The Phoenix Suns shattered expectations a season ago by winning 45 games on the strength of starters Devin Booker and trade acquisition Dillon Brooks. While the Suns will still rely on those two often, newcomer Miles Bridges thinks the Suns have “the best bench in the league.”
Miles Bridges gives bench unit big praise
While there are some new pieces this year, the Suns’ second unit will look largely the same as it did a season ago.
Collin Gillespie is sure to put himself in the Sixth Man of the Year conversation if Jalen Green stays healthy and in the starting five. Sharpshooter Luke Kennard will effectively replace the outside shooting chops of the departed Grayson Allen. Dan Majerle Hustle Award winner Jordan Goodwin is back to his old tricks in preseason, snatching down offensive rebounds and pestering opponents into turnovers.
The frontcourt depth creates the most questions, especially given that Mark Williams starts the season sidelined with a torn labrum. However, the Suns will still be able to bring either former lottery pick Khaman Maluach or Oso Ighodaro off the bench at the center spot, with options like Rasheer Fleming, rookie Koa Peat, and the athletic Ryan Dunn at the four spot.
Bridges is talking up a second unit that obviously has talented pieces, but the Suns' bench a season ago couldn’t be considered among the best in the league, at least in terms of scoring.
Suns' bench can do more than score
During the surprising 2025-26 turnaround season, the Suns’ second unit finished 23rd in the league in bench points per game at 34.7. They were also among the worst free-throw shooting units in the NBA at 69 percent in large part due to Ighodaro’s struggles at the charity stripe. Only the NBA champion New York Knicks' second unit was worse in that category at 68.9 percent.
Of course, there’s more to basketball than scoring, and the Suns’ second unit thrived in a number of other categories.
For example, Phoenix’s bench finished second behind only the San Antonio Spurs with 19 rebounds per game. Only Golden State and Detroit averaged more steals from their respective bench units, and the Suns finished No. 4 in blocks per game from their reserves (shoutout to Khaman Maluach for putting in work despite limited playing time).
With Booker, Brooks, Bridges, and Jalen Green all in the starting lineup, the Suns don’t necessarily need scoring from the second unit. If the bench can spell the starters by playing stifling defense, crashing the boards, and racking up steals, they’ll be more than capable of defending leads or getting Phoenix back into games.
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