Suns' Jonathan Kuminga pursuit puts Phoenix back in impossible position

Much has been made of the business the Phoenix Suns have conducted this offseason - but if there is one area they deserve credit - it is somehow getting under both aprons with the roster moves they did make. Moving on from Kevin Durant was always going to happen, while buying Bradley Beal out was the short-term solution that will lead to more long-term pain.

His massive salary coming off the books will hurt as it will instead be used as dead cap space for the next five years, but it did at least allow the organization some more flexibility in the short-term. The Suns gratefully turning that into three rookies plus Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Mark Williams and the potential to get involved in other deals down the road.

Pursuit of Jonathan Kuminga would put Suns right back in cap hell.

Jake Fishcer was back Friday with another update from around the league during the quietest period of the offseason. During his latest drop it was revealed that the Suns nearly had Jonathan Kuminga of the Golden State Warriors in the building at the trade deadline, before the Warriors instead turned attentions to Jimmy Butler.

They got their man, with Durant seemingly not interested in heading back to San Francisco either, which ended the talks. Kuminga's time with the Warriors has come to an end, because of their unwillingness to sign him to the kind of long-term deal - think four years, $90 million - that Suns' owner Mat Ishbia would pay tomorrow if it meant getting him to The Valley.

But to do this would then put the Suns perilously close to both aprons again, an expensive mistake they undertook because of their desire to try and win a championship. That failed miserably, and changing course by buying out Beal and trading away Durant was a painful acceptance of their shortcomings.

Is Kuminga really the player to once again go above the aprons for? He might be 22-years-old and have a ton of athleticism and upside, but he is far from the can't miss superstar that these kind of swings are usually reserved for. Durant was one such player, which is why fans haven't complained about how having him in town went from start to finish.

The Suns gave up too much to get him and there was essentially zero postseason success, but he was still Kevin freaking Durant. That's a deal you do anytime you can, but the same cannot be said for Kuminga. The threat of a massive luxury tax bill is why the Boston Celtics have made changes this offseason, and why they could also be a destination for this up and coming Suns' player too.

It remains unlikely Kuminga ends up in Phoenix - they simply don't have the players and picks to get a trade done - but the fact they can even enter into discussions at all is because of the tough decisions they made this summer. They successfully got under both aprons, and adding Kuminga to put them close to going over it once more is an obvious reason to walk away from the table right now.