One Missed, One Opened Opportunity for Suns by Trade Deadline Frenzy

The NBA got off to something of a false start in its annual mid-season fire sale this year, with a flurry of major deals being completed yesterday morning despite the trade deadline still over a day away. But even as Woj bombs detonated one after the other, the Phoenix Suns stayed safe in their bunker, not directly involved in the league-wide shake up.

The first earth-shaking exchange came early for those on the West Coast, with the New Orleans Pelicans agreeing to a blockbuster trade with the Portland Trail Blazers.

In the deal, the Blazers added Josh Hart, Tomas Satoransky, Nickeil Walker-Alexander, Didi Louzada, a 2022 protected first-round pick, and two second round picks. The Pelicans took back C.J. McCollum, Larry Nance Jr., and Tony Snell.

About two hours later, news also broke regarding an agreement between the Indiana Pacers and the Sacramento Kings. Domantas Sabonis headlined the deal, with Sacramento acquiring him beside Jeremy Lamb, Justin Holiday, and a future second round pick. In return, Indiana acquired Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield, and Tristan Thompson.

Got all that down? Good, because even larger bombs are likely to go off soon, especially with murmurs about James Harden and Ben Simmons still swirling around.

But when looking back at the Suns, even with them still safe in their bunker and likely to stay that way, the cataclysmic events going on around them will still affect them once they emerge on Thursday afternoon.

For better or worse, these recent trades will somewhat affect the Suns going forward—more specifically shutting down one opportunity, while also opening up another.