8 free agents the Phoenix Suns should avoid at all costs

The Phoenix Suns are heading to the playoffs, having managed to avoid the play-in tournament. Their reward is a first round meeting with the Minnesota Timberwolves, an opponent who they match up well with and who they should feel confident they can beat in a seven game series, having gone 3-0 against them in the regular season.

Owner Mat Ishbia took massive swings by going out and getting Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, and a sixth placed finish off in the Western Conference with such a strong "Big 3" felt underwhelming. A combination of injury to Beal and not having the depth around three star players to compete at the highest level exposing the team against the top opponents this year.

It is clear then that the Suns are going to need to restock their roster this offseason, but there are a number of players they should be staying well away from.

With the recent news that the organization are bringing back Grayson Allen on a long-term deal, achieving better depth around their core group of guys is going to be difficult. The Suns may have had Allen's Bird Rights, but they will still be trying to get the absolute most out of a bunch of minimum deals - just like they did this season - to fill out their rotation.

8. Doug McDermott

On the surface, Doug McDermott looks like the kind of player the Suns should be in for this offseason. An unrestricted free agent, the 32-year-old is a career 41 percent shooter from 3-point range, which seems like a nice fit next to Beal, Durant and Devin Booker.

But the Suns made a similar mistake last summer, when they went out and got Yuta Watanabe. A player who made even more sense with their roster, and who had been both a better player and shooter than McDermott in the 12 months prior to landing in The Valley. He didn't even last the full season, despite much hype about the Suns being able to get him on a minimum deal.

The Suns are going to have no shortage of players like McDermott who will take less money to play with superstars and try and compete for a championship, and there is definitely a place for them on this roster. Only McDermott shouldn't be one of them, and the fact he has managed 11.3 minutes per game in only 18 contests this season for the Indiana Pacers should tell you why.

His best days are behind him, and the franchise have found out this season that they can't afford to carry players like McDermott on the defensive end for long stretches. Watanabe was probably the better defender of the two as well, and it still wasn't enough for him. McDermott will be there waiting to sign on a minimum deal, but the Suns don't need to make the same mistake twice.