The Phoenix Suns had been working feverishly to acquire a talented veteran big man – first Blake Griffin, to no avail, next Paul Millsap. Now, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, they are “out on Millsap pursuit” and have a new plan for their cap space.
Instead of signing a big name talent in free agency, the Suns are allegedly going to use their cap space to facilitate deals with teams looking to unload contracts. While taking these unspecified cap hits, though, Phoenix intends on acquiring future assets – a young talent not yet fully developed and draft picks.
Wojnarowski tweeted the Suns are “going all-in young” and no one should blame them. Phoenix just drafted one of the best players in a stacked draft class, adding Josh Jackson to a young core of Devin Booker, Marquese Chriss, T.J. Warren, and Tyler Ulis.
The Suns have reportedly been trying to trade away Brandon Knight, Tyson Chandler, and even Eric Bledsoe, this offseason. Because Chandler and Knight are each signed to big deals and have been – well, disappointing is the first word that comes to mind – in their time in Phoenix, it’s been hard to find suitors.
If they can manage to keep Bledsoe and get rid of Chandler and Knight before taking any cap dumps, then they could find themselves doing something special a couple years down the line.
With a starting core of Bledsoe, Booker, Jackson, and Chriss with Ulis and Warren coming off the bench, the Suns have a lot of promise moving forward.
For the next stage, though, they’ll have to make sure whatever cap dumps they’re taking on come with enough assets that they’re worth it.
