Suns Earn High Praise in Offseason Report Cards
PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns have just two preseason dates left on their schedule before meaningful basketball officially arrives in the Valley, a welcome sight for many after a wild offseason of rumors, speculation, trades, signings and seemingly everything in the middle.
Now, Phoenix approaches the 2023-24 season in far different shape than when they were last spotted leaving the court in postseason play.
Some would argue, it's for the better.
Various outlets gave the Suns high marks for their overall offseason, as grades were able to be "published" after the Damian Lillard trade finally happened:
CBS Sports: B+
Colin Ward-Henninger: "There are big swings, and then there's Mat Ishbia. The Suns saw that Kevin Durant and Devin Booker plus a bunch of minimum contracts couldn't get it done in the playoffs, so how about Durant, Booker and Beal? In order to add some established starter-quality talent, the Suns ended their tumultuous relationship with Ayton, receiving Nurkic and Allen in return, plus a couple of intriguing young players in Little and Johnson. Something clearly wasn't working last season, and the reload looks promising on paper. Grade: B+"
The Athletic: A-
Doug Haller: "Where to start? The Suns in June traded for Bradley Beal, and that seems like years ago. Since then, Phoenix has overhauled the bench and traded Deandre Ayton. Of the group who led the Suns to the 2021 finals, only Devin Booker remains. That’s a ton of turnover. But this team could be better, deeper. Beal gives new coach Frank Vogel another elite scorer to pair with Booker and Kevin Durant. Jusuf Nurkic isn’t as talented as Ayton, but with his physicality he may be a better fit. And the bench with Eric Gordon, Keita Bates-Diop, Grayson Allen, Bol Bol and Nassir Little has potential. Only thing missing: a true point guard."
Bleacher Report: A-
Grant Hughes: "Full disclosure, this was a flat "A" until the Phoenix Suns got involved in the Lillard trade and exchanged Deandre Ayton for Jusuf Nurkić, Nassir Little, Grayson Allen and Keon Johnson. Though Ayton may have worn out his welcome with former coach Monty Williams and perhaps even the current stars of the team, a major downgrade at center and three players who are hard to imagine trusting on a deep playoff run don't seem like a good enough return.
"Why not wait to see if new head coach Frank Vogel could turn Ayton into a defensive force like Roy Hibbert in Indiana or even late-career Dwight Howard in Los Angeles? And why not see if better offers might materialize closer to the trade deadline? At the very least, we know one other team, the Pacers, viewed Ayton as a max player just one year ago. Plus, we've actually seen Ayton anchor a defense good enough to reach the Finals in 2021. Nurkić is less durable, a worse finisher inside and has nowhere near Ayton's mobility on D.
"That said, the Suns remain a championship threat because they went all-in on a Bradley Beal trade and crushed their minimum signings. Eric Gordon and Keita Bates-Diop could start or close, depending on matchups, and both Yuta Watanabe and Drew Eubanks are worth more than they're earning.
"On balance, Phoenix is a better team now than when last season ended. But the Ayton move costs it the highest possible grade."
The Suns begin their regular season on Oct. 24.
