Unclear part of Suns’ offseason arrives after obvious re-signings of Gillespie, Goodwin

The best basketball teams are constellations. They feature many bright lights. They do not revolve around giant individual stars. They create a rich tapestry of heroes and personal favorites, and a great diversity of replica jerseys.

The Phoenix Suns are banking on the latter in 2026-27.

Their offseason began with the successful re-signings of extremely popular role players, Collin Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin. The marketplace determined Gillespie a much more expensive player (four years, $48 million) than Goodwin (three years, $19 million), which seemed strange to most Suns fans.

Gillespie has Steve Nash energy. He’s an undersized point guard with elite grit and spot-up shooting ability. Nash is now a senior adviser for the Suns, and if he ever teaches Gillespie how to be ambidextrous on a basketball court, the returns might be immense.

But Goodwin is also a crowd pleader. He wears a black mask. He led the Suns in steals and was second in offensive rebounding, a staggering achievement. His effort is relentless and his on-ball defense is menacing. He is a huge part of the culture shock that took root in 2025-26, when the Suns blew away their expected victory total despite wobbling to the finish line.

These moves were also somewhat obvious. What’s next is a bit unclear:

The Suns don’t need Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale. If they are committed to the development of Rasheer Fleming and Khaman Maluach, they don’t have proper and respectful minutes for both veterans, even though both Allen and O’Neale have had terrific impact in Phoenix. They need to trade one (or both) for pieces that balance the roster and complete the puzzle.

Meanwhile, if the Suns are hell-bent on giving Jalen Green another season and another full audition, they are risking another year of Devin Booker’s prime on a nucleus that doesn’t maximize Booker’s potential greatness.

There’s also a belief that trading Green now is selling way too low; that Green’s current market value is underwhelming at best; and that the Suns need Green to play a full season in Phoenix before cashing that chip. I have my doubts about the latter strategy. But I also understand the need for smart business decisions, like the ones the Suns just made with Gillespie and Goodwin.

In 1993, your favorite Suns player might’ve been Sir Charles, Thunder Dan or KJ. In 2005, the starting five all had their share of replica jerseys throughout the arena: Steve Nash, Joe Johnson, Amar’e Stoudemire, Shawn Marion and Quentin Richardson. In 2021, you had your choice of CP3; Booker; the Twins; and the hardcore vibe of Jae Crowder.

The Suns found their way up the ladder in 2025-26, regaining both dignity and respect. The next steps are much steeper and far more complicated.

Reach Bickley at dbickley@arizonasports.com. Listen to Bickley & Marotta weekdays from 6 a.m. – 10 a.m. on Arizona Sports 98.7.

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