Point Guard – Darius Garland
The most surprising name on this list is surely Cleveland Cavaliers’ All-Star guard, Darius Garland. A player the Suns would love to have, as all teams would, and who comes to the organization as a result of wanting to play with Booker and win, and being in the right place at the right time.
Garland also ties a bow on this whole experiment, as he will be a free agent in the summer of 2028. This would make him the marquee addition by the franchise, because a look at other available players that offseason shows he is the most likely candidate for the Suns to sign.
I just got done watching some Darius Garland film, and man, I think he's on the same tier as Shai pic.twitter.com/YvZOnTTYfs
— 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙮𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙒𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚⚡️ (@DylanG0AT) September 10, 2023
Both Booker and Hart will also be free agents that summer, but the idea here is Booker has extended his deal before then so as to keep him off the market, and Hart signs on for the midlevel. This would create space for Garland to join, although the front office would again have to work some magic around the fringes of the roster, as they have this summer.
This also goes some way to explaining why Toppin makes the cut. Whether he has joined on a smaller deal the year or two before, or else also joins for little money, he works in both scenarios. In fact it would make more sense if the Suns had him entering the final year of his deal in 2028-29, so as to get better at that position with Garland secured.
As a final layer to this, Beal’s money will be coming off the books that summer too. Perhaps a sign-and-trade is worked out to keep the Cavaliers happy. Much like getting Beal for Chris Paul, it would be the elder Beal who made way for the exciting Garland. Stars attract stars, and pairing Booker, Garland and even Ayton seems like a great way to remain competitive.