The Phoenix Suns have a lot of options for what they can do with the No. 22 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, which begins on June 26.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Phoenix has a lot of obvious needs coming off a first-round sweep, such as a backup point guard, athletic wing/forward and rim-protecting or stretch center. General manager and president of basketball operations James Jones also said the team will be looking to add shooting this offseason.
On the day of the first round of the draft (June 26), the Suns are able to trade both the No. 22 pick as well as their 2031 first-round pick, but not before then.
Owner Mat Ishbia sounded very uncommitted to both this year’s pick and the 2031 pick at his end-of-season availability earlier this month.
“If fans like to look in the future and say, ‘Hey, I really like that 2031 draft pick, because maybe that seventh-grader is gonna be really good and we’re gonna draft them and one day he’s gonna be a player,’ you ain’t going to like the Phoenix Suns,” Ishbia said. “Because we’re gonna say, ‘Draft picks are to get great players.’”
With the salaries the Suns have on the books, they are projected to have the highest tax bill in the NBA next season at $209 million, severely limiting the team in terms of moves and trades they can make, as they will be operating over the second-tax apron next season, which is projected to be $190 million.
In this threshold, Phoenix is unable to sign free agents outside of the Suns to anything other than veteran minimum contracts. In terms of trades, the Suns will not be able to take in more salary than they send out, include cash in deals, aggregate contracts or use a preexisting trade exception.
Contrary to popular belief, the Suns will also still have a first-round pick in 2026, 2028 and 2030 as well due to all of these being pick swaps, but could be in a bad position with those if they finish in the lottery and have to give up a good pick. Phoenix also cannot currently trade any of these. The only second-round pick they own right now is a 2028 pick from the Boston Celtics (protected 31-45).
With all this said, this No. 22 overall pick, whether the Suns decide to trade or keep it, becomes that much more valuable to get a win-now player.
The most recent ESPN and Bleacher Report mock drafts have the Suns taking the same player at No. 22: Duke 6-foot-11 center Kyle Filipowski.
Description on Filipowski from ESPN’s Jeremy Woo
Description on Filipowski from Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman
“I think Filipowski has a long career as an eighth or ninth guy,” an NBA executive told HoopsHype. “If he starts firing threes and knocking them down like Kelly Olynyk, I think that makes him more intriguing. Otherwise, if he’s a lone five that can’t shoot, has to play in the drop, and isn’t athletic, he’s going to be out of the league pretty fast.”
“Filipowski and Olynyk are both near 7-footers and have various skills,” another NBA executed said. “Even though they’re bigs, they can pass and dribble a little bit and can shoot.”
“Filipowski doesn’t have great quickness, but he’s effective in the mid-range area and has a nice touch in that area,” an NBA scout told HoopsHype. “He can score, but he’s not a low post scorer. I’m not sure if he’ll shoot it well enough to be a pick-and-pop guy. Overall, he’s a late lottery pick for me.”
More on Filipowski
Filipowski played two seasons at Duke, leading the Blue Devils in scoring both seasons. This past year, the Westtown, New York native averaged 16.4 points on 50.5/34.8/67.1 shooting splits, 8.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.1 steals.
Here are his highlights from this past season:
The 20-year-old Filipowski also quickly became labeled a Duke villain this year after these two incidents:
ESPN's Chris Canty has his own take on court storming that put some of the responsibility on Kyle Filipowski himself for getting injured.
"He's acting like he's going on a walk through the quad on campus… he has to have more awareness of the situation and have urgency about… pic.twitter.com/NTZJRKy0qd
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 27, 2024
Never forget that Kyle Filipowski almost died on the court just weeks ago. The fact that he’s even playing is remarkable. Some things are bigger than sports. pic.twitter.com/5LYUFeUt3i
— Dairy Daddies (@DairyDaddies) March 10, 2024
The Suns already have one previously-hated Duke product in Grayson Allen, who was also disliked for tripping players, but has now put that in the past and is beloved by Suns fans. Could they add another in the draft?
*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
