Brendan Mau of Yahoo Sports recently named Rasheer Fleming as his biggest Phoenix Suns sleeper ahead of the 2026-27 season, and he could not be more right in his assessment. Entering his sophomore season and coming off a nice, albeit small, showing in the playoffs versus the Oklahoma City Thunder, the 22-year-old finds himself in the perfect spot to showcase what he can do on a nightly basis.
Conditions perfect for Fleming to break out in Phoenix
He is already a better and more consistent offensive threat than Ryan Dunn, who maybe shown the exit door before the trade deadline. Fleming is also a different type of forward than rookie Koa Peat, and although both will surely have their uses and compete for minutes, they can be utilized by Coach Jordan Ott in different ways.
Then there is new recruit Miles Bridges, who will start and is capable of giving this team 20 points each night. The hope is that the off the court issues are behind him, but if there are any lapses there, Fleming will immediately have even more appeal.
He's not the bruising type, but he can his own in the paint, and the hope is that in Coach Ott's top-10 defense from last season, he can play to his strengths. Offensively, it feels like there are still several levels of his game to go, which is why Mau was so right in his thinking on this one.
Suns don't have another player like Fleming on their roster
The reality is nobody can quite do what Fleming can for this group, and the prospect of having him play alongside Devin Booker or form an undersized but explosive duo next to Oso Ighodaro is intriguing.
The franchise brought Nigel Hayes-Davis over from Europe last time out in hopes he could provide a spark off the bench across the forward line for 15 minutes a night. He was gone by the deadline, but Fleming looks ready to take on that challenge.
He also has the added bonus of not having to bang with true centers every night like youngster Khaman Maluach, who also featured on Mau's list but is a much rawer prospect.
Perhaps the South Sudanese big man will surprise us all and usurp Mark Williams in the starting group. The smart money is on Fleming quietly becoming the eighth man on a roster that gets small once you go beyond their starting group.
A perfect opportunity to be the surprise X-factor for the Suns.
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