The Phoenix Suns made some foundational changes to their roster this summer, moving on from Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal and completely resetting their young core. In the process, a casualty appears to be fan-favorite forward Bol Bol and his limitless, if unrealized, potential.
Shaquille O'Neal thought he was as good as Victor Wembanyama. Coaches at different times have thought he was the next Kevin Durant, a point guard, a stretch-5, Andre Kirilenko, on and on. Unfortunately for Bol and the Suns, that potential -- real, imagined, insane -- was never reached.
The son of NBA shot-blocking legend Manute Bol, Bol Bol spent the last two seasons with the Suns and never cracked into the full-time rotation. He played in a total of 79 games, averaging 11.6 minutes and shooting a fine 56.6 percent from the field and 37.2 percent from deep. Despite his tantalizing mix of dribble-game and playmaking at his size and length, Bol averaged just 1.8 assists and 1.6 turnovers per 36 minutes, hardly a winning combination.
Defensively he was too thin, too uncoordinated and too out of position to be a difference-maker. 7'3" with a massive wingspan buys you a good starting point, but he never capitalized on it and was a net negative each of the last two seasons.
It appears that after six years, that tantalizing potential has been delayed too long, and the Suns are not bringing Bol back to the team.
The Suns have quietly said goodbye to Bol Bol
The Suns' roster makeover brought in a number of new faces. That included project center Khaman Maluach and trading up for forward Rasheer Fleming to restart a young foundation in the desert. If the Suns are devoting resources to young bigs realizing their potential, they will do so with Maluach and Fleming, not Bol.
The nail in the coffin, however, was signing Nigel Hayes-Davis to a deal. If they were going to use a roster spot on another forward like Bol they likely wouldn't have brought in the boomerang NBA veteran returning to the league at the age of 31.
There is no need for Bol on the Suns' roster, and while they are pivoting more toward a long-range view, such a view no longer includes Bol Bol. Not when his potential has gone unrealized for six NBA seasons, and when their own coaching staff was unable to tap into it in any meaningful way across two seasons. If it was going to happen anywhere, and specifically in Phoenix, it almost certainly would have already.
Perhaps another team will bring Bol into camp. Perhaps he has fun in the G League, or heads overseas. Perhaps the thoughtful young man heads into a new career. What appears to be clear is that his time on the Suns has ended. Fans -- and Shaq -- will need to find a new player to pin their excitement and hopes to.
It won't be Bol Bol any longer.