KEVIN DURANT LOOKED around PHX Arena during the March 4 home game against the LA Clippers and saw a lot of people having a “terrible time.” The Phoenix Suns, losers of 11 of their previous 14, had given up 41 points in the second quarter and trailed by 19 entering the fourth.
The first three quarters had encapsulated the season so far for the Suns, who must make up ground just to qualify for the play-in despite the highest payroll in NBA history. Disappointment, drama and dysfunction. Durant later downplayed his first-quarter sideline clash with coach Mike Budenholzer, portraying the animated argument stemming from a disagreement regarding offensive strategy as evidence of how much they care about righting the ship, but it was perceived in the moment as further proof of a disconnected Phoenix squad falling apart.
The fourth quarter, though, provided a glimpse of why hope still flickers for this edition of the Suns in Phoenix, at least throughout the team’s new $100 million downtown headquarters. Durant led a flurry of scoring that cut the deficit to 10 — waving his arms to whip the crowd into a frenzy at that point — before sealing the comeback.
Maybe that rally for a desperately needed comeback win over the Clippers will be a symbolic start of the Suns salvaging their season.
“I like that analogy,” brash billionaire owner Mat Ishbia told ESPN a couple of days later. “I’m going to use that with Coach when I talk to him.”
The Suns have lost three of the four games since.
“So what’s the reason?” Ishbia said, rhetorically asking why the Suns have fallen so far short of expectations. “I don’t have the answer. If I had the answer, I’d fix it right now.
“I still believe in our team. I still believe in Coach Budenholzer. I believe in the guys we have. And at the same time, at the end of the season, if we don’t get to where we expect to get to, I’ll have enough data and evidence that it didn’t work or it did work. And then we’ll make decisions based on that.”
Ishbia’s fingerprints have been all over the Suns’ aggressive, expensive roster makeover during his 25 months in charge, beginning with pulling off the blockbuster trade for Durant as the ink was drying on his deal to buy the franchise for $4 billion. The Suns made a conscious decision to blow past the salary cap’s second apron in the new collective bargaining agreement — and the roster-building handcuffs that come with that territory — when they persuaded Bradley Beal to waive his no-trade clause to accept a deal sending him to Phoenix from Washington in June 2023.
The Suns put together the priciest star trio in the NBA — homegrown franchise cornerstone Devin Booker, Durant and Beal are all on maximum contracts — and didn’t get a single playoff win to show for it last season, when the Minnesota Timberwolves swept Phoenix in the first round.
Coach Frank Vogel was fired after his first season on the job, a year after Ishbia dismissed Monty Williams. A series of injuries to each of the stars, preventing them from establishing chemistry, was a reasonable excuse, although the Suns have been relatively healthy this season. Phoenix’s brass believed it addressed its primary roster flaw by signing steady point guard Tyus Jones in free agency.
But the Suns have taken a step back this season, sitting six games behind .500 and in 11th place in the West standings with 16 games remaining in the regular season, beginning with Friday’s road date in Sacramento. February was especially miserable in Phoenix, as the Suns went 3-10 in a month in which Beal and Durant dealt with the distraction of being involved in trade discussions leading up to the Feb. 6 deadline. Budenholzer has had friction with multiple players, including Booker, sources said.
“It’s been a really disappointing year. Very disappointed,” Ishbia said. “There’s not a person in the organization that doesn’t feel that way. We had high expectations. We felt really good about where going into the season and we’ve not met any of those expectations. We’ve been well below what we all expected, and it’s not anything close.”
In his next breath, Ishbia reiterated that a postseason bid is still within the Suns’ reach.
“If we get in the playoffs, I don’t think that we’re an easy out for anybody,” Ishbia said.
And if they don’t, Phoenix’s front office will again explore all sorts of potential personnel scenarios as the Suns search for solutions while operating under Ishbia’s “all-in” mandate. According to Ishbia, a “pivot and reload” around Booker could be the direction the franchise chooses this summer. The futures of Beal and Durant in Phoenix are uncertain after the Suns engaged in trade discussions involving them before this year’s deadline. The belief within the front office is that the Suns aren’t as far away from contending as the standings indicate.
As a source close to Ishbia said, “For better or worse, there’s no ‘trust the process’ to Mat Ishbia.”
THERE IS ONE absolute certainty as the Suns approach what might be a summer of major change: Booker will not be traded.
Never mind that there are plenty of rival executives who would advise Ishbia and the Suns to consider listening to offers, specifically from the Houston Rockets, who control a significant chunk of Phoenix’s future first-round capital (2025 swap rights, 2027 and 2029 picks, all unprotected) via a deal with the Brooklyn Nets. Sources have told ESPN that the Rockets have repeatedly expressed interest in Booker, a 28-year-old star who fits Houston’s timeline, and that those conversations have been brief.
“Never happen,” Ishbia said, interrupting the question. “It’s silly. So here’s what I’ll tell you: I have Devin Booker in the prime. In order to win an NBA championship, you got to have a superstar. You got to have a great player.”
Nor will Booker request a trade, regardless of how the Suns finish this season. Booker says he is fully committed to spending his entire career in Phoenix, sharing that vision with Ishbia and the Suns’ lead executives, CEO Josh Bartelstein and general manager James Jones.
Booker endured four years in or near the West basement to begin his career, averaging more than 60 losses while playing for four head coaches in those four seasons. The Suns made a leap to mediocrity in the first year under Williams, when Booker made his All-Star debut, and were two wins away from a title the following season. After getting a peek at the top of the mountain in 2021, Booker is determined to complete that climb in a Suns uniform.
“I mean, it’s a rare breed,” Booker told ESPN, wearing a T-shirt with his idol Kobe Bryant’s Black Mamba logo as he explained after a recent shootaround why playing for only one franchise is so important to him. “I take pride in the community in Phoenix, the people that have supported me since I was 18 when things were ugly. And the people that are with us, we just fell short of accomplishing what we want. So I want to do it, and I want to do it here.
“That’s the responsibility of being a franchise player, and I wear that with honor. So it might not look the most pretty right now, but we got to get it done and I’m going to do it.”
Ishbia acknowledges that positioning the Suns to realistically pursue their championship ambitions will probably require some roster remodeling around Booker.
It’s insulting to Ishbia to suggest that a patient rebuilding process might be in the best interest of the Suns, who have given up control of their own first-rounders through 2031 under his watch.
“It’s surprising to me that other people, other fans, they actually like the rebuild process,” Ishbia said, disdain dripping from his voice as the final word of that sentence comes out of his mouth. “Like, ‘Oh, let’s rebuild it.’ Are you crazy?! You think I’m going to go for seven years and try to get there? You enjoy the 2030 draft picks that we have holding? I want to try to see the game today. I want us to win today, and we’re going to try.
“Although let’s say this doesn’t work, guess what? Maybe next year we won’t be as good, but we’re going to try again. The next opportunity we have, we’re going to try to win and compete. And it will work. We will win championships here in Phoenix. Might not be this year, but I promise you we are going to do it. And that’s what we’re focused on.”
Barring a drastic late-season turnaround for the Suns, there is anticipation around the league that Phoenix will entertain trade offers for Durant again this summer.
“I’ll just say that we’re going to evaluate in the offseason,” Ishbia said. “We’re going to find a way to win, and it’s probably a lot easier winning with Kevin Durant than without him. But at the same time, yes, if we’re not good enough in this iteration of the Phoenix Suns, we’re going to find a way to be better next year. “
1:14
Possible trade deals for Kevin Durant
Kevin Pelton details the potential trade packages the Suns could receive for Kevin Durant.
DURANT WAS CAUGHT off guard when he was the subject of trade talks in the days leading up to this season’s deadline, including a proposed deal with the Golden State Warriors that died after Durant made it clear he wasn’t in favor of a midseason reunion with his former team.
The Suns had also discussed frameworks of potential Durant trades with the Timberwolves, Miami Heat and Rockets, according to league sources, some of whom also mentioned the New York Knicks as a potential fit. Rockets sources told ESPN their discussions with Phoenix were initiated by the Suns.
“When you’re not winning and you’re not winning the way you want, you’ve got to look at everything,” a Suns source told ESPN. “For us with him, it was, how do we make sure that we’re optimizing Devin and building to make you successful now but also in the future. And Kevin’s had an amazing year. He’s had an amazing stretch here. He’s playing really, really good basketball, but there’s always been conversation with everyone on our team minus Devin Booker.
“As we talked about it, then teams call us because they’re interested because it’s Kevin Durant, we’re not in a position not to look at everything. We have to be creative.”
League sources said that Durant and Rich Kleiman, the 15-time All-Star’s agent and business partner, would be consulted on any trade discussions involving him this summer. Durant has one season remaining on his contract and would be eligible to sign a two-year, $122 million extension with a team that acquires him, providing him significant power to influence a potential trade destination.
“I want my career to end on my terms — that’s the only thing,” Durant said on “The Draymond Green Show” in the aftermath of the trade deadline. “That’s the only thing I’m worried about. ‘Cause I see a lot of dudes that don’t get that opportunity, so I want to keep putting in that work to make that choice on my own.”
Durant declined further comment on the situation when approached by ESPN, saying it is “already noisy as hell” and he didn’t want to add to that. His professionalism, focus and competitiveness in the wake of the trade deadline have been noted and appreciated throughout the Suns franchise.
Beal dealt with hearing his name in trade rumors for most of the first half of the season, despite still possessing his no-trade clause, as the Suns unsuccessfully attempted to find a pathway to trade for Jimmy Butler. He was also demoted to a bench role in early January, returning to the starting lineup Feb. 22, when the Suns snapped a four-game losing streak by beating the Chicago Bulls.
The role change prompted speculation that the demotion was intended to make Beal disgruntled enough to accept a midseason trade, but team sources are adamant that utilizing Beal as a sixth man was purely a basketball strategy decision.
Nevertheless, Beal admits that he has felt disrespected at times by the Suns this season.
“I’m human, so I have to really take a step back and just kind of look at the big picture,” Beal told ESPN. “And my biggest thing is when I came here I want to win. I’ve scored 30 points a game. I’ve been an All-Star. I’ve been All-NBA. I want to win. That’s always been my label — I haven’t won anything. So whatever that looks like for the team, whether that’s me coming up the bench, whether it’s me starting, whether it’s me, whatever it is, I’m going to do it. Do I agree with it? Hell, no, but I’m not going to be that guy.
“I enjoy the game, man. This game is fun. I try not to let nobody take the joy out of it for me. It’s very hard. It’s hard. We’re all human beings, man. We have every right to shut down. We have every right to question what’s going on. You have every right to say, ‘Why me?’ But I feel like that just drags you down a little bit more than you need. I’m still playing in the NBA, I still have the best job in the world, and I still have my no-trade clause. So I’m smiling every day.”
Like Durant, Beal had no interest in having his life uprooted with a midseason trade. But Beal, whose longtime agent, Mark Bartelstein, is the Suns CEO’s father, is open to considering other possibilities this offseason.
“It is a different deal in the summer,” Beal said. “Everything is kind of more laid out on the table. You got more options.”
0:50
How did it all go wrong for the Suns?
Kevin Pelton joins “Nothing But Net” to break down what’s gone wrong for the Suns this season.
DAYS AFTER PHOENIX’S 2023-24 season ended in a first-round sweep, Ishbia defiantly declared that the Suns had “enough talent to win a championship,” a claim he believed again entering this season. He also insisted during that news conference that 26 of the other 29 NBA general managers would swap situations with the Suns — roster, future draft picks and all — a statement that was mocked around the league within minutes of Ishbia saying it.
“Not based on our season this year, right?” Ishbia said this month when asked if he still thinks that is true.
Ishbia didn’t double down on his 26 of 29 take, but he didn’t back all the way off, either. He downplayed the perception that the Suns are stuck in basketball purgatory due to trading as many of their future first-round picks as possible and have roster-building restrictions due to being so far over the salary cap and into the luxury tax.
“The thing is, I feel really good about our organization, the franchise, the basketball,” Ishbia said. “If we had won 15 more games than we won right now, I’d feel amazing about it all, but I feel that we’re in a great position in Phoenix.”
At this point, the Suns’ position puts them in serious jeopardy of sending a lottery pick to the Rockets in the upcoming draft. Phoenix is 2½ games behind the injury-ravaged Dallas Mavericks for the West’s final play-in spot.
“But [the season is] not over yet, so that’s kind of my mindset,” Beal said. “I’m always going to be the naive guy. I played in D.C. for 11 years, so naive is kind of my middle name. We still haven’t played our best basketball. … We have the toughest [remaining] schedule in the league, too, so it’s a good challenge for us. Either we can s— or get off the pot.”
Ishbia added that his analysis of the Suns’ favorable positioning among NBA franchises included the consideration that most GMs would enjoy having “access to an owner that does not worry about how much we’re spending and is willing to recruit people.” But Ishbia is aware that he has been accused by rivals and the media of having “new owner syndrome,” which is a way of saying he makes impulsive, splashy decisions instead of taking a patient approach.
Ishbia and some members of the Suns’ front office consider that an unfair portrayal. Ishbia, a feisty former walk-on guard at Michigan State, is responsible for Phoenix’s win-now philosophy and financing it. He approves all personnel decisions, but he does not dictate them or make moves that aren’t advised by his basketball operations staff.
“People like to say, ‘Oh, he’s too involved.’ What?” said Ishbia, who splits his time between Phoenix and Pontiac, Michigan, where the headquarters of his family’s United Wholesale Mortgage are located. “Honestly, you think I watched film on the players we’re drafting? They say, ‘We like Ryan Dunn.’ I say, ‘OK, how do we get him?’ I don’t watch film, I don’t interview the player. It’s just silly what people talk about.”
Ishbia considers it his obligation as an owner to “give the best resources, give the support, make sure that we make it a destination in Phoenix, create a great fan experience.” He feels that he is doing all of those things, from making the nine-figure investment in the franchise’s new headquarters to slashing concession prices. And he’s paying more than $450 million, including luxury tax, for this season’s roster.
“I’m not sparing dollars,” Ishbia said. “Fans don’t care what a luxury tax bill is. They care that I care and I’m trying to help us win, and I’m giving the GM and the CEO and the coach and the players all the resources to win. And I think that’s something that a lot of GMs and a lot of basketball people would really relish the opportunity to be part of.”
But right now? Phoenix’s middling results, along with Ishbia’s bold, brash style, have made the Suns subject to ridicule.
“It’s easy to take shots,” Ishbia said. “And I guess the biggest thing is when you put yourself out there — which I will always do, so you can have fun with this for a long time — when you put yourself out there and saying you want to win and be the best and you don’t, people really enjoy when you don’t. So that’s what’s happened. We haven’t been where we wanted to be.
“I could have come in with low expectations, say, ‘Hey, in the next five years, we’re going to try to build this the right way. In eight years, maybe we’ll win a championship.’ I came in and said, ‘Let’s try to win now.’ And guess what? I’ll say that again next year and the year after, and one of these years we’re going to win it.
“And I’m not just ruling out this year, but at the same time it has not been good this year, and we know that here.”
