The Phoenix Suns won’t be making any big offseason moves, which is why improvement is going to have to come from within in order to continue trying to compete with Devin Booker.
Center Khaman Maluach may only be 19-years-old and coming off a rookie campaign in which he was used sparingly because of how raw a prospect he is, but year two is about to bring with it a surprising change to his role to The Valley.
Maluach will be starting for the Suns by season’s end
The whole idea of trading for Mark Williams last summer was to have a more experienced big to help the Suns during the regular season. That paid off as the team made the playoffs, only for Williams to not feature through injury and now be eligible for an extension on his rookie deal that the franchise should be wary about paying.
A sign-and-trade is a solution that could work for everybody, the Chicago Bulls one such team rumored to have interest in the big man. Doing this would net the Suns something back in return, and leave Maluach as the clear long-term building block at the position.
He’s not ready for that just yet, which is why Oso Ighodaro is suddenly more valuable. He has already proven he can be a capable backup at the five, while the idea of pairing him with Maluach to hammer opponents inside the paint has to excite head coach Jordan Ott. The Oklahoma City Thunder too big for the Suns to handle during their brief postseason matchup and exposing that flaw in their roster construction.
Maluach received more run in that series than expected because of injury to Williams, and through sheer physical dominance alone he was able to stay on the court and alter some of what the Thunder were trying to do defensively. Now imagine how good he can be once coach Ott has shown him how he can succeed in the top 10 defense he put together in his maiden season in The Valley.
Becoming a regular starter would also give the Suns even more reason to believe they won the Kevin Durant trade with the Houston Rockets, a young center who could be with the franchise for a decade. Add that to the acquisition of two other starters in Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green, and moving on from the ageing star looks to have been the right call.
Maluach will be given plenty more time to prove he is the answer to the Suns’ center problem since Deandre Ayton left, but the stars are aligning to elevate him to the role of starter much quicker than anticipated. He has already shown glimpses of his exciting potential to prove he is the player for the job.
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