It feels incredible to recall that only a few seasons ago the Phoenix Suns were in the NBA Finals. So much has happened since 2021, and in the Suns' case, hardly any of it has been good.
After a disastrous 36-46 campaign in the 2024-25 NBA season, the Suns front office pulled the plug on the era of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal leading the charge in Phoenix. Shams Charania broke the news of Durant being traded to the Houston Rockets on Twitter/X.
With the Rockets emerging as serious competitors in the Western Conference after the trade, the Suns continue to spiral in the other direction. Their roster continues to look like a hot mess following the deal with Houston.
The Los Angeles Lakers have every reason to monitor how the situation unfolds in the desert. There could be prime opportunities for Rob Pelinka to upgrade the roster by dialing a Phoenix area code in the future.
Suns' demise is primed for Lakers' opportunity
The pipe dream for the Lakers would be to somehow have Devin Booker donning purple and gold. However, there are a number of reasons as to why this remains unlikely, for now.
To this point, all the reports that have come out of Phoenix suggest the Suns wanting to retool around Booker. It is fair to question that strategy, but it remains the case nonetheless.
The Lakers pushing for a Booker move while LeBron James is still around, and expected to be on the books at max money, would limit them financially anyways. Three-star builds have quickly fallen out of favor.
Booker would compliment Luka Doncic extremely well. However, that one would be saved for the future, if it happens at all.
What the Lakers could look to in the meantime is the availability of depth pieces like Nick Richards and Royce O'Neale. Either of those two would help address a need for the Lakers.
The appeal of Richards is obvious. The Suns center is an athletic lob threat who would have the time of his life working in a tandem with Doncic. Richards would also offer the Lakers a big man who can clean up the glass and alleviate the rebounding pressure off their superstars.
O'Neale would be a pretty straightforward move as well. His $10.1 million contract makes him a prime candidate to be swapped for one of the Lakers' expiring contracts.
This would offer Los Angeles some much-needed two-way depth off the bench. The price of the move should not expected to be much more than the Lakers' second-round pick in 2025, alongside the expiring deal.
The Suns are on their way to rock bottom. It is only fair to look at their shinier pieces and ponder how to repurpose them in a meaningful way, on a better team.
