There is a newfound sense of optimism surrounding the Phoenix Suns and for good reason. They have finally locked down a solid young core with the recent addition of center Deandre Ayton with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.

Now it appears the Suns will rely on free agency to help fill the other voids on their roster. According to Scott Bordow of the Arizona Republic, general manager Ryan McDonough says Phoenix is hoping to sign an experienced point guard and stretch four this offseason:

“We think and hope we’ll add some veterans that will take us from 21 wins to whatever next year,” McDonough said. “… Playing with some veterans will put these guys in position to be successful as rookies and that’s something we value. We were aggressive (in the draft) and we’re going to continue to be aggressive as soon as free agency starts.”

McDonough told Bordow that the Suns are targeting two positions in particular: point guard and power forward (specifically a stretch-four).

It makes sense that the Suns would try to balance out the youth movement by adding a couple of veterans to the roster. They already have a future All-Star in shooting guard Devin Booker and small forward Josh Jackson showed plenty of promise with his versatility down the stretch of the 2017-18 NBA season. Phoenix is hoping Ayton will become another bonafide player for them on both ends of the court.

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That said, the Suns are doing what they can to clear as much cap space as possible for free agency. McDonough is reportedly expected to renounce the rights of point guard Elfrid Payton and center Alex Len which will give them some room to work with. More importantly, there are a number of intriguing options to work with at both positions that should not be too pricey.

Veteran point guards such as Derrick Rose, Shane Larkin, and Raymond Felton are set to hit the market. As far as stretch four's go, the Suns could potentially take a look at Rudy Gay, Ersan Ilyasova, or Michael Beasley to help add another versatile scoring punch to the frontcourt. Regardless of who they sign, it is clear that the Suns have started the next phase in their rebuild in which they hope to actually be competitive.