With the trade deadline less than a month away, rumors surrounding every team have started to spread like wildfire. Every single day, we are getting new intel from these insiders to keep us enthralled
as we all anxiously await the first trade of the year.
Since the Suns have exceeded their preseason expectations and still have holes on this roster, it is expected they will entertain calls on some of their players. That being said, while some may be available, plenty are not moving.
We saw this past week that Mat Ishbia spoke out on Dillon Brooks’ availability on the trade market while responding to this tweet.
This right here shows the value Brooks brings and how this Suns team wants to buy into this new identity they have started to embrace. Along with Brooks, Jalen Green, who was brought from Houston to Phoenix this past offseason for Kevin Durant, is also known to be off the trade market. This is from Brett Siegel of Clutch Points, as stated here.
As we can see, they will keep Green, which is a wise decision for many reasons.
For one, as I mentioned, they appreciate the culture and identity they have established so far in just this half-season. This energy seems infectious to everyone and is evident in most of the team. Green is part of this young core they want to build, based on his hustle and hard work. Even if it’s only been five quarters of play, I know Green can fit into that scheme with his aggressiveness to attack the basket and be a downhill threat for this team.
Then you add the fact that they have a solid 21-15 record, with him contributing to only one of those wins. Adding him to this rotation when it’s clearly been shown they need another offensive engine to pair alongside Devin Booker gives you hope he will fit in. With him still only 23 as well, you have so much opportunity to invest and see what he can be now and in the future, with these five other draft picks from the past two seasons.
Lastly, the Bucks do not have anything that the Suns would take for Green and view as a positive. There are players on this Bucks team that would definitely interest this team, but do not have the ceiling to replicate his value in giving him out,
Unless the Bucks are attaching an unprotected 2031 pick, I am not even considering it. However, let’s be realistic; we know how this front office views picks, so they would not want it regardless.
They could move guys like Kyle Kuzma or Bobby Portis to the Suns for Green, and even if that helps in areas of weakness, they are not replicating his value in my eyes. Green has the potential to be something great, while these two are going to be effective, but they are getting worse with every season.
I do not see Kuzma as a fit, as his contract is not the best (2 years, $42M remaining). He would be a younger, taller version of Royce O’Neale, making double the money. Portis could be a solid fit, as he would rebound and space the floor for this team in the frontcourt. Once again, though, for Jalen Green, who has the potential to turn into a great second option, I am not moving off of him for either 30-year-old role player. If I am not moving off Green for Julius Randle or John Collins, I am not doing it for Kuzma or Portis.
If the Bucks wanted to move off Portis and the Suns were interested, maybe that is where O’Neale and some salary filler come to play, but for Green, it is out of the question.
What do you guys think? Is it a smart move by the Suns front office to keep the young project and see what he can become with this Suns team? I hope he can prove that sooner rather than later when he returns from his hamstring injury.
