Mat Ishbia Willing to Dive Into Luxury Tax to Help Suns Win
The Phoenix Suns have accomplished a rarity in the modern NBA within the last two years: Fielding an ultra-competitive squad without spending into the luxury tax.
The Suns were able to make a run to the 2021 NBA Finals and piece together a franchise record 64 wins in the regular season afterwards without spending in the likes of Golden State, but the trophy cabinet remains empty.
Previous owner Robert Sarver didn't want to spend. New owner Mat Ishbia didn't hesitate to put Phoenix into the luxury tax to land Kevin Durant and increase the Suns' chances of winning a title.
"I think that’s part of it. The money part was not an issue," Ishbia told SI's Chris Mannix.
"So we took that off the table right away. Then it was, ‘what's best for our team?’ Can Kevin make us a better team? Is Kevin going to help us compete for a championship now? What's Kevin Durant's contract? We've got three more years after this year, so we're not having someone for 25 games. We're having someone for three and a half years. So that was a big part of the conversation. And then understanding Devin Booker and Chris Paul and what Kevin Durant does to the floor with them and Deandre Ayton. And then our role players, how they fit in and understanding what we can get in the buyout market. Understanding all the pieces, like the first-round picks.
"All these conversations, we had them for hours and hours and hours in a room talking about it and getting everyone's perspective. And James obviously is the leader of that and knows it better than I could ever know it. And so I give him a lot of the credit. The financial piece was five seconds. They know I'm ready. That doesn't bother me. Now let's talk about is this the right thing for the Phoenix Suns organization? And I think we quickly figured out that it was."
Durant's salary put Phoenix $50.9 million into the luxury tax. He's one of four players on the roster to make at least $28 million in salary this season.
Time will tell if the Suns can make good on all their spending (which puts them at No. 6 in the league), yet it's clear Ishbia is willing to shell out the dough to find out.
