Suns ‘have enough talent to win a championship,’ says Mat Ishbia
Phoenix Suns team owner Mat Ishbia addressed the state of the franchise May 1 at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona.
Phoenix Suns’ team owner Mat Ishbia can say his team has enough talent to win an NBA championship, but they can’t stand pat, either, after getting swept in the first round of the 2024 playoffs.
The Suns did change head coaches as they fired Frank Vogel after one season and hired Mike Budenholzer, who coached the Bucks past them in the 2021 finals.
Having Giannis Antetokounmpo helped Milwaukee just a little bit, right? So did Jrue Holiday, who proved to be the missing piece in helping the Boston Celtics win this season’s NBA championship.
The Suns appear to have limited options in reconstructing a roster. They’re projected to go over the second NBA tax apron next season with a payroll of essentially $206 million and a luxury tax of nearly $105 million, but Ishbia has shown in his one season as team owner he’s willing to make moves.
Big ones, such as trading for Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal and trading away Chris Paul, Deandre Ayton, Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and multiple first-round picks.
Beal has a no-trade clause and they have just one pick (22nd overall) in next week’s draft in New York.
Here are three things the Suns still could do to improve their roster:
Move Nurkic? More frontcourt athleticism
Jusuf Nurkic provides rebounding, can facilitate and in the right system be a 3-point threat.
He also showed durability in playing 76 games in his first season with Phoenix, the most since suffering a season-ending leg injury late in the 2018-19 season with Portland. But Nurkic struggled finishing around the basket and had his share of struggles on defense.
The Suns acquired the 7-footer in a three-team deal that sent Deandre Ayton to the Trail Blazers.
They lost athleticism in moving Ayton, but the Suns could regain some in trading Nurkic for a younger, more athletic big. Nurkic is a skilled big who can score, rebound and pass, but the Suns have other scorers. They need bigs who can change the game with hustle plays, blocks and finishes at the rim.
It would be ideal to trade with a team looking to start over and move assets, but that player also could be found in free agency. Certainly a challenge with their roster limitations, but whether Nurkic is on the team or not, the Suns have to become more dynamic in the frontcourt and less reliant on making jump shots and tough, contested shots.
Phoenix could take a page from Dallas in having two big men with the same skill set. Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II both are athletic lob threats who protect the rim. They were huge in the Mavericks reaching the finals.
Drew Eubanks, who has a player option with the Suns, has been that type of big in the past. Eubanks didn’t consistently show it this past season in Phoenix, but part of that was how Vogel used him.
Backup point guard with starter potential
The Suns have Marquette senior point guard Tyler Kolek on their radar. His workout on Thursday went well with them. He’s 6-3, around 200 pounds, has good handles, a distributor, can run pick-and-roll, shoot it from 3 and competes on defense.
Kolek feels like a value pick at 22nd, but he may not be on the board at that point.
The Suns could draft that athletic four they need so Durant can play a more natural three position, but getting a point guard should be a greater priority.
Here’s the deal. Teams who have good, young point guards aren’t just trading them away. Drafting one assures them of having a point guard for years to come, not just for a year or two. At some point, the Suns have to look beyond the season in front of them and think whatever happens, they’re good at this position or that position.
Kolek could be the short-term answer to play with their Big 3 now and the long-term answer to run the show in three to four years.
Need for youth, Bol’s role
Phoenix went into this past season with the fourth-oldest team in the NBA with an average age of 27.75.
The average age of their starting lineup of Grayson Allen, Nurkic, Booker, Durant and Beal is 29.8. Durant will turn 36 in September.
Let’s say the Suns stick with this unit to open the 2024-25 season, re-sign Royce O’Neale and Eric Gordon picks up his player option. Neale is 31 years old. Gordon is 35. They will be the first guys off the bench in a 10-man rotation.
Expect Damion Lee to nod into his player option. He’s 31 and coming off missing the entire 2023-24 season with a knee injury. His ability to shoot the 3 will land him minutes.
A healthy Nassir Little would help as he’s 24, but the Suns need to find a way to land an athletic four, likely on the minimum salary, so Durant can play the three more. Durant, Beal, Devin Booker and Grayson Allen can lead scoring. The Suns need youthful, lively bigs who can rebound, switch on defense, protect the rim and give the offense a lob presence.
Bol Bol is such a wild card.
The Suns of course would have to bring him back, after signing him to just a one-year deal last summer. Budenholzer could decide Bol is best suited for the four spot. Having David Fizdale remain with the team as an assistant would help Bol as he has an interest in Bol’s development.
That would require the 24-year-old Bol to play with more physicality, bulk up a bit. He can’t get muscled by a five man on a switch. Durant was in favor of playing the 7-3 Bol because it gave the team more size, but starting Bol would likely lead to having Allen come off the bench.
Decisions. Decisions. Decisions. The Suns have some important ones to make that must work to better compete for a championship. Changing head coaches won’t be enough.
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at [email protected] or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
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