Phoenix Suns 2017 offseason in review
By Alex Vairo
With training camp less than a week away, let’s recap the Phoenix Suns’ offseason. How has the franchise prepared itself for the upcoming 2017-2018 season?
Many things have changed for the Phoenix Suns since the end of 2016-17. Prior to the NBA lottery, the Suns had the second best odds of taking the first overall pick in the 2017 draft. Instead they slipped back to the fourth pick, moving back two spots, while seeing their rival Los Angeles Lakers jump them and draft second overall.
Just before July 1, the team was connected to many free agents, including Blake Griffin and Paul Millsap. In the first day of free agency, the Suns decided against this approach, instead deciding to go all in with the youth movement and not acquire any high impact players in free agency.
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The youth movement was bolstered by their 2017 draft selections of which they surprisingly selected three players to add to their core.
The team’s rookies and second year players participated in the 2017 NBA Summer League, finishing with a 2-4 record. Although Tyler Ulis and rookie Alec Peters were unable to play each due to injury, the Suns took the opportunity to showcase their young players to the fan base, providing a glimpse of what is to come.
The Suns were also involved in trade rumors with Cleveland for most of the summer involving Kyrie Irving. The Irving trade saga has finally reached it’s conclusion when he was traded to the Boston Celtics. While there were people for and against the Suns acquiring Irving, the team’s commitment to incoming rookie Josh Jackson ultimately took Phoenix out of any potential chance to complete a trade for Irving.
Now that the offseason is coming to a close, anticipation is building for the 2017-2018 campaign. As the team gears up for their 50th season in the NBA, let’s take a look at all of the major decisions and changes that the Phoenix Suns have made since the end of the 2016-2017 NBA season.