The Phoenix Suns are cooking. Not only did they acquire three-time All-Star Bradley Beal from the Washington Wizards, they did so for the low price of Chris Paul (a player they would have waived anyway), Landry Shamet (is he really worth $11+ million?), and some low-value draft picks and swaps. That is incredible value for the Suns, even if Beal's contract may not be the most team-friendly.
However, adding Beal didn't exactly solve the biggest problem the Suns ran into during the 2023 NBA playoffs — their lack of depth. The Suns' lack of quality players outside perhaps their five best players was a major concern; this forced Kevin Durant and Devin Booker to log heavy minutes, and it proceeded to take its toll in the end. Trading for Beal makes it even more difficult for them to acquire said depth.
Nevertheless, the Suns reportedly have tentative plans on how to fill out their expensive roster that would see them pay around $162 million for just four players (Durant, Booker, Bradley Beal, and Deandre Ayton). According to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the Suns reportedly want to keep Cameron Payne, whose $6.5 million contract for next year is fully non-guaranteed, while they also want to keep the likes of Torrey Craig, Josh Okogie, Damion Lee, Jock Landale, Bismack Biyombo and Terrence Ross in the Valley.
To win now is certainly the Suns' objective, so expect them to try and push their spending to the limit before the repeater tax costs them dearly in two seasons' time. Torrey Craig and Josh Okogie are easy candidates to be brought back, as the two provided some solid play on the wing. The same goes for Jock Landale.
Meanwhile, the other three don't exactly inspire confidence, especially when it comes to playoff viability. Against the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the 2023 NBA playoffs, they didn't exactly move the needle in any meaningful capacity. Bismack Biyombo could be helpful as a change-of-pace rim protector, but certainly the Suns would want to upgrade on both Damion Lee and Terrence Ross.
All in all, the Suns better hope that the allure of playing with three All-NBA-caliber talents proves to be too much to resist for some free agents. Because if not, their bench options could be as dire as they were last season.