The Phoenix Suns are one of the most anticipated teams to see them heading into the 2025 offseason.
There has been speculation about potential deals throughout the season with the Phoenix Suns, reflecting disappointing performance.
After a disappointing 2023-24 season after seeing Frank Vogel’s sudden firing, the Phoenix Suns entered 2024-25 by hiring Mike Budenholzer. However, this coaching change has yet to show any benefits.
The team has been causing harsh criticism as the 10th seed in the Western Conference (34-47) finding themselves in a tough place to meet title expectations.
With all eyes continuing to monitor long-term cases of Phoenix’s Budenholzer, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, there may also be issues the Suns will pursue regarding their future with Devin Booker.
Devin Booker established his case as the beloved cornerstone of the Phoenix Sons organization.
Drafted by the franchise as the 13th overall pick in the 2015 draft, Booker achieved stardom in the volleyball as a homemade teenage talent. He witnessed all the ups and downs of the team in the unforgettable 2010s with the Suns, making it up until the 2021 NBA Finals.
With the ride that Booker took with the Suns after all these years, this offseason offers an opportunity to reevaluate. Like other Phoenix players, the 28-year-old couldn’t even escape criticism due to the team’s biased record.
Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix argues that Suns should consider trading Devin Booker this summer, with two young elite teams serving as the perfect potential trading partners.
“Devin Booker’s value has declined every year since this summer. Next summer he’s been spending his 30 seasons in a year and will cut a year to that deal, so I think he’s the best player right now, but because this summer,” he said.
“I think the options are there.
“We talked about Houston about how badly they wanted to get Devin Booker, they moved the heavens and the earth to get Devin Booker.
“What about Oklahoma City? Let’s say Oklahoma City is burning in the second round for some reason. Hypothetically, they won’t win the championship. They have all these young players. They have all these talents.
“In that mix, plug in Devin Booker on the other side of Jalen Williams and Shy Gillege Alexander. That’s something you have to consider.”
Booker has another three years left on his current contract as the four-year, $224 million Super Max Extension signed in 2022 officially kicks off this season.
The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Houston Rockets are the first and second teams in the West at the time of writing, armed with lucrative future draft picks and young assets. By acquiring Booker, they can help the Suns enter the possibility of rebuilding at the expense of greater competition.
“I think they passed the window where Devin Booker was the centre of Phoenix 3.0,” Mannix claimed.
Beyond both the two promising Westerns, there is another team that is intrigued to meet Booker’s talent, as Stephen Jackson recently proposed.
“I want to see him come back, I want to see him come home,” Jackson said of Booker going to his hometown, the Detroit Pistons team. “The way they do it, the way they build it, I think it would be the perfect piece to move the organization in the right direction.
“He’s home, it’s perfect for books.”
There’s not much more basketball played yet at the end of the 2024-25 campaign for both Booker and the Suns before jumping at the possibility of waiting for them this year.