Connect with us
Burn+

Phoenix Suns

Report: These 2 Suns players are not expected to return next season

© Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro reported that two Suns’ rotation players are unlikely to return next season one day after the team was swept by the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!

Gambadoro said that Drew Eubanks “won’t be back” and that he does not see Eric Gordon coming back after they both spent one season in Phoenix.

Gordon and Eubanks both signed to veteran minimum deals in the summer of 2023, and they have player options to return to the team next season.

The Suns inevitably have to change something after being swept in the first round, but it might end up being as minuscule as changing their rotation around their starting 5, as their entire starting 5 is signed until next season.

Per Spotrac, Kevin Durant will be making $51.2 million next season with an additional year on his contract after that, Bradley Beal will be earning $50.2 million on the third year of a five-year deal and Devin Booker is set to make an estimated $49.4 million on the second season of a four-year extension. Additionally, Jusuf Nurkić is locked up for two more seasons after this one and will earn $18.1 million next year. Grayson Allen will be on the first season of a four-year, $70 million extension signed exactly three weeks ago.

With the salaries Phoenix has, it is projected to have the highest tax bill in the NBA next season at $209 million.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported earlier this year that the projected second-apron level will be $190 million next season.

With the Suns over this number even before you factor in the rest of the roster and next year being the first year the full new collective bargaining agreement kicks in, Phoenix will not be able to send out cash in deals, aggregate contracts or use a preexisting trade exception. Additionally, “if the Suns finish the 2024-25 season over the second apron, their 2032 first-round pick will be frozen and unavailable to use in trades,” Wojnarowski writes.

The Suns already do not own the rights to any of their future first-round draft picks until 2031, but will still have a first-round pick in 2024, 2026, 2028 and 2030 due to all of these being pick swaps.

Drew Eubanks

Eubanks averaged 5.1 points on 60.1% shooting and 4.3 rebounds in 75 games this season, but was not very well liked by fans as they thought Thaddeus Young should play over him. The Suns had to forfeit a second-round pick this season after they were found guilty of tampering for Eubanks in the offseason.

Phoenix ended up benching Eubanks in Game 4 against Minnesota, something Anthony Edwards and Karl Anthony-Towns did not understand.

Eric Gordon

Gordon was supposed to be a major contributor for the Suns this season and did come up big in Games 2 and 3, but overall was a major disappointment for what the Suns were expecting out of him.

In the regular season, the 35-year-old veteran averaged 11 points on 44/38/80 splits in 68 games. However, he only averaged 8.6 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 44 games off the bench. The Suns brought him at the beginning of the season to be their main scoring option off the bench.

We will see what changes end up being made, but due to Phoenix’s financial situation, it could be the best option to keep the core together and replace rotation players like Gordon and Eubanks with upgrades, which will only be able to be players signed for veteran minimums.

Report blasts Mat Ishbia and his ability to be an owner

*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, exclusive content, and access to our seasonal magazines! SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*

Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau

Related Topics

More in Phoenix Suns