Phoenix Suns

Phoenix Suns general manager James Jones confirmed over the weekend that the team and young wing Cam Johnson were engaged in rookie extension talks.

"We're having discussions," he told Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic. "Cam is a big part of what we do. Really excited for the progress he's shown over the last few years, especially last year. He's primed to take some steps forward."

Johnson, 26, averaged career highs in points (12.5), rebounds (4.1), assists (1.5), three-point shooting percentage (42.5 percent) and field-goal percentage (46 percent) in the 2021-22 campaign, continuing to show improvement in his third NBA season.

He largely came off the bench in his 66 regular-season appearances, providing important depth for the Suns on the wing. He'll continue that role into the 2022-23 campaign, with Chris Paul, Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges, Jae Crowder and Deandre Ayton handling the starting duties.

It will be interesting to see just how lucrative an extension is for Phoenix's de facto sixth man.

Phoenix Suns general manager James Jones said the Suns never came close to acquiring Kevin Durant from the Brooklyn Nets this offseason.

Jones told Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic that there was "not much discussion, in-depth discussion" between him and the Nets.

"We had discussions with Brooklyn about their desires and what they were trying to do, but ultimately, I would say like most teams, there was nothing to it," he said.

Durant was made available this offseason after requesting a trade, but the Nets announced last month that they and KD had "agreed to move forward" together.

Durant's business manager, Rich Kleiman, told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski (h/t ESPN's Tim Bontemps) in June that the two-time NBA champion and Finals MVP had requested a trade and the Nets agreed to work with him to find a trade partner.

Wojnarowski noted the Suns and Miami Heat were on Durant's wish list.

Phoenix seemingly had a solid chance to land Durant because it could offer first-round draft picks and center Deandre Ayton.

Ayton was the No. 1 pick in the 2018 draft, and he has been highly productive in four seasons, averaging 16.3 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. He also helped lead the Suns to the NBA Finals in 2021, averaging 15.8 points and 11.8 rebounds during that playoff run.

Despite that, there were question marks regarding Ayton's future with the organization, as he was a restricted free agent.

In mid-July, the Indiana Pacers signed him to a four-year, $132.9 million offer sheet.

The Suns matched it, which rendered them unable to trade him until January, and that may have ended any hope they could trade for Durant.

Had Phoenix acquired the 33-year-old 12-time All-Star, it may have become the championship favorite, as he could have joined Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Mikal Bridges.

The Suns had the best record in the NBA last season, but they suffered a disappointing second-round playoff exit at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks. Now, they are set to enter the 2022-23 campaign with largely the same team.

Meanwhile, the Nets will look to make at least one more run at contending for a championship with a core of Durant and Kyrie Irving plus Ben Simmons, who didn't play last season amid being traded from the Philadelphia 76ers in the James Harden deal.

The Nets were swept out of the first round, but Durant averaged 29.9 points and a career-high 6.4 assists per game during the regular season.

As for Phoenix, the core of Booker, Paul, Ayton and Bridges will look to get past a Golden State Warriors team that won it all last season.

Having already traded away their two best players, Bojan Bogdanovic could be the next big domino to fall for the Utah Jazz this offseason.

Per John Gambadoro of ArizonaSports.com, the Phoenix Suns called the Jazz about the 33-year-old forward after Donovan Mitchell was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Thursday that Cleveland was sending Lauri Markkanen, Ochai Agbaji, guard Collin Sexton, three unprotected first-round draft picks and two pick swaps to Utah for Mitchell.

The Jazz have been stockpiling future draft picks between their trades involving Mitchell and Rudy Gobert. They can have up to 15 first-round picks between 2023 and 2029 as a result of those two deals.

According to Wojnarowski, veterans like Bogdanovic, Mike Conley and Jordan Clarkson are "coveted" trade chips Utah still has to play as it looks to add more future assets.

Bogdanovic will likely bring back the biggest haul from that trio if he is dealt. The eight-year veteran is playing on an expiring contract with a $19.3 million salary in 2022-23. He is one of the best shooters in the NBA, having made 40.3 percent of his three-point attempts over the past five seasons.

It's unclear what the Suns would have to give up for Bogdanovic. They are currently over the luxury tax, so any deal would require them to match salaries.

The Suns tried to make a big splash early in the offseason by pursuing Kevin Durant. Things didn't pan out, and Durant eventually rescinded his trade request and will remain with the Brooklyn Nets to start this season.

Adding Durant would have been a major coup for the organization, but the Suns don't seem like they need to make a massive swing like that in order to compete for a title. Their 64-18 record during the regular season was the best mark in the league by eight games.

Things fell apart for Phoenix in the playoffs with a second-round loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Adding an elite shooter to a core that already includes Chris Paul, Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton would make this team very dangerous in the Western Conference.

The Phoenix Suns appear to be trailing in the race for Kevin Durant.

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Monday that the Suns' offer of Mikal Bridges and a "handful" of future draft picks has "not picked up any steam" with around a month remaining before training camps open.

The Suns appear to be a distant contender for Durant, as the Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat remain engaged in talks with the Brooklyn Nets.

In the days following Durant's June trade request, Phoenix appeared to be the favorite to land the 12-time All-Star. Armed with Bridges, Deandre Ayton, Cameron Johnson and several future first-round picks, the Suns seemingly had a palatable offer as well.

That all changed when Ayton signed an offer sheet with the Indiana Pacers on July 14. While the Suns matched the four-year, $133 million offer to retain Ayton, that move took him out of any potential Durant trade offers. Ayton cannot be traded for a full year without his permission, and can't be traded until Jan. 15 at the earliest.

With no other realistic offers on the table—the Suns aren't trading Chris Paul or Devin Booker—Phoenix seemed to bow out of the race for the time being.

Charania's report only confirms what we all essentially knew as soon as Ayton signed that offer sheet from Indiana.

The Phoenix Suns rolled into the NBA playoffs with a league-best 64-18 record last season despite their big three of Chris Paul, Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton missing a combined 55 games.

After making the NBA Finals the year before, it appeared the Suns were ready to conquer the West once again en route to another crack at the Larry O'Brien Trophy.

However, the Suns could not get it done in the playoffs. They struggled to dispatch the No. 8 seed New Orleans Pelicans in six games before falling to Luka Doncic and the No. 5 seed Dallas Mavericks in the second round. That series ended in tough fashion with the Mavs beating the Suns 123-90 in Game 7.

Despite an ugly finish to the season, the Suns still set a franchise record for wins and, for much of the season, looked like the best team in the league. They return Paul, Booker and Ayton alongside reigning Coach of the Year Monty Williams.

That's in addition to important wing talents Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson returning to the squad alongside guard Cameron Payne.

The expectations remain high in Phoenix, which is still searching for its first NBA title. Here's a look at the Suns' 2022-23 schedule alongside some matchups and season predictions.

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2022-23 Suns Schedule Details

Season Opener: Oct. 19 vs. Dallas Mavericks

Championship Odds: 10-1 (FanDuel)

Full Schedule: NBA.com

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Top Matchups

Dallas Mavericks (First Game: Oct. 19)

Naturally, the season-opening rematch featuring the Suns and Mavs will be must-see television.

Mavs point guard Luka Doncic torched the Suns to the tune of 32.6 points, 9.9 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game in the playoffs. He also scored as many points in the first half of Game 7 (27) as the Suns did as a team.

The Suns will want revenge on Doncic and Dallas, but it won't be easy. An old friend in uber-productive center JaVale McGee is now on the Mavericks, and Dallas also traded for nightly double-double threat Christian Wood. That gives the Mavs a much-improved frontcourt, although the backcourt took a hit with Jalen Brunson leaving in free agency for the New York Knicks.

Still, the Suns-Mavs game should ultimately feature two of the NBA's best teams. Now that pairing has a little history as well, it will make for one of the most anticipated regular-season games of the year.

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Golden State Warriors (First Game: Oct. 25)

Every NBA team is going to circle games against the Golden State Warriors on their calendars after the Dubs won their fourth NBA title, but it's a bit different for a Suns team that will directly compete with them for conference supremacy.

The Suns and Warriors split a quartet of regular-season games last year. The most notable game occurred on Dec. 3, 2021, when Golden State broke the Suns' 18-game winning streak with a 118-96 victory.

By all measures, it would appear that the Warriors should be as good as last year (if not better) assuming that they aren't snakebit by injuries to key players.

The trio of four-time champions (Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green) is back alongside a younger group of talented players who should take the torch from them someday (Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, Jonathan Kuminga, etc.).

The Warriors did lose some bench players, such as Damion Lee and Juan Toscano-Anderson, but the Dubs still return their top five scorers.

With Phoenix retaining much of its talent, that should make for an excellent regular-season series, which could well preview the Western Conference Finals.

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Season Forecast

The Suns should be at or near the top of the Western Conference once again. They returned their top five scorers, including their All-Star backcourt of Paul and Booker. The Suns have a young, emerging star in Ayton down low and another one in Bridges on the wing. Williams is one of the game's best head coaches and a true asset on the sidelines.

The problem is that the Suns have a tremendous amount of competition in the West. It's not a top-heavy league anymore when the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors would wipe the floor with their opponents before meeting in the NBA Finals. Parity is alive and well in the NBA right now, and while the Suns should be right in the thick of the race, they will need a little luck to survive the gauntlet.

In the West, the defending champion Warriors should be as good if not better. Doncic could be the unquestioned best player in basketball by the time next season is over. The New Orleans Pelicans return Zion Williamson, and the Los Angeles Clippers will welcome back Kawhi Leonard. Plus, there's the deep and talented Memphis Grizzlies alongside a team on the rise in the Minnesota Timberwolves, who added Rudy Gobert to solve some defensive woes.

All in all, it's going to be a massive fight to the finish. Look for the Suns to finish top four for the third straight year, but the guess here is that the Warriors and Mavs edge the Suns out in the regular season. However, a No. 3 seed won it all last time, so perhaps the Suns can do the same in 2023.

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Record Prediction: 56-26 (No. 3 in West)

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After their entertaining seven-game series in the Western Conference Semifinals, the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns won't have to wait long to reignite their rivalry.

Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic reported Monday that the two teams will open their 2022-23 season with a matchup on Oct. 19.

The Mavericks surprisingly emerged victorious from their playoff series to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2011. The Suns entered last year's playoffs as the No. 1 seed after finishing with a league-best record of 64-18. Phoenix needed six games to get past the New Orleans Pelicans in the first round, but the team looked to have returned to form when it opened its series against Dallas with back-to-back wins.

However, the Mavs upped their defensive intensity when they returned to their home floor to win the next two games. The Suns then cruised to a 30-point win in Game 5 to push the Mavericks to the brink of elimination, but things fell apart for Phoenix in the next two contests.

The Mavs took a 113-86 win at home in Game 6 before returning to Phoenix and shocking the masses with a 123-90 blowout victory in Game 7. Suns star shooting guard Devin Booker shot a combined 9-of-31 from the field over the final two games of the series. Conversely, Luka Doncic put the Mavs on his back with a combined 68 points in Games 6 and 7.

Phoenix will surely be seeking revenge after its disappointing playoff exit. The Suns maintained their entire core, with veteran point guard Chris Paul returning for another run and young center Deandre Ayton re-signing after testing restricted free agency.

Dallas notably lost second-leading scorer Jalen Brunson after he signed with the New York Knicks, but the team added size by trading for center Christian Wood and signing veteran big man JaVale McGee.

The Denver Nuggets and Phoenix Suns are expected to join the NBA's loaded slate of games on Christmas Day for the 2022-23 season, according to the Denver Post's Mike Singer and NBA insider Marc Stein.

This is the third game that has been pegged for Dec. 25. Per Stein, the Dallas Mavericks will host the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors will renew hostilities at Chase Center.

Christmas is one of the biggest days on the regular-season NBA calendar, an occasion when the league typically wants to showcase the brightest talents. Therefore, it was somewhat notable when the Nuggets and reigning MVP Nikola Jokic weren't afforded a spot on the card last December.

Nikola Jokic is the first reigning MVP to not get a Christmas Day game since the NBA went to 5 games on Christmas in 2008. pic.twitter.com/C05FQVkZax

— StatMuse (@statmuse) August 17, 2021

History won't repeat itself, and Denver's inclusion is a testament to how Jokic's profile has only grown following his second MVP win. The 6'11" center may not play in a marquee market, but it's impossible to ignore a player who averages 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds and 7.9 assists while shooting 58.3 percent from the field.

This matchup will also feature two teams that are credible threats to the Golden State Warriors for Western Conference supremacy.

In addition to Jokic, the Nuggets will have Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. back healthy. Denver added some depth by bringing Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope into the fold as well.

Losing to the Dallas Mavericks in the conference semifinals put a damper on Phoenix's season and exposed the fissure between the team and young center Deandre Ayton. Still, Ayton is back, as are the bulk of the Suns' key players. There's no reason to think the squad will suffer a precipitous decline.

The Nuggets and Suns will both look to establish their contender credentials when they take the court on Christmas in Denver.

Phoenix Suns forward Cam Johnson understands the calculus at play when he's included in hypothetical trade packages for Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant.

Johnson told the Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin, "You’ve got to expect a team to do what’s in their best interests and try to win a championship." He added that mindset should be shared by players as well:

"I was in Chapel Hill with Puff. I’m sitting in the locker room and the news breaks. It’s Puff’s teammates, my teammates. I’m like, nah man, don’t put me in this. And next thing you know, whoever it was, Windy (Brian Windhorst) or somebody on the TV was like naming the potential trade targets. Naming DA, me, Mikal. And I was like, come on man, but it’s the business. Like I said, it’s the business. If that’s something that gets done, then that was just part of God’s plan and you’ve got to keep on rolling."

Johnson averaged a career-high 12.5 points and shot 42.5 percent from beyond the arc in 2021-22. He's still on his rookie contract and due to be a restricted free agent in 2023.

For a franchise like the Nets that wants to contend while laying the groundwork for the future, the 26-year-old would be an attractive piece to add as part of any Durant trade. Bleacher Report's Greg Swartz proposed sending Johnson, Mikal Bridges, Jae Crowder and a bevy of draft picks and pick swaps to Brooklyn.

If the Suns ultimately do land Durant, then it's tough to envision an outcome in which they can retain Johnson too. Matching Deandre Ayton's four-year, $132.9 million offer sheet meant being unable to trade the young center until Jan. 15 at the earliest.

With Ayton off the table and Devin Booker presumably untouchable, Johnson and Bridges are Phoenix's two best player assets in a deal for Durant or another marquee star this offseason.

This may not be the last time Johnson finds himself in a state of limbo.

The 2019 first-round pick is a valuable member of the Suns' rotation but not irreplaceable. As a result, he figures to be linked to whatever perennial All-Star is on Phoenix's radar in a trade.

It's the same thing that has happened to Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown. Even after making his first All-Star team in 2020-21 and helping the Celtics reach the 2022 NBA Finals, Brown was still offered to Brooklyn in a blockbuster move for Durant, per The Athletic's Shams Charania.

Johnson seems to understand that as much as he's considered to be part of Phoenix's foundation now, the situation could change rather drastically in short order.

Deandre Ayton is happy to have a resolution to his contract situation after more than a year of uncertainty with the Phoenix Suns.

The center discussed his new four-year, $133 million deal with ESPN's Andscape:

"This is a blessing. This contract not only has generational impact for my family, but also with the way we are able to work in the Phoenix community and home in the Bahamas. That is the things that we go by...

"I've come to understand that this is a business. So, I was more anxious to know the end of the result so I could focus, move on and just get back to work. I just treated everything like a business. Just keep being professional, approach everything with professionalism and not looking too deep into it."

The Suns failed to sign Ayton to an extension last offseason, allowing him to become a restricted free agent. After signing an offer sheet with the Indiana Pacers, Phoenix matched the deal to keep the 2018 No. 1 overall pick on the roster.

Ayton had been discussed in sign-and-trade rumors throughout the offseason, but he now remains with the team that drafted him and a legitimate contender going into 2022-23.

"I'm happy," he added. "The process is over. I put all this behind me and focus on chasing a championship this upcoming season with my brothers."

The Suns had the best record in the NBA last year at 64-18, although they had a disappointing end in the playoffs with a second-round loss to the Dallas Mavericks. It came after falling two wins short of an NBA title in 2021.

There will still be high expectations with much of the roster now returning, including Chris Paul, Devin Booker and Mikal Bridges.

Ayton is coming off a productive year averaging 17.2 points and 10.2 rebounds per game while shooting a career-high 63.4 percent from the field. It's his fourth straight season averaging a double-double since entering the league.

Deandre Ayton will remain with the Phoenix Suns after they matched the four-year, $133 million offer sheet the restricted free agent signed with the Indiana Pacers, but the big man was reportedly looking forward to playing with the Eastern Conference team.

According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski (h/t colleague Marc J. Spears), "Ayton was enthusiastic about the possibility of pairing with talented young guard Tyrese Haliburton and becoming a centerpiece of the Pacers' rebuild."

That enthusiasm apparently went both ways, as Indiana sought a sign-and-trade to acquire Ayton and cleared $4.7 million in salary-cap space. Yet the Suns were not interested, and the Arizona product now has a yearlong no-trade clause.

While he will make less money than he would have if Phoenix had offered him the five-year, $179.6 million deal it could have July 1 and he had agreed, Ayton was still thrilled with the new contract as he approaches the fifth season of his career.

"This is a blessing," Ayton told Spears. "This contract not only has generational impact for my family but also with the way we are able to work in the Phoenix community and home in the Bahamas."

The Suns lost to the Dallas Mavericks 123-90 in Game 7 of their second-round series despite winning an NBA-best 64 games in the regular season.

Ayton played just 17 minutes and had what Spears described as "a verbal spat on the bench" with head coach Monty Williams.

"Game 7 was an anomaly," Ayton said. "We let that get away from us as a team. That is all in the past. We're going to look forward. We are going to move on."

Moving on means the core of Ayton, Chris Paul and Devin Booker will be tasked with competing against the Golden State Warriors and others in the daunting Western Conference.

The big man reportedly would have enjoyed playing with the Pacers in the Eastern Conference, but he is staying with the only NBA team he has known.