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The Phoenix Suns are all in.
Under new owner Mat Ishbia, the Suns have set the framework for a deal that will land Bradley Beal to pair with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, sources confirmed to CBS Sports on Sunday. The deal was first reported by ESPN.
That’s a stunning Big Three, at least on the offensive end, and a statement of intent from Ishbia that he’s here to win, now.
Those within the Suns organization recognize and accept the question marks surrounding this move. With the cabinet of first-round picks already empty from bringing in Durant in February, acquiring Beal from the Washington Wizards means sending in a bevy of future second-round picks and pick swaps.
The future is literally now. If this doesn’t work, there’s no Plan B. Phoenix is gambling now and later on the belief that a Booker-Beal-Durant triumvirate is enough to win; the future is doomed.
There is also a matter of depth. Yes, the Suns expect to keep Deandre Ayton, at least as part of this transaction, and will send Chris Paul and Landry Shamet to DC instead. he could dictate the terms of his move with unusual clout, even in an NBA where stars tend to get what they want.
The fact that Beal could essentially turn down deals that sent too much to Washington meant Phoenix would get as good a deal as possible, sources explained. There remains the possibility of Ayton being moved to a higher level, but for now, the Suns are delighted with the embarrassing amount of talent that has accumulated since Ishbia took over the team a few months ago.
There is also a risk of the availability of these players. Beal has not played more than 60 matches since 2018. Durant has played no more than 55 games since he injured his Achilles tendon during the 2019 NBA Finals. Booker missed much of last season with a groin injury.
And yet, with this collection of extraordinarily talented question marks, Phoenix immediately becomes Denver’s top league in the Western Conference. It also makes for an interesting and stark juxtaposition of how to build a championship team.
Denver is the team of patience: Michael Malone takes eight years to earn and win a championship. Most teams would have fired him long ago. Sticking not only with Nikola Jokic, whose two MVPs made that an easy decision, but with Jamal Murray, whose season-ending ACL injury a year ago and the rocky start to the 2022-23 season would have raised question marks in other places. A worryingly injured Michael Porter Jr. Drafting 14th overall and slowly growing him into a major impact player.
Phoenix is the team of impatience: He fires Monty Williams two seasons after he made it to an NBA Finals. Giving away depth and talent to bring in Kevin Durant. In Beal, see an all-in risk worth doubling down on. Limiting, sources say, the influence of president of basketball operations and general manager James Jones as Ishbia and those around him flex their muscles and look for a bolder and more direct approach.
Denver is the team of chemistry: Jokic and Murray came into this league together, with Malone as their head coach for every NBA game they’ve ever played.
Phoenix certainly isn’t: Frank Vogel will be Booker’s sixth head coach. Booker and Durant have barely played together, and neither has ever played with Beal. And the organization has sent out players like Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges who may have grown into a chemistry-fuelled group together and with the stars of Phoenix.
Still, there’s no denying that both teams are immensely and overwhelmingly talented.
For the Suns, sources say, the arithmetic of this deal was clear: Talent is everything. Whatever the other challenges to acquiring so many of them, the organization believes that Durant plus Booker plus Beal a year from now equals the best shot at a trophy.
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