What Phoenix Suns' offseason moves mean for Devin Booker
· Yahoo Sports
The Phoenix Suns maneuvered into the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft, made a major trade, added a 3-point ace and re-signed three key players from last season’s 45-win team.
They may not be done, either, as there’s been a plethora of trades throughout the league this offseason.
Visit sportbet.rodeo for more information.
Big names like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard and Jaylen Brown are changing teams – and the LeBron James watch continues in an already wild free agency.
Peace out, Los Angeles Lakers.
Hello Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat, Golden State Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers or someone else?
In the meantime, here's a look at off-season developments and the current state of the Phoenix Suns heading into NBA Summer League play in Las Vegas, which opens July 9. The Suns' first game is July 10 vs. Portland.
Current standard roster (15)
Devin Booker. The franchise changed his jersey number to No. 15, which pays homage to his dad, Melvin, who wore the number in high school and college. Booker wore No. 1 for his first 11 NBA seasons with Phoenix.
Jalen Green. His name continues to surface in trade chatter after an injury-filled season.
Dillon Brooks. Coming off a career year – and with new haircut – Brooks scored 20 points in leading Canada to an 116-78 win July 6 over Jamaica in FIBA World Cup 2027 qualifiers.
Miles Bridges. The Suns dealt Grayson Allen, Royce O’Neale and a 2033 unprotected first-round pick to the Charlotte Hornets for Bridges, a 2029 first-round pick and a 2027 second-round pick, league sources confirmed on June 28 to The Arizona Republic.
Mark Williams. He was a restricted free agent who re-signed a three-year, $38-million deal with the Suns. Williams has worn No. 15 for the Suns, but will change to No. 25 to accommodate Booker's switch.
Collin Gillespie. Unrestricted free agent re-signed to a four-year, $48-million deal.
Jordan Goodwin. Unrestricted free agent re-signed to a three-year, $19-million deal with a player option on third year.
Luke Kennard. Has agreed to a two-year, $13-million deal with a player option on second year after leading the NBA in 3-point shooting percentage last season at 47.8%.
Oso Ighodaro. Played all 82 games last season as a backup big. He started 24 games.
Ryan Dunn. Scoreless in playoffs. Played 10 total minutes in Phoenix’s last three games.
Haywood Highsmith. Returned from major knee injury after trade from Brooklyn Nets.
Khaman Maluach. Set to play 2026 NBA Summer League after completing his rookie year.
Rasheer Fleming. Also will play 2026 NBA Summer League after his rookie year.
Jamaree Bouyea. The Suns picked up the team option on the backup point guard.
Koa Peat. Phoenix landed the Arizona freshman in the first round of 2026 draft after sending the 47th overall pick and two future second-round picks (2029, 2033) to the New York Knicks. Peat led Gilbert Perry to four straight state championships and Arizona to the 2026 Final Four. He'll be part of the Suns' Summer League team in Las Vegas.
Two-way players (3)
Koby Brea. Re-signed on a second two-way after his rookie year in Phoenix.
Pat Spencer. Signed two-way deal with Suns after averaging a career-high 7.2 points for Golden State Warriors last season.
CJ Huntley. Remains on two-way as he spent last season in G League with Valley Suns.
NBA teams must enter the regular season with 15 standard players, but they can have more players on their training camp roster.
The league allows three two-way players to a team.
Has the roster improved?
Yes and no.
The Suns are younger and more athletic with the 28-year-old Bridges and a healthy Green, who wasn’t fully himself last season because of a recurring hamstring injury. But they don’t have as much spacing without Allen and O’Neale, two of the team's more reliable 3-point shooters last season.
Adding Kennard addresses the loss of Allen and O’Neale, but the Suns are headed for another season of Booker serving as team’s primary scorer and playmaker.
Phoenix stood pat for the most part. Continuity should carry over. Bringing back Gillespie, Goodwin and Williams addresses multiple areas.
Gillespie is coming off a career year in which he averaged 12.7 points, shot 40.1% from 3 and set the franchise’s single-season record for most made 3s with 232.
Goodwin established himself last season as the team’s best on-ball defender, posting a career-high 1.5 steals. He finished second in offensive rebounds at two a game and shot 37.1% from 3, four percentage points higher than Booker.
As for Williams, the 7-footer played a career-high 60 games in his first year with the Suns, but missed the playoffs with a left foot third metatarsal stress reaction that sidelined him 15 consecutive games late in the regular season.
Bridges and Williams were teammates in Charlotte.
The Suns are hoping for a Year 2 leap from Maluach and Fleming. Can they consistently play rotation minutes?
Brooks averaged a career-high 20.2 points in his first year in Phoenix as he was part of the Durant trade. He had the green light to go for his. Can the Suns expect more of the same in 2026-27?
The Suns are expected to sign him to an extension.
The Suns established an identity of playing hard, intense and with an emphasis on defending, physicality, forcing turnovers, generating 3s and winning the possession game.
This group can keep that going, but head coach Jordan Ott’s major challenge remains finding right combinations.
As brutal as the injuries were last season, Ott didn’t have to make as many rotation decisions because he had fewer options.
With a healthy roster, who will the second-year coach play?
Projected 2026-27 rotation
Starting 5. PG – Booker, SG – Green, SF – Brooks, PF – Bridges, C – Williams.
Quick outlook. Bridges brings an elevated athleticism, but these five combined to shoot just 33.2% from 3 last season. The Suns need two of them to knock it down at a higher clip. Booker shot his second-lowest percentage from deep last season at 33%.
Next 5. PG – Gillespie, SG – Kennard, SF – Goodwin, PF – Fleming, C – Ighodaro.
Quick outlook. Is Fleming ready to be a consistent rotational player? Kennard should get more looks from 3 after finishing 147th in the NBA in 3-point attempts at 245.
Remaining 5. PG – Bouyea, SF, Dunn, SF, Highsmith, PF – Peat, C – Maluach.
Quick outlook. The Dunn/Fleming battle for minutes could be won or lost by who can make the open corner 3. Maluach Year 2 leap may lead to surpassing Ighodaro as backup center.
Bridges trade
His off-court issues have been well-documented.
Bridges, 28, was involved in a domestic violence incident with the mother of his children, for which the NBA served him with a 30-game suspension without pay in April 2023.
He was initially charged with three felonies related to the incident. Bridges pleaded no contest to a felony charge of injuring a child's parent and was sentenced to three years of probation and no jail time. The other two felony charges were dropped.
He missed the entire 2022-23 season. In recognition of that outcome, the NBA deemed 20 games of the suspension had already been served.
Bridges received a four-game suspension for his role in a massive on-court altercation in a Feb. 9 game in the 2025-26 season against the Detroit Pistons in Charlotte.
Some fans have voiced their displeasure on social media with the trade. His Michigan State connection with Suns team owner Mat Ishbia, general manager Brian Gregory and Ott further fuels the idea that it factored into Phoenix's decision to trade for Bridges.
The Suns have been criticized for trading an unprotected first-round pick for a player who not only has a past, but never made the playoffs with Charlotte during his seven seasons there.
However, Bridges averaged 19.6 points over his final four seasons with the Hornets, who won 44 games last season and reached the play-in tournament. He fits the Suns' on-court identity. How he blends in the locker room, as far as chemistry, will be important.
Bridges is starting fresh with a playoff team.
Success starts and ends with Booker
The Suns responded to a 36-win season in 2024-25 by trading Kevin Durant, firing coach Mike Budenholzer and buying out Bradley Beal. They exceeded expectations, posting a 45-37 record, finishing 8th in the West and winning a play-in game before Oklahoma City Thunder swept them in the first round.
Now, they’re looking to move up in the challenging Western Conference led by the young and talented San Antonio Spurs and Thunder.
The Bridges move will be heavily diagnosed.
Chemistry and continuity are talking points, but the Suns still start and end with Booker.
He struggled in the playoffs after another All-Star year and drew heat for the Suns' first-round playoff sweep. Booker hasn't won a playoff game since 2023.
Number change aside, Booker is entering the backend of his career with a historic extension incoming, with an NBA Finals appearance five years ago but no championships.
He bought into the team’s rebuild plan and returned to the postseason, but expectations have been raised.
It’s a team game, but it’s on Booker to lead the Suns to an even better 2026-27 season.
He’s the franchise’s all-time leading scorer and has been beloved in Phoenix since Day 1, but since leading the Suns to the 2021 finals, it’s been all about winning a title.
Team owner Mat Ishbia believes Booker can make championship history in Phoenix.
How close can the Suns get this season with Booker once again the main man?
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at [email protected] or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What Phoenix Suns' offseason moves mean for Devin Booker