3. Phoenix Suns send Jae Crowder to the Chicago Bulls for Coby White and Tony Bradley.
With Phoenix’s need for more point-guard depth, Coby White’s name has been mentioned on a couple of occasions now. He may have never played the minutes nor produced the numbers that Graham has in the past, but there’s greater upside that would suggest he might be worth the preferred option.
Carter identified White’s potential trade availability, and the prospect of him as a sixth man, as the key reasons why Phoenix may be interested.
"Phoenix would also get a substantial scoring threat in the backcourt with the addition of guard Coby White, whose status on the Bulls has been in question for more than a year. A 22-year-old with speed, shooting and dribbling talent, White would make for an impactful Sixth Man and spark plug as part of a contending group that is quietly suffering from depth issues."
This really depends on how risky the Suns want to be with a Crowder trade; there’s a reasonable chance that White fails to develop into a trustworthy member of a playoff rotation this season. Equally, there’s a chance he thrives with increased opportunity and learns plenty under the tutelage of Paul.
Bradley is simply included for salary purposes, and there’d be an expectation that the Suns would waive him immediately given their pre-existing big man options. A direct swap of Crowder for White would be a downgrade initially, but it’s a trade that couldn’t be properly evaluated till years down the track.