Although the Phoenix Suns were never going to get involved in a potential trade for Jaylen Brown (they were too busy losing trades to the Hornets), they can certainly learn a lesson from the deal.
A former Finals MVP essentially getting salary dumped for Paul George and a pair of first round picks not the ending that player or team could have envisioned, and we will see it happen with more huge names in the coming years.
Devin Booker appears destined to follow same route as Brown
The Valley doesn't want to contemplate a world in which Booker is not their franchise cornerstone, but the reality of the new CBA means that the best paid players are having to be moved in favor of creating depth and flexibility for their franchise.
Celtics' President of Basketball Operations put it best when speaking to the media in the aftermath of the Brown deal recently, saying that it is not feasible to build a winner with two stars taking up 70 percent of a team's salary cap. One has to be sacrificed to create a deeper roster to contend.
The Suns aren't quite there yet as Booker has no legitimate co-star, but their core guys are already a massive expense. Booker, Dillon Brooks, Jalen Green and Miles Bridges costing over $120 million alone next season, and that is before considering extensions for both Brooks and Bridges that many feel they will get.
Then there is Donovan Mitchell, who just inked a $273 million extension to remain with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
With that franchise close to the mountain top, if they can't get over the hump despite having a talented roster it will eventually be Mitchell who has to be moved to create the depth needed to win. Booker will be making over $69 million in 2029-30, and that is assuming no extension is signed prior to that season beginning.
The franchise has younger guys coming up who they hope will eventually pop, and should that happen the need to trade Booker both for assets and roster flexibility, as well as getting off his monster deal, will only increase.
Nobody thought Brown would be let go for so little, and owner Mat Ishbia has publicly said Booker is going nowhere. That is true now, but a year is a long time in the NBA. If the Suns fail to make the playoffs for the next two seasons as Booker's salary increases, what then?
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