Since Mat Ishbia became owner, the Phoenix Suns have not retained the right to a single draft pick, and it looks like that won’t change this season.
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The draft has been hailed as one of the worst in a long time, and the Suns will select 22nd overall. The Suns can trade both their 2031 first-round pick and the No. 22 pick on June 26, the day of the first round of the draft, but not before.
The Suns will be “very aggressive” in the trade market between now and then, according to a report from Shams Charania, the NBA insider for The Athletic, on “The Pat McAfee Show” yesterday.
To be clear, Charania stated, “They can trade their two first-round picks on draft night.” “I believe that there is a misconception that they lack resources and are unable to act at this time. However, some of their salaries are easily exchangeable. They can be very aggressive between now and draft night since they have two first-round picks and a player like Nassir Little who can be added to a deal.
The Suns are expected to be “very, very aggressive” on the trade market leading up to draft night, per @ShamsCharania on @PatMcAfeeShow.
Phoenix has two first-round picks that become trade-eligible on June 26: No. 22 overall + 2031 1st.
Keep an eye on Nassir Little, who makes… pic.twitter.com/Tlfr3GY2wV
— Evan Sidery (@esidery) May 14, 2024
Not only do the Suns hold these two first-round picks, but Charania corrects the myth that they won’t be picking for a very long time. Due to all of these being pick swaps, Phoenix will still have a first-round pick in 2026, 2028, and 2030. However, if they finish in the lottery and have to give up a nice pick, they may not be in the best position with those picks. Right now, the sole second-round selection they possess is a 2028 Boston Celtics pick (protected 31-45).
Ishbia forfeited the remaining draft capital of the team through a series of deals. The exchange of four first-round picks for Kevin Durant, four more first-round pick swaps, and six future second-round picks for Bradley Beal are the most notable examples of this.
Charania’s story shouldn’t be shocking because, during his end-of-season availability two weeks ago, Ishbia seemed incredibly uncommitted to both the pick this year and the pick in 2031.
“You ain’t going to like the Phoenix Suns if fans like to look forward and say, ‘Hey, I really like that 2031 draft pick, because maybe that seventh-grader is gonna be really good and we’re gonna draft them and one day he’s gonna be a player,'” Ishbia stated. “Because we’re going to say that great players are selected with draft picks.”
Little’s salary for the second year of his four-year rookie agreement is scheduled to be $6.75 million, according to Spotrac. The 6-foot-6, 24-year-old wing hardly appeared in 45 games during his first campaign in Phoenix, and he hasn’t played in many crucial minutes since December.
Little, who was supposed to be included in trade packages around the trade deadline, would not be able to fetch much on his own. Given that the Suns have the highest anticipated payroll in the NBA ($209 million) for the upcoming season, they might decide to simply salary dump him.
But, they might be able to get a decent return if they tie Little to the first-round selection.
Nassir Little + pick(s) MAYBE gets:
G Davion Mitchell ($6.4M)
F Ziaire Williams ($6.1M)
C Nick Richards ($5M)
F Tari Eason ($3.6M) https://t.co/1LTdOLVGZV— Inside the Sun (@_insidethesun) May 14, 2024
Trade Restrictions
For the next season, the Suns will be operating over the anticipated second-tax apron of $190 million.
Phoenix is only allowed to sign veteran minimum contracts to free agents who are not on the Suns at this threshold. The Suns won’t be allowed to employ a prior trade exemption, aggregate contracts, incorporate cash in deals, or take in more compensation than they send out in trades.
This degree of flexibility is not ideal for Phoenix, who recently lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
According to Spotrac, Bradley Beal will earn $50.2 million in the third year of a five-year contract, Devin Booker is expected to receive an estimated $49.4 million in the second season of a four-year extension, and Durant will get $51.2 million in the upcoming season with an extra year remaining on his contract. Jusuf Nurkić will also make $18.1 million next year and is signed for two more seasons following this one. Three weeks ago, Grayson Allen signed a four-year, $70 million contract extension. He will play in the first season of the deal.
Beal has the ability to veto any trade because of his no-trade clause, which was carried over from the time the Suns acquired him from the Washington Wizards.
Apart from Little’s absence from the starting lineup, David Roddy will receive $2.9 million on his third rookie contract, which is essentially a veteran minimum salary, for the upcoming season.
The Suns have the opportunity to sign Royce O’Neale to a contract extension through his bird rights, and Josh Okogie, Damion Lee, Eric Gordon, and Drew Eubanks all have player options to carry over their senior minimum agreements into the following season.
Phoenix is unable to combine any of these wages in order to acquire a player, as was previously noted.
All things considered, Little and the first-round pick (or both) have always seemed like a solid choice to try to get a win-now player without giving up a significant portion of the rotation—that is, unless the Suns want to blow it all away.
