Trade rumors provide both hope and harm for these Suns

The Suns are a .500 basketball team. Mediocrity isn’t supposed to be this difficult. Or expensive.

Changes are coming despite the current three-game winning streak. Bradley Beal will eventually be traded or reinserted into the starting lineup. Jusuf Nurkic has possibly played his last minutes in a Suns uniform. And all of the NBA is waiting for Jimmy Butler’s next big move, a player in dogged pursuit of the contract extension only Mat Ishbia is willing to pay.

The Suns have many on-court issues.

They are soft. They don’t always play hard. They are destroyed by physical teams with athletic wings. They don’t rebound well or defend the rim. They are highly vulnerable to youthful energy. They are capable of losing to the Pelicans and Hornets, and as a result, no longer taken seriously.

The trade rumors provide hope and harm. The demotion of Beal helps the team but stings the player. The unspoken internal chaos is certain to disrupt connectivity, and a lack of connectivity guarantees a basketball team will never commit to playing defense at an elite level when every player must sacrifice for a cause greater than themselves. And a potential Hail Mary acquisition of Butler is surely a talking point among the current Suns — and what the room might sound like if he arrives.

Some are astonished by the struggles of a team featuring Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, two of the top four minutes leaders at the 2024 Olympic Games. In the biggest moments on the biggest global stage, the Suns boasted 40% of our nation’s starting lineup.

But in Paris, Durant and Booker didn’t have to be leaders. They didn’t have to exert their personalities or their force of will on anyone. They were required to play basketball at a high level. They didn’t have to be the alpha male.

The addition of Butler would solve that problem. He would bring attitude, leadership, toughness and culture. He is how you want to train a pair of rookies currently playing significant roles, including the irresistible Ryan Dunn, who might be the next Mikal Bridges in terms of local popularity.

Some rightfully claim that Butler is predisposed to Arizona only because of money. But he is also notoriously fierce. Imagine how he might reward Ishbia for his generosity.

Problem is, this useful fantasy forgets two rather large facts: Butler quit on his team in Miami while earning nearly $49 million this season; and as much as the Heat are willing to trade Butler, they don’t want Bradley Beal in return. Stalemate.

Which means the current Suns need a better plan. Like boxing out, fighting through picks and sequences with real force on defense, and stacking three more victories against lesser competition before upsetting a really good Cleveland team on MLK Day.

That’ll get everyone’s attention.

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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