The Phoenix Suns head into training camp with a roster that already has a few clear pressure points, and the biggest ones are easy to spot. After last season’s underdog run pushed them into the playoffs, Phoenix kept most of the group together and added new faces like Miles Bridges and Luke Kennard. Now the Summer League is done, and the real waiting begins.
Three storylines stand out before the season even tips.
The first is the center rotation, and it’s going to be a topic all year. The Suns have three bigs who all want minutes, and Mark Williams looks like the most likely starter after coming back on a solid deal. But Khaman Maluach flashed in Summer League, and Oso Ighodaro has earned trust as well.
That creates a setup where the starting job and the finishing job may not always belong to the same player. Some nights it could be about performance.
Other nights it could be foul trouble. Ighodaro’s cheap club option makes him too useful to move on from right now, and Maluach needs developmental runway because he’s viewed as the future at the position if he becomes what the front office expects.
There’s also the possibility of Will Ott leaning into double-big looks with Ighodaro and Maluach, especially because Khaman can stretch the floor. Against bigger teams or physical ones, that could become a real wrinkle worth watching.
Another major question is what Jalen Green looks like in a fully healthy season. When he arrived in Phoenix, he was already dealing with a hamstring injury before preseason even started, which immediately complicated the conversation around his fit with Devin Booker. That concern was already there, and the injury only added to it.
Still, Green got back on the court and played 32 games, showing signs of growth. He had stretches where the three-ball was falling and others where it wasn’t, but he also made defensive plays with his quickness, creating steals and turning them into points. His transition game stood out as a real spark for him and for the team.
What Phoenix needs now is more of that, plus a little more passing polish so his possessions don’t become predictable. The hope is that his second year in the Valley brings a healthier, more complete version of the guard. Whether he ends up being the perfect fit is still an open question, but the Suns are willing to see it through.
Then there’s the frontcourt youth movement, where Rasheer Fleming and Koa Peat both made noise in Summer League and could end up mattering more than expected. The Suns traded for Miles Bridges, who is presumably the day-one starter at power forward, but long-term, either Peat or Fleming could end up taking that job, maybe even before the season ends.
Fleming looks like the kind of bench piece Phoenix needs after losing Royce O’Neale’s value. He can hit threes, use his size and length to force turnovers, and give the offense extra buckets. If the Suns are short on shooting early, he could be one of the first young players asked to help fill that gap.
Peat’s path may start slower, but his Summer League run showed he was better than a pick at No. 30 suggests. The former McDonald’s All-American was once viewed as a high lottery talent before heading to the University of Arizona, so landing him there looks like a strong swing from Brian Gregory and company.
If Peat develops into another interior scorer alongside Bridges and, in some double-big looks, Ighodaro, that would give Phoenix a much-needed answer from last year’s roster. The size matters, especially with a young frontcourt that still has to grow into matchups against players like Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid.
Both Fleming and Peat should get plenty of bench run this season, and that could help the Suns in more than one way. It gives the young players real reps, while also helping key role players avoid being run into the ground. Phoenix dealt with a lot of late injuries last year, and part of that, in this view, came from rookies not getting as much leeway as expected.
In Other News...
Suns Offseason Progress Came With A Tradeoff Fans Will Feel
Phoenixs offseason brought a little more stability than splash, with Collin Gillespie, Mark Williams and Jordan Goodwin all back in the fold and Koa Peat, Miles Bridges and Luke Kennard joining the mix. ESPN rewarded that work by nudging the Suns up in its latest NBA power rankings, a small but meaningful bump that reflects both last seasons competitiveness and the front offices effort to keep the roster from slipping further.
Miles Bridges is the headliner among the newcomers, and the Suns are also hoping for a healthier version of Jalen Green after a hamstring issue wrecked his first season in Phoenix. Even so, the roster still has some familiar questions hanging over it, especially when it comes to balance and the kind of guard play that can steady a team over the long haul. [Read more 🡒]
Suns Already Facing Big Miles Bridges Question After Bold Trade
Miles Bridges is already giving the Suns a new kind of offseason dilemma, because the trade that brought him over from Charlotte looks like more than a one-year rental. Phoenix moved to add the power forward with an eye on what comes next, and league chatter has already turned to whether the team wants to keep him around long term after this upcoming season. General manager Brian Gregory has publicly highlighted Bridges competitiveness and energy, while Bridges has said his focus is on helping the Suns chase a championship.
The contract situation is what makes this so interesting for Phoenix. Bridges is on an expiring deal, which means the Suns have to decide quickly whether this is just a bold swing for immediate help or the start of a deeper commitment. After sending Royce O'Neale, Grayson Allen, and draft-pick swaps to Charlotte, the front office has made clear it sees real value here, and the next step will tell the story of how far it wants to go. [Read more 🡒]
Jordan Ott Looks Like The Coach The Suns Desperately Needed
Jordan Otts first season in Phoenix gave the Suns something they had been missing for a while: stability with a clear identity. After a summer of low expectations, the team pushed its way back into the playoffs and did it with a top 10 defense, while also finding ways to fold new pieces into the rotation. Dillon Brooks and Mark Williams were among the additions that had to be absorbed on the fly, and Otts ability to keep the group organized through the inevitable bumps was a big part of why the season did not go sideways.
The bigger reason the year matters for Phoenix is that Ott appears to fit the structure above him as much as the roster around him. Brian Gregory and Mat Ishbia have been looking for a coach who can turn a perceived weakness into a strength, and Otts first run suggested that might be exactly what they found. The next test is whether that same approach holds when the roster changes again, especially with the Miles Bridges acquisition looming as the kind of move that can reshape the conversation fast. [Read more 🡒]