As reigning Western Conference champions, the Phoenix Suns find themselves owning the 2021 NBA Draft’s second-to-last pick. After concluding such a successful campaign last week, the Suns certainly proved themselves an already well-refined group, ready to attack the 2021-22 season— which justifies their position behind almost every other team.
So come draft night, the Suns will enter with a less likely chance to improve their roster. Obviously, this makes the draft a slightly less exciting event for Phoenix fans this year, but the concept behind it remains fair.
However, the Suns did not get to where they are today by doing strictly “what’s fair” all the time. General Manager James Jones plays chess, not checkers—and once again should be looking to find his way around any roadblocks between himself and a high-value pick. Doing so starts by organizing a trade.
Rumblings involving different teams looking to swap picks around the draft’s earlier half have already ensued this week, so the eagerness required to make an exchange already seems to exist from a general standpoint. Moving all the way up into the top-10 range feels like a fool’s errand for the Suns, and one likely calling for them to give up an already established star player.
With the team fully committed to a “win now” strategy, that simply cannot happen. However, if the Suns navigate their way through their pre-draft negotiations advantageously, some mid-round picks might come within their reach.
Phoenix Suns trade Pick No. 29, 2022 Second-Rounder, 2023 Second Rounder to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Pick No. 16
Close your eyes and say “future draft picks” three times over, and Oklahoma City Thunder GM Sam Presti will appear before you. Having fully embraced the rebuild after trading away both Paul George and Russell Westbrook two summers ago, the Thunder began acquiring draft picks like mad men, putting together quite the stash.
Over the next seven years, Oklahoma City owns a whopping 36 total draft picks, with an even split between first and second-rounders. But even with a stockpile that extensive, the Thunder still seem committed to expanding it, having traded Al Horford for Kemba Walker and two more picks just a few weeks ago.
If they want to, the Suns can play into this already established “supply and demand” system as well, dangling a few second-rounders over Oklahoma City’s front office executives. As a young team with a high ceiling, it remains highly unlikely that Phoenix’s second round picks will carry much value in the future, making them well worth the sacrifice.
Swapping their picks this year after that, this trade poises to place the Suns just outside the lottery, with players like Josh Giddey, Chris Duarte, and Jalen Johnson well within striking distance.
Phoenix Suns trade Pick No. 29 and Jevon Carter to the Brooklyn Nets for Pick No. 27
A two-pick jump might not seem like a big deal right now, but if star player the Suns like continues to drop, they might want to skip ahead a few teams and pounce on him before someone else does.
Having rebuilt his team almost exclusively on trading for late-round drat picks, Brooklyn Nets GM Sean Marks loves a good trade-back deal. Additionally, the Nets might need more point guard depth if Spencer Dinwiddie leaves as a free-agent this summer, as well as general assistance with their defensive efforts.
Jevon Carter provides both those attributes, and although most fans still appreciated him during his time in Phoenix, Monty Williams kept him glued to the bench last postseason. Carter only played during “garbage time” sequences, averaging an insignificant 3.1 minutes per game.
This certainly makes it seem like the Suns hold no plans to feature Carter extensively as they attempt to repeat as Western Conference champions next season, making him a loose end worth cutting off.
If the right circumstances come into play, this trade helps out both teams. The Suns and Nets also both reside in opposite conferences, making the trade highly unlikely to come back and bite Phoenix even with both teams as strong title contenders for the upcoming season.
Phoenix Suns trade Jalen Smith and Pick No. 29 to the New York Knicks for Pick No. 19
The New York Knicks already possess a young, gritty, and revitalized team looking to make noise within the less-competitive Eastern Conference. An environment such as that sounds like the perfect landing spot for Phoenix’s first round pick last year, Jalen Smith.
Sending a player packing right after completing their rookie season undoubtedly feels wrong, but the Suns need to make a business decision here. Last season, Smith failed to live up to expectations which most lottery picks carry, spending almost the entire season with Phoenix’s G-League affiliate. He suited up for just 27 contests, averaging a forgettable 2.0 points per game.
Even as a rookie, if Frank Kaminsky owns a rotation spot over you, something must be off. If the Suns hope to win a title, they need a team that runs 12 men deep, which based on the evidence from last year means they need to deal Smith away.
With pending free agents for the Knicks such as Nerlens Noel and Mitchell Robinson likely to gather attention from multiple NBA teams, you can expect them to miss out on bringing at least one back, and if not, both. That makes a young, big man with strong upside like Smith valuable by their standards.
If this trade went through, it could put heavy pressure on the Suns to sign another center depending on what they do with pick No. 19. With Kaminsky entering free agency and Dario Saric likely out for the season after tearing his ACL a few weeks ago, this deal leaves the Suns without anyone to play behind Ayton.
This makes any potential deal involving Smith incredibly risky, and for this reason, the least likely one to come into fruition. But if the Suns see the perfect player slipping outside the top 20, this is the way to add him.