The Phoenix Suns missed out on adding a marquee free agent after quietly chasing former NBA Defensive Player Marcus Smart.
But Smart spurned them to join the Los Angeles Lakers.
According to ESPN’s senior NBA insider Shams Charania, the Suns were one of the three teams that pursued Smart.
“The Lakers, Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks all seriously pursued Smart, with positive conversations with personnel from all three teams after he and his agent Jason Glushon received permission to explore options from the Wizards, sources said,” Charania reported on X.
But the pull of Luka Doncic, who led the Lakers’ recruiting efforts, was stronger than Devin Booker‘s.
Smart reached a buyout with the rebuilding Washington Wizards to play for a contender. It was the first miss for the Sun after reaching a buyout with three-time All-Star Bradley Beal, who opted to join the Los Angeles Clippers.
Suns May Have Dodged a Bullet
While Smart could have provided the Suns a veteran presence and strong perimeter defense, which they lacked last season, the 32-year-old guard has injury concerns.
Getty Injury-prone former NBA Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart spurns the Milwaukee Bucks for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Smart has been a shell of himself since he left the Boston Celtics in 2023 as part of the three-team trade for Kristaps Porzingis.
The 31-year-old guard has struggled to stay on the court due to injuries, playing only 20 games in his first season with the Memphis Grizzlies. They cut the bait when they salary-dumped him to the Washington Wizards at the trade deadline.
Smart would only see action for 15 games, averaging 9.3 points, 22.5 assists and 1.1 steals in 18.7 minutes off the bench.
Suns’ Ambitious Sign-and-Trade Target
Aside from Smart, the Suns have also registered their interest in Golden State Warriors‘ 22-year-old forward Jonathan Kuminga, a restricted free agent, NBA insider Jake Fischer reports.
“Sources say Phoenix, meanwhile, is the latest team to express exploratory interest in a Kuminga sign-and-trade … challenging as it would be for the Suns to make such a deal happen,” Fischer wrote on “The Stein Line” Substack newsletter on July 17.
The Suns have reached out to both Kuminga’s representation and the Warriors “to make their fondness for the bouncy swingman known,” according to Fischer.
However, no deal is imminent as the Suns face major challenges in a potential sign-and-trade for the Warriors’ former No. 7 pick.
“The Suns, to be clear, do not appear to possess the sort of draft capital or players that Golden State is believed to be seeking in exchange for Kuminga,” Fischer wrote.
They have two first-round picks in 2027 and 2029, but they are not their own unprotected, which is why they hold little value around the league.
The 2027 first-rounder will be the least favorable from the group consisting of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Utah Jazz. On the other hand, the 2029 first-round pick from the same group of teams (Cleveland, Minnesota, and Utah).
Those assets were part of the return package that the Suns acquired from the Jazz in trading their 2031 unprotected first-round pick.
Suns Lose Out in Secretive Free Agent Chase