒]
Brian Gregory Is Already Changing The Suns Conversation
Brian Gregorys first season as the Suns general manager gave the front office a very different kind of conversation than the one Phoenix was having a year ago. After the Durant trade, the Beal buyout and a postseason berth, Gregory spent his first year reshaping the roster in ways that will define the next phase of the team, from the draft to midseason moves and the kind of long-view bets that usually take time to sort out.
Some of those decisions already look encouraging, including the draft call on Rasheer Fleming and the move to bring in Khaman Maluach as part of the Durant deal. The Suns also have more questions still hanging over the roster mix, especially with the Miles Bridges trade still waiting for a clear verdict, but Gregory has already changed the tone around Phoenix by making the front office feel more proactive than reactive. [Read more 🡒]
Brian Gregory Just Put Massive Pressure On The Suns With Bridges
Miles Bridges met the media as a new Suns player, and the arrival came with the kind of language that immediately raises the stakes. General manager Brian Gregory framed Bridges as a fit for what Phoenix wants to be, a move that signals the front office is not treating this as a simple talent grab but as a piece meant to slide into a much bigger plan.
The problem with declaring a perfect fit in July is that the roster still has to prove it on the floor. Bridges brings a different look to a group that already has players competing for the same minutes, and the way he meshes with the current frontcourt and the rest of the rotation will shape whether this feels like a clean upgrade or the start of a more complicated adjustment for Phoenix. [Read more 🡒]