Looking for a big mistake from the Phoenix Suns' eventful NBA trade deadline is a fool's errand. The Western Conference powerhouse came out as the biggest winner of the week after successfully trading for ex-Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant. With that trade, the Suns shot up the title rankings. Depending on who you ask, they're either title favorites or one of the top contenders.
Still, there's definitely some things that the Suns could have done better at the trade deadline. Unlike other teams, these aren't necessarily team-breaking faults. However, this problem (or their lack of attention to this problem) could pose some problems for them down the line. Let's take a look at what they could've done better.
Suns 2023 NBA trade deadline mistake: Potential Bench Depth Hit
The price of creating superteams is the NBA is the death of any sort of bench depth for the super team. That's the problem that the Suns now face after trading for Kevin Durant at the NBA trade deadline. It's a deal that any team would do in a heartbeat, obviously. However, it does open up some holes on their roster, particularly, their bench versatility.
To recap, the Suns essentially traded Jae Crowder (sent to the Bucks), Mikal Bridges, and Cam Johnson (both traded to the Nets) for Kevin Durant AND T.J Warren. Those three forwards were crucial cogs to the Suns' Finals run a couple of years back, and continued to be valuable players for Phoenix over the last few years.
We can disregard the loss of Jae Crowder in this article: he was never going to play another minute for Phoenix with the bridges he burnt. The more pressing matter, though, is the departures of Bridges and Johnson. These two forwards had a huge hand in forging their identity on the defensive side of the ball. Bridges, in particular, is one of the best defensive players in the league, thanks to his uncanny instincts on that end.
As of the time of writing, the Suns boast the seventh-ranked defense in the league in terms of defensive rating. That's not all on “The Twins” defense, of course: DeAndre Ayton's rim protection adds another layer of ferocity to their defense. Torrey Craig is also an underrated defender who will likely step into a bigger role without Bridges and Johnson.
The return of TJ Warren will also keep the Suns' defense strong in theory. Warren first built a reputation as a pure scorer who isn't exactly a game-changer on defense. Over the last few years, though, Warren has evolved his game from elite wing scorer to solid two-way wing who can defend most forwards on any given night. He should be able to help out on that end, while also providing a fourth option on offense.
Offense obviously won't be an issue for this new team as well. With Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and Durant, Phoenix has three stars capable of running the offense on their own. Durant's arrival will allow Paul to settle more into a supporting role and simply just create plays for his teammates. Booker and Durant are also two of the most proficient mid-range scorers: a nifty trick in the bag for the playoffs.
The concern, though, is the injury history of these players. Durant is still ruled out currently with a lingering injury. Paul has been in and out of the injury list, and can't play as many minutes as he used to. Booker has been relatively healthy in his career, but he's also missed a good chunk of games. Before, the Suns could rely on either Bridges or Johnson to at least hold down the fort on that end.
Now, they won't have that luxury. If two of Paul, Booker, and Durant go down at the same time, what will happen to the Suns offense? Craig is a good shooter, but isn't exactly a shot creator. Josh Okogie is an excellent defender, but has not shown the capability to be a reliable scorer. Their best hope might be TJ Warren, but the former Pacer is still dealing with his own injury woes. Cam Payne is hit-and-miss.
That's the risk that teams like the Suns take when they make trades like this, though. The new owner, Mat Ishbia, believes that Phoenix is one star away from winning that oh-so-elusive NBA championship. This is the best trade deadline the Suns have had in a long time, but they're not quite out of the woods yet. We'll see if they'll be able to deliver a championship to Arizona this season.
Follow Us
Subscribe