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Report: Suns looking to add these 3 positions this offseason

© Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The Phoenix Suns have a lot of holes to fill this offseason, but not a lot of flexibility to do so.

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According to Arizona Sports 98.7’s John Gambadoro, Phoenix will be prioritizing three roster needs this offseason: a point guard who can play more than 20 minutes per game, a backup big upgrade over Drew Eubanks and a young, athletic wing.

(h/t Forbes Sports’ Evan Sidery)

These roster needs should not come as a surprise based on the team’s performance last season. Phoenix finished with a 49-33 record, but was swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Minnesota Timberwolves.

At new coach Mike Budenholzer’s introductory press conference last month, Suns general manager and president of basketball operations James Jones also said the team would be looking to add shooting this offseason.

This same day, Budenholzer said the Suns “probably” need to have a point guard next season.

Even if it doesn’t mean adding a starting point guard, Phoenix did not have a single one guard that logged meaningful minutes last season. It is very rare that you see this, especially on a team with as much star power as the Suns have with Devin Booker, Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant. The Suns preached a multi ball-handler attack most of the season because of the playmaking abilities of these three stars. However, it clearly did not work in the end.

As for Eubanks, he severely underperformed last season, logging a team-low plus/minus of -106 in his first season in Phoenix, and that became a clear position of need to everyone that watched the Suns. Eubanks has a player option to remain in Phoenix he has to decide on by June 29, and he has already expressed the desire to stay in the Valley.

Young, athletic wings have become a premium in the NBA to build around star power, as they offer a lot of versatility in what a team can do and provide a defensive stopper. This is something the Suns missed last year.

The problem, as mentioned before, is that the Suns will be severely limited in what moves they can make.

Phoenix is projected to have the highest payroll in the NBA next season at $209 million. Because of this, the Suns are operating over the second-tax apron, 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.

Another option for the Suns is the draft. The Suns will be picking 22nd overall this summer in a draft that has been heralded as one of the worst in a long time. 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.

Do you think the Suns will be able to address these needs this offseason with how limited they are?

James Jones details what Suns will target this offseason

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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

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