Massive Mark Williams decision will shape rest of Suns' decade

The Phoenix Suns are in the honeymoon phase of their re-tooling around Devin Booker, but that won't last much longer beyond this season.

Right now they are playing with house money as they're better than expected and fans are fully engaged with a roster that plays hard each night, but a massive decision is on the horizon.

Suns' extension of Mark Williams will define rest of decade

That's because center Mark Williams is eligible for an extension on his rookie contract this offseason, and you better believe he is going to get paid to stay in Phoenix.

The 24-year-old has more than held up his end of the bargain, and exiting the All-Star break he has already appeared in more games (50) than his previous career high with the Charlotte Hornets (44).

He's also showing up in back-to-backs although head coach Jordan Ott has cleverly picked his spots with Williams in that regard, while he's playing slightly less minutes (24.8) compared to last season (26.6).

If you've watched him play this season then you'll know that the more physical matchups cause him problems, but Williams is a massive upgrade over the recently departed Nick Richards.

He is clearly the center of the future for the franchise, but tying themselves to his health the way they are about to comes with some clear risks.

If Williams reverts back to having the availability he had in his first three seasons with the Hornets (about 35 games), then the Suns are going to fail to reach the next level of this process.

Devin Booker can be an All-Star every year, and even Jalen Green can return from injury himself to be the co-star the franchise needs. The Suns can even have Dillon Brooks remain the emotional heartbeat.

But if they don't have an above average starting center (which Williams is) available on most nights, they are going to get exposed in the postseason especially.

Some may argue that even with the extension that Williams signs (which should hopefully include stipulations if he does get injured again), that he will be easy to move down the road if required.

That's not necessarily true though, as in that scenario the Suns would have to attach something for another organization to take him off their hands, and they're light on draft capital.

Wild trades in general are down as a result of the new CBA, with every front office not keen to make any long-term mistakes and saddle themselves with guys who don't play or who are on awful contracts.

Yet the Suns have no choice but to go to the negotiating table with Williams. It could all work out and the team continue to win games, but either way Williams will largely define this next period of basketball in The Valley.