The Phoenix Suns are arguably in the worst position out of all franchises in the NBA, as they’re completely asset-strapped and have one of the most expensive rosters in the NBA which can’t even make the Play-In Tournament. The 11th-seeded Suns are expected to undergo major changes in the summer, whether that’s through players leaving as free agents or trades.
What we know for sure about the Suns is that Bradley Beal won’t leave the franchise unless he personally wants a move and a team wants to accept his supermax deal with a max contract. We also are almost certain that Kevin Durant could be traded this summer after the team tried moving him behind his back in the winter.
The Suns are projected to be a second-apron team with just eight players on their roster, that’s how bad their situation is. But let’s take a deeper look at what the Suns could lose or gain in the summer and next season.
Players Under Contract
Kevin Durant – $54,708,608
Bradley Beal – $53,666,270
Devin Booker – $53,142,264
Grayson Allen – $16,875,000
Cody Martin – $8,680,000
Nick Richards – $5,000,000
Ryan Dunn – $2,657,760
Oso Ighodaro – $1,955,377
The Suns have eight players heading into their roster next season, already putting their total salary bill at over $200 million. This means the Suns will have to fill out the rest of their roster with veteran minimums or two-way contracts, allowing the franchise to fill out their roster while being forced to stick with a stagnant core of stars who’ve proven this season they can’t even be competitive enough to be a top-10 seed in a 15-team conference.
Kevin Durant will be in the final year of his contract but is widely expected to be traded in the summer. The players are dissatisfied with the team trying to move him, and trading Durant might be the only way for the team to retain assets for a competitive push with Devin Booker staying on the roster.
Bradley Beal has no route out of the franchise unless he willingly accepts going to a tanking team which accepts his contract as a salary dump. With reports of him turning down potential deals to join teams like the Chicago Bulls, it seems like the Suns won’t be able to move on from him anytime soon either. The Booker and Beal duo will likely stay, so Durant is the obvious candidate to move.
Nick Richards, Ryan Dunn, and Oso Ighodaro are the highest-value Suns players staying on contract next season. Richards has solidified himself as the team’s starting center while Dunn is a defensive menace who could be a two-way star one day. Ighodaro is a workman big but produces above his contract’s value and is cost-controlled for multiple additional seasons.
Grayson Allen could be on the move with his name being in trade rumors this winter as well. He’ll be easier to move with another year off his contract in the summer, while Cody Martin likely stays on the franchise as he recently joined over the winter and is a controlled role-player who could thrive in the Suns setup for a budget price.
Team Options
Vasilije Micic – $8,109,150
The only contract option on the Suns’ books for this season comes with winter acquisition Vasilije Micic. Micic has played just two minutes for the Suns, proving the team doesn’t necessarily hold him in high regard through his first month of the franchise. He’s definitely hard to justify keeping around at a price like $8.1 million, so the chances the Suns pick up this option are next to none.
If the Suns weren’t already so guard-heavy, keeping Micic would’ve been an interesting prospect. However, the franchise would be better off opening up the space or accepting his option just to use in another trade, similar to them handing Josh Okogie an above-market extension last summer just so they could trade him over the season.
Free Agents
Mason Plumlee – UFA
Tyus Jones – UFA
Damion Lee – UFA
Monte Morris – UFA
Bol Bol – UFA
Jalen Bridges – RFA
Colin Gillespie – RFA
TyTy Washington Jr. – RFA
The Suns will have eight players test free agency, although only three are playing a real rotational role for the franchise.
Tyus Jones took a below-market minimum contract on the Suns by hoping he could generate more interest next season for a long-term contract if he helped the Suns make the Playoffs as their starting point guard. That has gone completely sideways, with online fans already deriding Jones for his poor play this season compared to what fans were expecting.
Mason Plumlee has been their starting center in multiple occasions but could find his utility expire at the end of the season with his minimum contract, as a Richards-Ighodaro center duo is a better pick for the future and the now. Bol Bol recently broke back into the Suns rotation and has been phenomenal, increasing the chances he returns to the franchise next summer.
Damion Lee and Monte Morris should be released without even the slightest quarrel given they’re not adding anything of sufficient value to the roster. The young options on RFA could stick around on short-term low-paying contracts, although the Suns should go out of their way to ensure Jalen Bridges stays with the team given his useful skillset.
This contract picture might look very different in the summer if the team makes additional trades at the start of trading season in June.
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