The Phoenix Suns have looked like a shadow of the exciting group that crashed the postseason party last season, with rumored locker room unrest regarding their point guard woes hitting the national media cycle through NBA Insider Chris Haynes. Now Bill Simmons has weighed in on his podcast on The Ringer, and he believes swapping Devin Booker straight up for Bam Adebayo could work for both the Suns and Miami Heat.
Simmons thinks Suns and Heat could both win by swapping stars
In naming the Suns as part of "The Dregs" group in the early part of the season, Simmons put forward the idea that "I know Booker's contract is appalling and just gets worse; is there something there with Booker and Bam? That is really a classic good trade for both teams... are both teams better if you make a trade like that? I would argue yes."
Simmons has always been one to throw out ridiculous scenarios, and to propose such a thing as Booker turns 30 years old feels wrong. But if we humor "The Podfather" for a minute, what else are the Suns supposed to do? Already, the roster construction for this season looks flawed, while Head Coach Jordan Ott won't insert the best point guard available to him into the starting lineup despite desperately needing to.
Miles Bridges has no value, having cost the franchise an unprotected first-round pick mere months ago, while Dillon Brooks has returned to the mean. The front office might be able to convince the New Orleans Pelicans to take Jalen Green off their hands for Dejounte Murray, but even that potential solution comes with its fair share of issues. If real change is to come, then Booker is the player who will have to be traded.
For the Heat, the reason to do this is obvious; you pair Booker with Giannis Antetokounmpo and figure the rest out later. But the Suns would finally have their best center in over a decade, while Adebayo's defensive abilities would mask the issue of having Green and Bridges in the starting lineup. Youngster Khaman Maluach would finally get a breather and be able to improve at his own pace.
Suns reaching breaking point and must consider trading Booker
Owner Mat Ishbia might have mentioned multiple times that the organization will never move on from Booker, but that might be his choice alone for much longer. The locker room unrest being leaked has never happened under Booker-led teams, and even if he had nothing to do with it, he has never looked like the kind of guy who is into off-court drama. He wants to ball and to win, and neither of those things are happening right now.
Scoring three points in a game is also unacceptable, and Booker has surely by now realized that he can't win a championship in The Valley. The front office is out of moves to improve, except for one. Moving him to his preferred destination, and while his contract makes that difficult, as Simmons has correctly pointed out, the Heat have the means to make that happen.
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