PHOENIX SUNS OFF-SEASON GRADE #nba #espn #basketball #phoenix #suns #highlights #fyp
Back on the basketball soapbox here with another offseason grade. Looking at the Phoenix Suns in the Valley. I’m going to give them a C on the off seasonason. Um let’s start with Devin Booker’s contract. Um that extended him two years, $145 million contract that takes him out to the year 2030. Um looking at that from both sides of things for the Phoenix Suns, it gives them flexibility to bring people in. At least if guys are coming in and knowing book Devin Booker is at least under contract as the franchise guy, you can bring them in and help your team going forward with that. Also, if they’re going to look to trade Deon Booker, teams are going to be a little bit more interested with the guy underneath underneath his contract. I believe he’s going to be 30 at the end of this contract. Um, they at least there’s security there. You know his number if you’re bringing him in at 70 million roughly. You know what you’re getting in a trade for Deon Booker. Also helps the Suns gets assets. mostly you’re going to get first round picks, young players, etc., etc. going down the line. So, that gives them a little bit more flexibility. Um, traded Kevin Durant for Jaylen Green in Dylan Brooks. Now, the two and a half year experiment with Kevin Durant was a failure. Didn’t work. Injuries, coaching, fit, roster fit, roster construction, however you want to make it. Matt is Ishbia did not help um with trading for Bradley Bill, which I’ll get into in a minute. But I’m a little bit more optim optimistic on the Jaylen Green um bringing him in. I know people are sitting there saying we just saw him in Houston struggle on the offensive end in the playoffs, etc., etc. But it’s like he’s a young kid learning. He’s going to get better and especially with Deon Booker. I think that’s a nice back court that you can have a scoring back court. Um there’s upside there. Both are tall. Both can handle the ball. Um there’s flexibility there. I think there’s a little bit more upside than people are going on. So let’s see what that happens. It’s also a nice friendly deal for them. I think he’s on a three-year or $90 million contract, whatever it is. But it’s better for the Phoenix Suns to have that flexibility with a young player next to Deon Booker. See if he’s going to be able to fit. Um Dylan Brooks is going to be tough on defense and be feisty and get dejected and get technicals and do all that stuff and have those games here or there. Not bad to have. Um now waving Bradley Bill. Um they waved Bradley Bill. Bradley Bill is now on the LA Clippers. Um that didn’t work from day one. Um just fit roster-wise. uh his uh willing to be traded. That was a a headache for the Phoenix Suns as well. Um him not waving his no trade clause, they eventually bought him out. Um that at least took them underneath the aprons, right? So that buyout of I believe I believe they’re paying him $20 million over each year over the next five years or so. They’re buying out the rest of his hundred uh million dollar contract. It was 113. I believe he gave $13 million back. at least buying out his contract at least got them underneath some aprons and provided some flexibility. They didn’t bring anybody in similar to what uh Milwaukee did on the Damen Lillard side of things, but at least with this there’s at least some type of it’s did money on the cap which doesn’t help which I don’t like with $20 million just did cap every year for the next five years but at least they’re out of the Bradley Bill situation. At least on that end, at least on the roster side of things they can move forward. uh drafted Kaman Malawuch out of Duke. Uh they addressed their big man needs in uh in terms of uh trading for Mark Williams as well. Um but looking at Kaman Maluch, there’s upside with him. Big man, real big man. Um 7 feet, 250 lbs, shot blocker at this point in time. Hoping that he can develop around Devin Booker and uh Jaylen Green and those other guys um to pay dividends on the long end in terms of just being big, being a shot blocker, being able to rebound. So, that’s something that they addressed in um in the offseason in the draft. Uh trading for Mark Williams, who was uh failed to trade to the Lakers due to failing physical. Um Charlotte got out of that and trading him to Phoenix, which really helped out. Um so, they do have at least two young big men that they can at least try to build around and have going forward in the future. Um hired Jason Odd, who was the assistant coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and I believe he was an assistant with LA as well. Um got rave reviews for what he did in Cleveland. So, we’ll see how he’s able to come in and with new fresh eyes, um, getting this opportunity, willing to work with this team and see what he does going forward with this team. So, offseason grade for the Phoenix Suns is going to be a C. I like what they did in terms of trying to figure out life after Kevin Durant and Bradley Bill, but we’ll see how long that lasts and see how long Deon Booker wants to stay in the valley and see if Jaylen Green and these other young guys can contribute and help this team moving forward and build towards something rather than being in mediocrity and confusion. Um, we’ll see what happens.
