First-time head coach Jordan Ott will be faced with some difficult decisions this fall as the Suns prepare for training camp, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (subscriber link).
In addition to managing Devin Booker‘s workload and discovering if Khaman Maluach, Rasheer Fleming and Koby Brea can contribute as rookies, Ott and his staff will also have to determine Phoenix’s starting lineup. According to Rankin, Booker, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and Mark Williams will likely be four of the five starters, but the fifth is less certain.
Rankin views second-year wing Ryan Dunn as the most logical candidate to be the fifth starter, assuming he was able to improve his three-point shot over the summer. If Dunn’s offensive efficiency is still lacking, Royce O’Neale would be a more proven option as a small-ball four.
Second-year forward/center Oso Ighodaro is another player who could receive starting consideration if Ott experiments with two-big lineups, Rankin adds.
Here’s more on the Suns:
After stating in mid-July that he was “pretty confident” the Lakers weren’t interested in Heat forward Andrew Wiggins, Dan Woike of The Athletic confirms reporting from Marc Stein, writing that the Lakers appear more inclined to pursue an upgrade on the wing – including a player like Wiggins – in the wake of Luka Doncic‘s long-term commitment to the team. Doncic signed a three-year, maximum-salary extension with Los Angeles last month.
Although the Lakers seem more open to taking on contracts that run beyond the 2025/26 season in the right deal, they also may want to see how new additions like Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart, and Jake LaRavia look this fall before they cash in any of their limited trade assets, Woike cautions.
The Lakers can currently only trade one future first-round pick, either their 2031 or 2032 selection.
Here’s more from around the Pacific:
Tragedy has struck Timberwolves big man Naz Reid and his family. His sister, Toraya Reid, was shot and killed Saturday in New Jersey, Eva Herscowitz of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. A New Jersey prosecutor charged Shaquille Green, whom the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office said was in a relationship with Toraya Reid, with her murder.
Reid’s former teammate, Knicks star Karl-Anthony Towns, was devastated by the news.
“Heartbroken. No words can ever take away the pain for my brother,” Towns tweeted. “Holding everyone close in prayer today.”
The Spurs and Hawks are considered the co-favorites to make the biggest leap in the NBA during the upcoming season, according to a panel of ESPN Insiders.
The panel made its predictions on a wide variety of topics, including the team most likely to make a big move before the trade deadline (the Warriors received the most votes) and the next superstar to request a trade (Zion Williamson was the top vote-getter).
Here’s more from around the international basketball world:
The Warriors haven’t given up hope of trading for LeBron James and teaming him with Stephen Curry, according to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (subscription required). Sources tell Fischer that Golden State has reached out to the Lakers on multiple occasions over the past 18 months to work out a deal, but has come up empty.
James and Curry played together at the Paris Olympics last August, combining their talents to capture a gold medal for Team USA. Coach Steve Kerr was in charge of that team, and the Warriors would like to create that same dynamic in the NBA.
Even though there are persistent rumors that James might be headed elsewhere after picking up his $52.6MM player option in June, Fischer points out that it would be tough for Golden State to put together a trade proposal that matches salaries without tearing apart the core of the roster. He adds that also holds true if Giannis Antetokounmpo were to ask out of Milwaukee.
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
The Warriors do not want to include the contract of either Moses Moody or Buddy Hield as part of a possible Jonathan Kuminga sign-and-trade with the Kings, Sam Amick of The Athletic confirms (via Twitter). That essentially stalls the deal indefinitely, as Golden State would need to move off one of those players in order to take back Malik Monk and fill out the rest of its roster.
There’s still plenty of time left between now and the October 1 deadline for Kuminga to accept his qualifying offer, so it’s possible other suitors or offers will emerge for the restricted free agent forward, but for now, Golden State expects Kuminga to return to the team for 2025/26.
Kuminga was injured for much of the 2024/25, but when he did play, the 22-year-old showed his athleticism and scoring ability. In 47 healthy games, he averaged 15.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per contest.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division:
Chris Paul returned to Los Angeles and signed with the Clippers on a one-year deal last week. Paul showed strong interest in playing for one of his other former teams before making his decision, according to the latest Substack article from Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line.
The other team that Paul considered rejoining was the Suns. The team’s star, Devin Booker, was intrigued by the potential reunion, given how they meshed during Phoenix’s run to the 2021 NBA Finals. There was also seemingly a spot for Paul at the point, since Tyus Jones chose to sign with Orlando.
The Suns’ front office decided to go in another direction. Phoenix was much more interested in defensive stalwart Marcus Smart, who chose to sign with the Lakers after reaching a buyout with Washington. Phoenix’s brass also had some concerns how the future Hall of Famer’s presence might create some awkward situations for first-year head coach Jordan Ott.
The Suns wound up claiming Jordan Goodwin off waivers and signing Jared Butler to a non-guaranteed contract. Paul also drew interest from the Hornets, Mavericks and Bucks, as previously reported.
Citing a source, Stein said Dallas had D’Angelo Russell higher on its wish list than Paul. The Mavs’ brass believed Russell would be more comfortable in a complementary role once Kyrie Irving returns from his knee ailment. They also felt Russell was a better fit with Anthony Davis, considering they had played together with the Lakers. Russell signed a two-year deal with the Mavs.
Here’s more nuggets from The Stein Line:
The Suns are comfortable with their current roster, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic reports, though they must make at least one more move.
Aided in large part by the Kevin Durant trade and the buyout of Bradley Beal‘s contract, the Suns have dropped under the tax aprons and can now aggregate contracts in a trade, do a sign-and-trade and use mid-level exceptions. However, it’s unlikely they’ll make another significant move.
While Rankin confirms the Suns have some interest in restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga, they likely lack the draft capital and assets to pique the Warriors’ interest. Veteran free agents Russell Westbrook and Al Horford are not on their radar, Rankin adds.
Phoenix will have to add another player to the standard roster by the fall to meet the minimum of 14.
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
In the wake of the Suns‘ trade of Kevin Durant and buyout agreement with Bradley Beal, team owner Mat Ishbia admitted that he may have taken the wrong approach when he took control of the franchise two years ago and immediately began throwing draft picks and money around to build an expensive, top-heavy roster.
“The big thing I learned is you got to start and have the vision and identity from day one and I did not do that with the Phoenix Suns,” Ishbia said during a Thursday interview on SiriusXM NBA Radio, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. “I thought, ‘Hey, let’s add some money. They’ve already got a good thing going. Let’s untap some resources and it will only get better,’ and that’s not how it works.
“… Everybody has got to have an alignment of what we’re about here in Phoenix and we didn’t do a good enough job of that. That’s on me. I’ll take the blame.”
“Alignment” has been a recurring talking point for Ishbia and the Suns this summer as they made changes to their front office and brought in a new head coach for the third consecutive offseason.
Ishbia said during his SiriusXM NBA Radio appearance that he and new general manager Brian Gregory are “completely aligned with what we’re trying to do,” and brought up “alignment” again when he explained why he doesn’t feel pressure to make sure star guard Devin Booker stays happy in the coming years.
“Devin’s going to be happy because we’re going to try to win,” the Suns owner said, per Rankin. “We’re going to do things that will be aligned with the vision and the identity that he agrees with 1000% and I agree with 1000% along with our GM (Gregory) and our coach (Jordan Ott). The alignment from owner to GM to coach to star/franchise player was never there before, to be clear. It is now and it’s crystal clear.”
According to Ishbia, the Suns are now committed to building “the right way” over the long term, and made it a priority this summer to add “younger, up-and-coming” talent while creating more salary cap flexibility going forward.
Here are a few more highlights from Ishbia, via Rankin:
On parting with Beal:
“He’s a great guy. Just not a fit with Phoenix Suns going forward. We told him that. We made that decision. We let them know wanted to move forward without him. It doesn’t mean he’s a bad guy. It doesn’t mean he’s a bad player. … He’s a great player, but for Phoenix and what we’re doing, it wasn’t a fit and we had to move on and make those decisions.”
On why the Suns hired Ott as their head coach:
“We had to get a coach that’s thinking forward and not looking back. Not looking at what worked in 2020, but what’s going to work in 2030. What’s the future and Jordan Ott is an unbelievable basketball mind. Praised by everybody we reached out to, every reference possible and we’ve been really happy with him so far. He’s young, he’s going to build with our team and he hopefully can be a great coach for the Phoenix Suns for the future.”
On No. 10 overall pick Khaman Maluach:
“We’re excited about Malauch. He’s 18, though. People have unreal (expectations). He’s 18. I have a son that’s 14. He’s four years older. He’s still a kid and he’s going to develop. It’s going to take a little bit of time, but we really love what he’s got and think he can be a real impact player.”
On the return in the Durant blockbuster:
“We wanted Jalen Green, to be clear. We like Jalen. He’s 23 years old, the leading scorer for the two seed in the West and Dillon Brooks, he’s a straight dog. He’s the type of guy we want here in Phoenix. He’s not on your team, you probably don’t like him, but I’m telling you. … He plays defense against the best player. He’s great around Booker. You put him around Booker, you put Jalen Green with Booker, we feel good about that.”
The three-year, $52.5MM contract that restricted free agent Santi Aldama signed with the Grizzlies includes a third-year team option, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. The deal is front-loaded, with an $18.49MM salary in year one before it dips to $17MM in year two. The team option for 2027/28 is also worth $17MM.
Meanwhile, the three-year, $27.66MM deal that Ty Jerome finalized with the Grizzlies is worth the full room exception, as expected. Jerome’s contract – which includes a third-year player option, as previously reported – also features a 15% trade kicker, notes Scotto (Twitter link).
Finally, Cam Spencer‘s new four-year contract with Memphis is worth roughly $10.4MM in total. The team used cap room to give Spencer a salary of $2,537,989 in year one, with minimum salaries for the remaining three years of the deal, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. As previously reported, the first three seasons are fully guaranteed, with a fourth-year team option for 2028/29.
Here are a few more details on some of the recently signed contracts from around the NBA: