{"id":711861,"date":"2026-04-16T16:15:32","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T16:15:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/711861\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T16:15:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T16:15:32","slug":"worst-suns-trade-of-entire-decade-crushes-playoff-hopes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/711861\/","title":{"rendered":"Worst Suns trade of entire decade crushes playoff hopes"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Phoenix Suns slipped up massively in their quest to make the playoffs on Tuesday, and are now at risk of creating some seriously unwanted history in the process<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One of the stand-out players for the Portland Trail Blazers in their victory over the Suns was Belgian Toumani Camara, a name fans in Phoenix are sick of hearing about.<\/p>\n

Camara’s defense on Devin Booker helped Trail Blazers win game<\/p>\n

The 25-year-old has quickly established himself as one of the best on-ball defenders in the entire NBA, and his ability to hang with Booker was instrumental in the Trail Blazers pulling out the victory.<\/p>\n

Deni Avdija may have gotten all of the plaudits with his 41 points, but the Suns’ offense grinding to a halt was in large part due to the play of Camara.<\/p>\n

Toumani Camara vs Devin Booker in the 4th quarter.<\/p>\n

Devin Booker’s average 4th Q usage% = 32.6%
In this game = 23.8%<\/p>\n

No better defender at limiting a star’s touches pic.twitter.com\/Cle5PB57nc<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Mike Jagacki (@Mike_Jagacki) April 15, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

As you are likely already painfully aware, Camara was drafted by the Suns and actually had a nice little Summer League display for the franchise.<\/p>\n

He never played a meaningful game for the team, as he was added to the package that sent Deandre Ayton packing for Jusuf Nurkic.<\/p>\n

A decision that in hindsight was a disaster, even if it did make sense at the time and Ayton had to be sent packing from The Valley.<\/p>\n

Quite why Camara was added to that trade has never been confirmed, but it would be surprising if his inclusion was a deal-breaker here.<\/p>\n

He was a second round pick who was already 22 when drafted, but that is also likely why the front office had no problem including him either.<\/p>\n

The reality however is much more painful, with Camara being one of the deciding factors in the Suns failing to make the playoffs at the first attempt.<\/p>\n

Had they won, then a date with the San Antonio Spurs would have been on the cards, and although daunting they had some success defending Victor Wembanyama this season.<\/p>\n

Contrast that with what is waiting for them if they squeak by the Golden State Warriors (potentially a better matchup than the L.A. Clippers<\/a>), a series against a potential dynasty in the Oklahoma City Thunder.<\/p>\n

All because Camara was able to make life difficult for Booker down the stretch of a tight game, which collectively led to the Suns’ offense grinding to a halt.<\/p>\n

Imagine having his defensive intensity alongside Dillon Brooks in place of Ryan Dunn, the Suns would be even further along in their re-tooling around Booker. This continues to look so bad.<\/p>\n

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