With trade season heating up in the NBA, the Phoenix Suns have somehow found themselves in the mix already, despite being a second apron team. It appears it doesn't matter how constricted their cap sheet is - if there's a disgruntled star elsewhere in the league - the Suns are going to be linked with them.
Which is exactly what has happened with Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat. Although his own agent came out and denied the claims, the Suns were mentioned as a potential destination for him should he leave Florida. Hard as it may be to believe, the organization actually has a way of landing Butler, even if it is highly unlikely to be the most appealing package the Heat receives.
The Suns are also now distancing themselves from any deal.
That's according to the always excellent Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports, there's one very good reason the Suns aren't interested in pursuing a potential Butler deal. The reasoning? They've seen enough out of their big three of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal when healthy (they're 11-2) to believe that what they already have is enough to compete in the Western Conference.
Per a source, the Suns aren't pursuing a Jimmy Butler trade. Aside from the obvious difficulties with both the Suns and the Heat being tax apron teams that I already pointed out, Phoenix believes in their Big 3 and what they've seen from this group (11-2) when healthy
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) December 12, 2024
You have to admire the belief from the front office here, but that should be a worry to Suns' fans. Durant has struggled with calf and ankle issues already this season, and at 36-years-old and with an injury history like his, there is little reason to believe this is just a blip. When Booker and Beal have shared the court together this season, the results have been far less encouraging.
They're a dreadful 1-9 so far this season when their two star guards have shared the court together in the absence of Durant, which feels like a large enough sample size to acccept that something needs to change. The only issue there however, is that Beal is the only member of this trio who the Suns would have any interest in moving.
He's the player who has the least value around the league, and his monster contract complicates the issue further. On top of all of that - as you are no doubt aware - Beal has a no-trade clause and can shut down any deal should it get to the point where it could become a reality. Living in South Beach would be cool and everything, but Beal is 31-years-old.
He's already spent far too much time on an organization in the Washington Wizards that went nowhere - and while the Heat are most certainly not that - The Valley represents a better chance for him to win. Which is why these rumors make a ton of sense. Not only is a deal highly unlikely anyway, Beal having to sign off on it makes the slim chances somehow even smaller.
On a practical level though, perhaps the Suns should be pushing for this trade to actually happen. That 11-2 record when healthy is promising, but it is also clear this group badly needs a bigger wing who can defend some elite scorers, handle the ball some and move without the ball. All facets of Butler's game that would - in theory at least - fit better in Phoenix right now instead of Beal's.