When the Phoenix Suns traded the farm, along with Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson, for Kevin Durant, they surely expected to achieve more than a second-round exit. After all, that's where their season came to an end in 2022, when they suffered an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks. But a year later, and the Suns have proven that time, indeed, is a flat circle when they proceeded to completely lose the plot once more during an elimination game, this time against the Denver Nuggets.
Now, the Suns will have difficulties filling out the roster with quality players that Durant and Devin Booker will need to wash away the sting of yet another postseason disappointment. They will have the necessary salaries to trade for an impact player, but due to their trade for KD, they will not have the picks to make those trades particularly enticing for another team.
Nevertheless, front offices have worked their magic before, and the Suns are no different. It's not like the assets they can trade away are completely devoid of value. Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton are the ones who may have to give way for the Suns to maximize the Booker-Durant partnership, and, as flawed as those two are at their current state, some other team with needs at those respective positions could still talk themselves into taking a punt on two players who, not too long ago, played a huge part in nearly leading the Suns to championship.
With that said, these are the two trades the Suns must make to help Kevin Durant and Devin Booker after their playoff exit against the Nuggets.
2. Suns trade away Chris Paul to the San Antonio Spurs for Tre Jones (sign and trade), Zach Collins, Doug McDermott, and two second-round picks
The San Antonio Spurs are riding high at the moment. The Spurs have rarely been a terrible team, and yet when they are, they seem to reap the greatest reward they can get. After lucking onto David Robinson and Tim Duncan in 1987 and 1997, respectively, the Spurs have rekindled their NBA Draft Lottery luck, winning the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes and, if all goes to plan, setting themselves up for years of contention once again.
Nevertheless, the Spurs were unequivocally bad during the 2022-23 season. They finished the year with the worst net rating in the NBA, getting blown out over and over again as they faced a talent deficit every night. Their best players, Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell, were miscast in featured ballhandling roles, as the Spurs lacked a true floor general who can act as the offense's conductor.
Enter Chris Paul.
Victor Wembanyama's development will be crucial to the Spurs' hopes of becoming a contender in the near future. Adding Paul to help Wembanyama's transition would be such a godsend. Paul, even at age 38, remains one of the smartest and most unselfish point guards in the association, and his presence will make the lives of everyone on the roster that much easier.
At first glance, the return the Suns would get for Chris Paul may not inspire much confidence. Tre Jones may have the court vision, but he doesn't have the outside marksmanship, and Doug McDermott is a one-trick pony. The Suns already have a player like McDermott on the roster in Landry Shamet. (McDermott is in this deal for salary-matching purposes anyway, and his deal is expiring.)
But the real prize here will be Zach Collins.
Collins may be injury prone, but he ended the season as the Spurs' starting center on a high note. He showed his entire two-way arsenal, able to stretch the floor reliably while being an annoying deterrent at the rim.
With Chris Paul out of the picture, the Suns will be relying on Cameron Payne and Tre Jones as their floor generals. That may not be such a bad idea, as those two will allow the Suns to become a fast-paced, freewheeling team. And as they showed against the Nuggets, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant thrive while playing in pace, and this allows them to do just that.
1. Phoenix finally cuts bait on Deandre Ayton, deal him to the Indiana Pacers, along with two second-round picks, for Myles Turner
Perhaps the Suns decide to run it back with Deandre Ayton, as playing for a new head coach may very well be the shot in the arm the first overall pick of the 2018 NBA Draft needs to turn his reputation around. Nevertheless, it seems like Ayton is wearing out his welcome in Phoenix given his underperformance over the past two postseasons, and a change in scenery may very well end up being what's best for both parties.
The Pacers reportedly remain interested in trading for Ayton; but as history has shown, a double-center look alongside Myles Turner doesn't exactly work, as both Turner and Domantas Sabonis have flourished even further when they went their separate ways. Thus, one would think that for the Pacers to acquire Ayton, they will have to let go of Turner.
The idea that Turner has more trade value than Ayton may seem preposterous to some, but Turner is coming off the season of his life, averaging 18 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per night on career-high efficiency numbers. Turner can also space the floor from three, which Ayton cannot.
Adding Turner, along with Zach Collins, would give the Suns some solid frontcourt depth, which they sorely lacked against the Nuggets.
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