Although the Phoenix Suns are riding out a rough patch of the season, having lost six of their last seven games, the 2025-26 campaign overall has been a breath of fresh air.
The Suns finished 10 games under .500 and missed the playoffs a season ago under head coach Mike Budenholzer with future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant on the squad. As it turned out, shipping KD away via blockbuster trade proved fruitful for Phoenix.
In fact, the deal that brought Dillon Brooks over from the Houston Rockets last summer was listed among the top 10 best NBA deals since the 2025 offseason, according to ESPN’s Zach Kram.
Suns’ trade for Dillon Brooks listed among 10 best deals since 2025
“It seemed like Brooks was included in the Rockets' trade for Kevin Durant primarily for salary-matching purposes,” Kram writes. (And while salary matching is often the underlying crux of any deal, the Suns have reportedly wanted to acquire Brooks since 2019, when an awkward agreed-upon deal never happened because the Memphis Grizzlies thought Phoenix wanted MarShon Brooks and not Dillon…)
“But the veteran wing has had a much greater impact in Phoenix, where he's spearheaded the Suns' turnaround from lottery team in 2024-25 to playoff hopeful in 2025-26,” Kram continued.
Kram goes on to note that while Brooks’ play on the court — averaging a career-high 20.9 points on a career best 44% shooting — is part of the reason acquiring him makes “10 best deals” territory, his impact on the Suns’ culture has been even more valuable.
Teammate Collin Gillespie, who “The Villain” has nicknamed “Villain Jr.” explained.
"He's in the gym more than anybody that I know," Gillespie told ESPN's Tim MacMahon earlier this season. "You see how hard he works, how competitive he is, and you want to not let your teammate down when you see that. He makes you want to work harder. He challenges you to be in the gym with him, challenges you to play harder."
Brooks leads by example with his work ethic, which is clearly rubbing off on the younger players within the Suns’ roster. Phoenix’s identity this season under first-year head coach Jordan Ott has been to play hard and let the results speak for themselves. That mentality has guided the Suns into postseason play-in territory where they can hopefully make some noise if everyone gets healthy.
And while Kram honed in on Brooks as the catalyst for why that Suns trade checks in at No. 6 on his list of the 10 best deals since last year, that doesn’t even account for the fact that Phoenix also acquired former No. 2 overall draft pick Jalen Green and 2025 No. 10 overall pick Khaman Maluach in the deal.
While Green has fought through injuries during a down year and struggled to find chemistry playing alongside Devin Booker, the 19-year-old Maluach continues to show flashes of promise with his G League dominance and shot-blocking prowess.
Brooks is having a career year by the stats and changing the culture for the better, but the other acquisitions in the KD trade should not be overlooked — especially in the long term.