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The Phoenix Suns are stuck in no-man's land. Despite having the trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal, Phoenix found itself out of the playoffs with a measly 36-46 record to end the 2024-25 season. After the season, the Suns traded Durant to the Houston Rockets and now the Suns are headed towards a path of uncertainty.
Included in the trade haul for Durant was the 10th and 59th picks in the 2025 NBA Draft, which was added to the Suns picks at 29 and 52. However, draft days aren't exactly a great part of Phoenix's basketball history, given the amount of mistakes that the franchise has made. Here is a look at the Phoenix Suns' 10 worst NBA Draft day mistakes in history.
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10. Markieff Morris – 2011
Markieff Morris established a reputation in the NBA as a serviceable power forward for several teams. He even won a championship with the Los Angeles Lakers. However, while the Suns did enjoy his contributions, he turned out to be a problem after they traded away his twin brother Marcus. It also didn't help that there were better options still available at the draft with the likes of Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, and Nikola Vucevic selected after the lottery picks.
9. Earl Clark – 2009
At the 2009 NBA Draft, the Suns owned the final lottery pick with the 14th overall selection. They used that pick on University of Louisville star Earl Clark. However, it was a different story for Clark at the NBA level. He averaged a measly 2.8 points per game on 37% shooting from the field overall in a Suns uniform. To make matters worse, he was gone from the NBA after six seasons as a journeyman.
8. Kendall Marshall – 2012
Kendall Marshall was a pure dimer. But while he was an elite passer, that's pretty much all he was good at. In fact, Marshall struggled in other departments such as defense and a limited offensive game. Unfortunately, the UNC standout's NBA career only lasted for four seasons. Marshall only put up 3.0 points per game for Phoenix, which was a total waste of a lottery pick.
7. DeAndre Ayton – 2018
There were a handful of elite prospects at the 2018 NBA Draft, including current franchise players Luka Doncic and Trae Young, But with the Suns front office focusing on fit around Devin Booker, the team opted to draft Bahamian big man DeAndre Ayton, who anchored Arizona's frontcourt.
Ayton transformed into a starting-caliber center. However, his limited offensive game wouldn't put him in elite superstar status in the same level with Young and Doncic. An ownership change and a roster overhaul ultimately ended Ayton's tenure in Phoenix.
6. Alex Len – 2013
A top-five draft pick is a great away to snag a blue-chip prospect. Unfortunately, the Suns were one of the poor teams at the 2013 NBA Draft that missed out on two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert.
Instead, Phoenix settled on Ukrainian big man Alex Len. Despite his size, Len has been a nonfactor in the NBA for the most part of his career. He has managed to stay in the NBA as a reserve center, merely an additional warm body to beef up any team's front court. Len certainly wasn't worth a top-five pick.
5. Trading away Luol Deng – 2004
A good reason for the Suns' woes is their draft day decisions. Apart from questionable draft picks, the Phoenix front office has also been traditionally guilty in making some of the worst trades on draft night. At the 2004 NBA Draft, the Suns selected Luol Deng with the seventh overall pick.
It was actually a solid pick, until they decided to swap him for a first-round pick and naturalized Lebanese big man Jackson Vroman, who only lasted in the NBA for two seasons. The first-round pick turned out to be multiple Slam Dunk Contest champion Nate Robinson, who was also later packaged in a deal for veterans Kurt Thomas and Dijon Thompson. Nonetheless, Deng carved out more All-Star appearances than all of the other players mentioned combined.
4. Trading away Rajon Rondo – 2006
In another questionable draft day trade, at the 2006 NBA Draft, Phoenix made a solid pick by selecting Rajon Rondo 21st overall. However, they traded Rondo to the Boston Celtics along with Brian Grant and cash. In return the Suns received a first rounder in the following year's draft, which became Spanish guard Rudy Fernandez. As athletic and entertaining Fernandez could've been with a Steve Nash-led crew, Phoenix opted to just trade him to the Portland Trail Blazers for cash.
3. Trading for Marquese Chriss – 2016
The 2016 NBA Draft was a series of mistakes made by the Suns despite owning four draft picks, including three first rounders and a pair of lottery picks. Two of Phoenix's first-round picks were used on Georgios Papagiannis and Skal Labissierre. Both didn't last long in the NBA. However, they did trade both first rounders to the Sacramento Kings for the eighth overall pick, Marquese Chriss, who turned out to be a walking locker room problem.
2. Josh Jackson -2017
A year after a disastrous 2016 NBA Draft, the Suns owned another lottery pick as the team had the privilege of choosing the fourth overall pick for the second straight year. With the fourth overall pick of the 2017 NBA Draft, Phoenix chose Kansas star Josh Jackson.
He had the tools to become an elite scorer in the NBA. However, off-court issues and questionable shot selection convinced everyone that he was never going to live up to those expectations. Jackson only played five seasons in the NBA as a journeyman before taking his act to the NBA G-League.
1. Dragan Bender – 2016
The worst draft bust for the Suns, Dragan Bender was a complete disappointment. Apart from Phoenix's costly mistakes at the 2016 NBA Draft, Bender's selection stood out the most. The fourth overall pick averaged just 5.3 points per game in a Suns uniform. Unlike his European counterparts, Bender was another case of a highly hyped international talent who crumbled under pressure and simply couldn't adjust to the NBA style of play.
