Could a reunion with the Valley make sense for Jevon Carter?

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With the Phoenix Suns now buying out Bradley Beal, all options become possible with dropping out of both aprons and having all the flexibility in free agency. That being said, the pool of players available in free agency is not the best, as it is almost a month into the respective period. For the Suns, the moves out there are possible, but how many could be truly impactful? That question remains the one fans want the answer to, and sadly, the answer is still a mystery.

With all that in mind, though,

the Suns do have some options on the trade market and still need one position desperately: point guard.

Even with Devin Booker slated to start at that position and Collin Gillespie as the backup, adding another depth piece would be fantastic. This was something we discussed during my latest live stream on Suns Digest, when a fan presented an excellent idea for this article. Shoutout to Da Goon for this, but he asked for my thoughts on Jevon Carter and if I would like him back.

My mind immediately went to a ‘yes,’ but then I thought about it happening, which also seemed like a reality that could come true. In today’s article, we will dive into player Jevon Carter, exploring what he could bring to the Valley that they are currently missing, and how it could unfold.

Photo by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images

Jevon Carter and what he can be for Phoenix

As we all know, Carter initially wound up in Phoenix via a trade in 2019. This deal sent him and Kyle Korver to the Suns for Josh Jackson, De’Anthony Melton, and two second-round picks. He spent two seasons playing for the Suns, in which he was a solid role player for a team that did not have high expectations.

His time was short-lived in the Valley, though, as he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets on the draft night in 2021 for the draft rights of Day’Ron Sharpe alongside the draft rights of Landry Shamet. In hindsight, that was not the best move for the Suns. Now, the Suns, though, are in a situation where a team once again has a plan to improve, but not to become one of the top three teams in the West. Does that present an opportunity for Carter to make an impact here in the Valley?

Carter, since leaving the Suns, has played for three franchises: the Brooklyn Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Chicago Bulls. On all three of those teams, he’s proved to be a solid backup point guard. His best season came in 2022-23 with the Bucks. In 81 games, he averaged 8 points with 2.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists. This allowed him to sign with the Bulls on a three-year, $20 million deal, the one he is currently still on.

For the Suns, he can run the offense and serve as a solid distributor for the second unit, while also being a scrappy and relentless defender. He would be another version of Monte Morris from this team last year. This time, we could see how that would look on this roster, as Morris got very little to no playing time in the middle to the end of last year, after a great start. These types of qualities align with the new identity of the Suns, while also filling a gap in the roster.

Currently, the Suns only have one point guard on the roster in Collin Gillespie. Even though Devin Booker is assumed to start at the position, the Suns could still use some depth at the position. Regardless of the NBA’s positionless nature, having someone who can run an offense and supplement minutes if another guard is injured or in foul trouble is key. In my opinion, Carter would present himself as some competition for Gillespie, but not take away too much from his development.

Discussing how this can get done is the easiest part of them all. Now that the Suns are underneath the luxury tax with waiving Bradley Beal, making trades becomes easier than ever. The Suns have two contracts in my eyes that they could send to the Suns that could help their roster more than Carter could.

The reason why Chicago would even consider a deal like this is for multiple reasons. The first being that they already have a ton of guards on the roster. Currently, the Bulls have Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu, Kevin Huerter, Tre Jones, and Josh Giddey, who is still a free agent. Their roster cannot hold any more guards, and that was evident last year when Carter, on the team, averaged his lowest minutes per game ever at 8.9. Carter will also be 30 by the time the Bulls head into next season, with them looking to get younger and having guards who are all younger than him, it seems like he is the odd man out in their rotation.

How it gets done

So, who could Phoenix ultimately send to finalize this deal? Well, they have two contracts, and you could argue a point for either one.

Trade 1: Royce O’Neale for Jevon Carter

The Bulls could use some help in the wing rotation, and the Suns have found their replacements for O’Neale. With Fleming, Hayes-Davis, Brooks, Dunn, and the potential of Ighodaro and Maluach playing some power forward, the days of Royce in Phoenix look slimmer to me, especially if this double big fun from summer league translates to Ott’s system, which I do expect.

Even with the Bulls having some wings under contract, this could give them a veteran scorer if they still want to compete. The Bulls front office has wanted to in the past, so if this is the case, O’Neale can be another quality rotational guy. Now they would take on more money by trading for O’Neale, and that is something I do not think they would want to do. Therefore, I believe this pivot benefits both teams in a better way.

Trade 2: Nick Richards for Jevon Carter

Once again, similar to O’Neale, Richards seems to be the odd man out in this center rotation, especially given the growth we saw in Oso Ighodaro in summer league and the intrigue surrounding Khaman Maluach. Richards could be kept in case of injuries, and that could present the Suns with this option at the deadline, but I think it could also be done before the season starts.

For the Bulls, they get another quality backup big man who can play alongside Nikola Vucevic as the defensive anchor. If the Bulls were also considering flipping Vucevic as well, Richards can present himself to be a low-tier starting-caliber big. For a team that claims to want to compete but has a hodgepodge of players, you can assume that they will make these unusual decisions. The Bulls would also save money with this move, which can benefit them without hindering the Suns.

Could they trade for him only to keep Richards and flip him later at the deadline when someone gets hurt? If they feel that Carter’s value is lower than Richard’s, then that can present them with an option as well.

Final Thoughts

This was a fun idea of writing about someone who fills a void the Suns need, but also does not require them to move off a key piece to do so. Carter is also an expiring contract following this season, so if things did not go as planned, the Suns would be off his money. You could say the same for Richards, but honestly, even though I believe in Gillespie’s ability to be a quality backup, I’d rather three point guards and three centers than two point guards and four centers.

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