The Suns may be done making noise this summer, but there’s still a path to one more move before the offseason closes.
Phoenix already overhauled plenty of the roster. The team sent out two fan favorites in the trade for Miles Bridges, then kept all three of its key free agents - Collin Gillespie, Jordan Goodwin, and Mark Williams - while also bringing in Luke Kennard for extra shooting. On top of that, the Suns added Koa Peat in the draft, and he joined the club’s other young prospects in showing promise during Summer League.
That kind of activity makes the offseason look pretty complete on paper. But recent Suns history says not to assume the front office is finished just because the calendar is moving on.
The best reminder came in 2023, when the Deandre Ayton situation dragged on for months. A deal felt inevitable, then stalled, and for a while it looked like Phoenix might simply roll forward with Ayton as the starting center again. Instead, the Suns waited until late September to finally pull the trigger, sending Ayton and Toumani Camara to Portland in a deal that brought back Jusuf Nurkic, Grayson Allen, Nassir Little, and Keon Johnson.
That kind of late swing is why another surprise can’t be ruled out now.
The current roster still has a fit problem. A projected starting five of Booker, Green, Brooks, Bridges, and Williams has talent, but the pieces don’t cleanly solve the issues around playmaking, shooting, and defensive upside. It’s the kind of lineup that looks dangerous in theory and messy in practice.
Jalen Green stands out as the most obvious trade candidate. Booker remains the franchise anchor, the Suns are high on Brooks, and Bridges and Williams can’t be moved yet because of their recent transactions. That leaves Green as the most workable piece on the board.
His contract - $36 million this season with two years left - gives Phoenix room to explore a range of options if it decides to reshape the starting group again.
There’s no urgency forcing the Suns into action right now, and the likeliest outcome may still be that they stay put. But this front office has already shown it’s willing to keep tinkering, even late in the offseason.
In Other News...
Suns Draft Strategy Is Starting To Look Worse Around Booker
The Suns have spent the last several years pushing future draft capital into the present, trying to build a better support system around Devin Booker before the window narrows any further. Some of those swings have at least given them reasons for optimism, with recent additions like Khaman Maluach and Koa Peat offering early signs that not every move has been a miss, and Oso Ighodaro settling into a rotation role as another small win for the front office.
But the bigger picture still feels unsettled, because Phoenix keeps paying a premium to chase immediate help while its long-term flexibility gets thinner. The Bridges trade is only the latest reminder that the Suns are betting heavily on the idea that enough young talent can be found and developed to offset what keeps going out the door, and that is not a strategy with much margin for error. [Read more 🡒]
Khaman Maluach Just Gave Suns Fans Something They Have Been Missing
Khaman Maluachs Summer League run gave Phoenix a welcome reminder of what development can look like when a young big starts to slow the game down. After looking raw and out of place as a rookie, he appeared far more comfortable this month, playing with a level of control and impact that stood out enough to earn attention beyond the Suns own building.
ESPNs Ben Golliver even labeled Maluach the Most Improved Sophomore, a nod to how much cleaner and more assertive his game looked in Las Vegas. The Suns liked what they saw enough to bring him back to Phoenix after just four appearances, and now the bigger question is how much of that Summer League progress can carry into a role that matters when the real games start. [Read more 🡒]