Why Suns Actually Waived (Then Brought Back) Haywood Highsmith

PHOENIX -- There was a lot of confusion why the Phoenix Suns waived Haywood Highsmith, who was on a minimum contract, then re-signed him to another minimum contract just a few days later on Monday.

Spotrac's Keith Smith cleared up some details on why Phoenix made the move it did with Highsmith.

"Haywood Highsmith's original contract with PHX was guaranteed for $1M, but the deal included an Ex. 3 injury exclusion. So, there was no dead money for PHX when Highsmith was waived," Smith posted on X. "Highsmith's new contract with PHX is a non-guaranteed $2.5M vet minimum deal for 2026-27."

He added: "Took his overall contract value down from just over $3M against the cap/tax/apron to $2.5M against the cap/tax/apron. And now they can waive him any time before January 7, and they'll only be on the hook for a prorated salary hit."

Hopefully clearing up some confusion around the NBA interwebs:

Haywood Highsmith's original contract with PHX was guaranteed for $1M, but the deal included an Ex. 3 injury exclusion. So, there was no dead money for PHX when Highsmith was waived.

Highsmith's new contract with…
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) August 18, 2026

So, essentially the Suns saved over $500,000 against the cap by making this move, which translates to over $3 million in luxury tax savings, and gave themselves the flexibility to not owe $1 million if they waive Highsmith before January 7.

Highsmith has a chance to carve out a role for himself if he is able to fully overcome the knee injury that sidelined him for all but seven games last season with his 3-and-D skillset.

He will likely be a third-string wing for Phoenix to start the year, but will be a valuable veteran presence and is a career 37.9% 3-point shooter, which could help the Suns make up for the departures of Grayson Allen and Royce O'Neale, who were traded to Charlotte as part of the Miles Bridges trade.

In the seven games Highsmith played for the Suns after he was bought out ahead of the trade deadline by the Brooklyn Nets, he averaged 5.4 points on 57.1% 3-point shooting and 1.9 rebounds in 13 minutes per game.

This included a 16-point, four-rebound outing in which Highsmith shot 4-for-5 from deep in a 120-112 loss to the Boston Celtics on March 16.

“This offseason is big for me as far as trying to get all the way back to the player I was when I was in Miami and the player I envision myself to be,” Highsmith said earlier during the regular season. (h/t The Arizona Republic).

“Get stronger, get in better shape. I’ll have a real offseason. Didn’t really have a real offseason coming into the season because I got hurt in August.”

Highsmith will look to prove he is worth a roster spot for the full season after inking this new deal.

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