Welcome to our Phoenix Suns Season in Review series, where we revisit every player who suited up during the 2025–26 campaign through the lens of expectation, reality, and what it ultimately meant.
Player Snapshot
- Position: PF/C
- Age: 23
- Contract Status: Rookie-scale contract, team has a club option in 2027-2028, UFA in 2028-2029 if not resigned
- SunsRank (Preseason): 10
- SunsRank (Postseason): 8
*SunsRank is based on Bright Side writers’ ranking.
Season in One Sentence
In his sophomore year, Oso Ighodaro showed that there is room to grow, but the prospect has the potential to be something special.
By the Numbers
The Iron Man suited up for all 82 games and had some nice stats.
The Expectation
Coming into this year, Oso Ighodaro was expected to continue
to grow as a backup big and prove that he deserved to be part of the rotation. Last season, the big man saw sporadic playing time and did not get much burn until the season was dust. This had the fans questioning what his role could truly be on the roster, especially with the front court getting two new additions. Would Ighodaro get lost in the shuffle or rise through the cracks to make a name for himself?
The Reality
Well, Ighodaro definitely proved his worth, even if his role did change throughout the year. To begin the year, he was the big man Jordan Ott trusted the most, getting the start with Mark WIllimas getting to game speed. This was a bit too much for Ighodaro to handle, but who else would they throw into the fray, their rookie? Ighodaro dealt with tough matchups against Nikola Jokic and Ivica Zubac to start the season, and it had fans ready to ship the big man away, not even a week in.
That is where it all started to change for Ighodaro, though, as when Williams returned, he found himself in his true role: the backup center. This is where his and Gillespie’s connection began to brew as the duo quickly realized their pick-and-roll would be a feast for opponents. This allowed Oso to find multiple trips to the boom room and get comfortable in the rotation. He also used his passing to make plays for Gillespie.
Then, towards the end of the season, Ighodaro began to see starts again as Williams was out for the playoffs. Against a dominant OKC team, the Suns were going to struggle anyway, but without their best big, it was just too much size for Oso to handle.
Throughout the season, Ighodaro proved that, in the right role, he can be successful and was a steal at pick 40 last year. He definitely has areas to grow, too, but for someone who did not have high expectations when he was drafted, he has definitely exceeded them in the eyes of many.
What It Means
There is no hiding that I love what Ighodaro brings to this team. I even made a drop for him on Suns Planet Pod because I’m such a fan of his game. He truly is one of those underrated pieces that may not have the stats to show it every game, but gets better in every performance.
Since the Suns have him under contract for at least the next year, I see him continuing to fight in this rotation next season. With the uncertainty of Mark Williams returning, this means Ighodaro could be in line for a starting opportunity, depending on the other offseason moves.
If Ighodaro can continue to improve, as he stated at the end of the year, by working on his areas of weakness, he could truly mold himself into one of the best bench bigs in the association. He already added some size from last year, so if he continues to get stronger and tune his jump shot, as he alluded to, he can find himself getting picked back up on the club option and landing a comfortable extension.
Defining Moment
Oso’s defining moment came early on in the season when the Suns took on the Indiana Pacers. After a struggling start with getting guys fully healthy, the Suns gave the Pacers the belt. Before people knew they would be tanking, the Suns showed they were in a different class than Indiana this year, and a big reason was Oso Ighodaro.
In this game, he posted up 17 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and 3 blocks while shooting 78/0/60 from the field with a +52 on the court. This is the highest +/- of any Suns player in the play-by-play era and the third highest all-time in the NBA. To achieve something like this, put Ighodaro on fans’ radar, as even though +/- is not the end-all, be-all stat, it showed he could be part of the future in this role.
This gave Ighodaro the confidence, as did the fans, in their second-year project, which was looking better than advertised. In a year where the whole team overachieved, it was great to see the young guys participate in that as well.
Grade: B+
Even if he was not a positive every night for the Suns, I would say Oso showed up for most of them. Not to mention that he was Iron Man and played all 82 games this year, with a team plagued with injuries, that is also a positive.
Ighodaro proved this year that the skepticism around him should not be discussed. Yes, there are areas he can grow, but with every young player, there are, and he will specialize in that this offseason. For the year he had thought, he definitely put trust in him and this coaching staff. Something that is not quite seen with many second-round selections in their sophomore season.
Therefore, I think he deserves a B+ rating for showing more positive than negative. If the plan continues for Ighodaro, he could be a staple of this bench unit and continue working with his Big East partner, Collin Gillespie, to torch opposing teams.
