According to Shams Charania of ESPN, the Phoenix Suns are trading their 2031 first-round pick to the Utah Jazz for three first-rounders. Utah will be sending back picks in 2025 (worst of Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves), 2027 (worst of Cavs, Timberwolves, and Jazz), and 2029 (worst of Cavs, Timberwolves, and Jazz).
At first glance, it’s a bit of a weird move. Why would the Suns not just trade their first in a pick for a player? Why would the Jazz trade three first-round picks for one? What does this mean for the future of Phoenix? Well, this deal could be foreshadowing another.
And that other trade may just be the Jimmy Butler megadeal with the Miami Heat that the Suns have been longing for all along.
Suns trade with Jazz is first step of Jimmy Butler deal
See, the Suns can only trade for Butler if they send out Bradley Beal’s contract. That much has been made painfully clear by everyone who has spoken about the deal, and Beal’s comments about his no-trade clause have cemented the idea.
But past the difficulty of getting Beal and his no-trade clause to agree to a trade, the Suns have to worry about getting another team to be willing to take on his massive contract.
To do that, they will undoubtedly have to sweeten the pot for the team taking on his salary for the next few years, as he simply is not living up to the soon-to-be $57 million he’s going to be owed with his player option for the 2026-27 season.
So, since the Suns will likely have to send the Suns players and draft capital for Butler (if they make a deal), and picks to a team taking on Beal’s contract, having multiple first-rounders is valuable.
Obviously, the Suns’ 2031 first is far more valuable than any of the ones they received, but now, they can split up the picks, potentially shipping them out to different teams in a multi-franchise blockbuster.
For Utah, this deal is effectively their way of betting on the Suns’ downfall. They are assuming that, by 2031, the Suns will be a bottom-feeding team, making the pick they got a diamond in the rough.
This deal screams, ‘The Suns are desperately trying to make a Butler trade happen, and fast.’ They wouldn’t just make a trade like this for no reason. Something has to be coming, and the Butler rumors have been hot for weeks.
Phoenix’s first-round frenzy with Utah is almost certainly a precursor to a huge trade, and that huge trade is very likely Butler. If the Suns were vultures, they’d be circling Miami right now.