7:15pm: The trade is official, according to the Suns and Jazz (Twitter links).
6:26pm: The Suns have been seeking more draft capital and they are making a trade to that end. They are sending their 2031 unprotected first rounder — the last tradable first-rounder in their possession — to the Jazz in exchange for three first-round picks, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports.
The Suns are acquiring the following three picks:
- The Cavaliers’ or Timberwolves’ 2025 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
- The Jazz’s, Cavaliers’, or Timberwolves’ 2027 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
- The Jazz’s, Cavaliers’, or Timberwolves’ 2029 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
Phoenix now control first-rounders in each of the next six drafts and will have more flexibility to make trades with the additional picks. The Suns are operating over the second tax apron and have limited options on the trade market this season. They’re not able to aggregate contracts or take back more salary than they send out.
Phoenix’s only other tradable draft asset is the 2025 second-round pick it acquired from Charlotte (while sending out three second-rounders) during the recent trade for center Nick Richards. That will almost certainly be Denver’s second-rounder.
This move could help facilitate a potential Jimmy Butler trade for the Suns. According to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel (Twitter link), the Heat are seeking multiple picks plus two players for Butler, and any deal would likely include at least four teams. Bradley Beal would almost certainly have to be part of Phoenix’s outgoing trade package, and he’d also need to approve any deal since he has a no-trade clause.
Butler is back in action after serving a team-imposed seven-game suspension but is still looking to be dealt, with the Suns reportedly his preferred destination.
The incentive for the Jazz to make this deal is the lack of protections on the 2031 first-rounder. The 2025 pick they’re giving up will most likely be one of the last two picks in the first round, given the Cavaliers’ record, while the 2027 and 2029 first-rounder will be the least favorable of three selections. The Suns’ ’31 pick has significantly more upside, especially considering that Phoenix’s current roster isn’t necessarily built for sustainable long-term success.
Lol Danny Ainge is the GOAT when it comes to trading for picks. On the plus side when this suns roster has run its course, Phoenix can recoup picks via trading book, KD.
I can just see Ainge’s holier-than-though smug face, when talking trades with other GM’s . Lol
Aristotle….hasn’t had a top 5 pick yet, that’s about to change. That suns 31 pick, wait and see what that turns out. George at pick 14 or something like that wasn’t bad. How about Kessler Walker, what pick was he? Pulled Phillies pants down trading out of the no.1 spot for Tatum did he not? Who’s Jaylen Brown they said @ 3. What pick was Rob Williams? Forget what he is now, what was he at Boston and what did Rob turn into for Boston. Wait and see what the GOAT does with some top 5 picks. The picks Ainge just traded will be meaningless….he’s the GOAT, lol. Perhaps wait a while and see how long it takes GS to be competitive again life after Steph…doesn’t happen overnight.
nrg, sorry, the Jazz current young core is the worst of all the rebuilding teams by far. Keyonte George is the worst defender on the worst defense in basketball. Kessler is their best young player (he came in the Gobert trade), but he’ll never be a star.
Take some time to learn and you’ll see. The Jazz have been forced to play veteran retreads for the last 3 years only because their young players have been so disappointing. The cupboard is bare.
Again…what picks were these guys? Any of them lottery picks? Because every draft has a Jokic in the 2nd round. Have a good evening Aristotle. Not everyone can draft a Wiseman at pick 2.
Nrg82 , why not try Google to answer your questions?
Danny Ainge may be the GOAT when it comes to acquiring future firsts, but this trade puts a couple more nails in the coffin of his failing rebuild in Utah.
Ainge has just exchanged 3 nearer-term FRP’s from a Jazz team that desperately needs young talent for a single FRP in 2031.
Utah is in season 3 of a rebuild that Ainge started by trading away Mitchell & Gobert for these same draft picks he’s just now traded for a 2031 FRP. To date, Ainge has drafted poorly, and the cupboard is bare.
Great trade!
Assumptions
2025 Cavs pick – 27th pick
2027 Cavs pick — 22th pick
2029 Wolves pick — 17th pick
My Trade Grade
Jazz A
Suns A
What about phx 2031 pick? My guess #2
> What about phx 2031 pick? My guess #2
Predicting a 2031 pick by any team is difficult.
First, the NBA has a lottery.
Second, there are always a bunch of tanking teams.
Third, the Suns may not, even, be bad. It’s difficult to be great without high draft picks, but free agency makes it possible to be mediocre.
These 3 picks the Suns got arent that good. What are the odds that the Wolves, Cavs AND Jazz will all suck on the same year? I know they are getting these picks to package them, but I dont see much value in them.
Very true, but it also allows the suns to trade their own first round picks. I looked at this as a deal that now allows for that because they have first round picks in each of the next 6 drafts. This move basically filled in the blanks created by that rule saying they need to be in the 1st round every other year. The Suns can now use their own picks, which will arguably be more valuable
If they’re stupid, that’s exactly what they’ll do: double down on mediocrity and handicap the future tenfold.
Their own 2026, 2028 and 2030 are also trash, as they are subject to complicated swaps. They are basically the least favorable pick among three or four teams.
Why do teams keep helping the Suns by giving them more picks? First the meaningless double pick swaps from Orlando and Memphis last year, now this???
Because they are helping themselves? Teams are betting that by the time those picks are due, the Suns will be a lottery team. Plus you get all those extra picks!
I mean the headline had me questioning Ainge’s sanity until I realised that they are basically 2nd round picks…
If this gets the Suns Jimmy Butler I will be shocked…
If Riley can get a “first” and some decent role guys for Jimmy, he can play it off as a win and keep his ego about.
Suns would ask Heat to wait otherwise they get murder
@ Scarlett….If talking to Ainge on the topic of picks, just hang up the phone.
Beal + 3 questionable firsts to who as part of a Butler deal?
PHX’s personnel moves haven’t done much for them on the court, but they apparently have had at least one positive effect; increasing the value of their future FRPs. Might as well realize on it.
This was obviously done to grease the wheels on a Jimmy trade ……. multi-team trade likely.
Jimmy trade inbound
Amazing trade by suns to get picks to build. I’m not sure what Utah is doing lol by 2031 the picks you just gave Phoenix will be in their prime lol I guess they hope Phoenix misses on draft picks. ♂️
Tbf, Utah’s also got lots of picks with limited rosters space. You can’t make room for all those first rounders. Even with the trade, they still have 1 2025 FRP, 3 2027 FRPs, and 2 2029 FRPs. They are just betting that the Suns will suck by 2031. And honestly, even if his drafting is suspect, Ainge is really good at getting good value with trades involving picks.
coloredpaper , you sure as heck can make room for first rounders when you have no quality young players and you’re carrying a bunch of overpriced veteran contracts.
There aren’t more than 4 players on theJazz team under 25 years old with a future in the NBA. You need at least 8 for a successful rebuild. Ask OKC or Houston or San Antonio.
Those picks are going to be for MULTIPLE trades, rather than a big one.
Why would Miami (or any other team) prefer three middling firsts in the 20s instead of the 2031 Suns pick? PHX doesn’t need flexibility for a Butler trade, they need a quality asset, which they just gave up.
I.E. throwing one of these into a Nurkic trade, while still being able to keep two firsts for future trades.
It’s really to enable to them to send out multiple 1sts (including the ones they own). They weren’t able to send out consecutive firsts so it’ll probably be on the tail before 2030.
Why do you think Jimmy is nearly as valuable as the Suns 2031 pick?
Pat Riley would kiss his sister to get even one 1st rounder in a Jimmy deal. They screwed the pooch. Jimmy can sit and collect 100 million dollars from them from now until July 2026. They have no leverage and continue to confirm to the rest of the NBA that fact.
The Heat are to blame for this entire situation. Pat Riley did not need to come out and openly criticize the player that has kept his franchise afloat for all of the 2020’s. Yet he did. And they wonder why a guy like Jimmy Butler didn’t like that.
Being mediocre in the East is such an embarrassment to an otherwise well run organization. Pat is done. Find someone who can save the pettiness for the locker room.
“Phoenix now control first-rounders in each of the next six drafts”. If the 3 picks they just acquired seem to hold little value, their own (2026, 2028 and 2030) picks are actually no much better, as they are subject to complicated swaps. In 2026, for instance, the Suns will basically get the least favorable of the Suns, Magic, Wizards and Grizzlies picks. This should translate at most into a selection in the 20-25 range. In 2028, it’s the least favorable of the Suns, 76ers, Nets and Wizards. It’s doubtful that will be a lottery pick either. Not sure they can get any impact player with that.
Good point. Becomes hard to keep track of just how bad their situation is given all of their trade shenanigans
They’ll also likely need to use one of those picks to unload Beal. Between those swaps and that fact, I can’t see them having enough upgrade firepower to become a contender.
Jimmy and Stewart to Phoenix
Beal and a first to Detroit
Ingram, Fontecchio and a first to Miami
Nurkic, THJ and a first to NOLA
Suns
Jones Booker Buttler KD Richards
… Allen Dunn ONeale Stewart
Overall a much better team and got some decent depth.
Detroit
Cade Beal Thompson Harris Duren
Sasser Beasley Holland Reed
Pistons try up the ante by going for a big name and I actually like the fit. They also open up a couple roster spots from the move plus grab a first round pick.
Miami
Herro Robinson Ingram Jovic Bam
Rozier Jacquez Highsmith Ware
Ingram is as close as it gets to Butler but younger, less ego. You also get a first and Fontecchio.
Pelicans
Murray Murphy Herb Zion Missi
Jose CJ THJ Green Nurkic
Pels jump at the chance to get back an expring deal and draft picks for Ingram. Nurkic also isn’t a bad vet to take on to help young Missi at centre.
Suns B+
Pistons B+
Miami A
Pels B-
Turn your xbox off man
Beal and firsts for Jimmy…just do it!!
You’ll need to give up all 3 of those picks just for a chance to unload that Beal contract, much less bring in talent in return as well
Well, alright! Let’s get this Jimmy trade all done!
Give us our picks and whatever expiring contracts!
Good luck Jimmy in Phoenix! I’m sure enothing will go wrong there.
Good luck Bucks with Beal! I’m sure nothing can go wrong.
Even (especially) if this ends up in Jimmy going to Phoenix, this has the potential to be incredibly devastating for Phoenix and incredibly lucrative for Utah…don’t know what the Suns are thinking here, but by 2031 their roster is going to be incredibly depleted; trading those three picks for Jimmy won’t change that
Suns really gonna get Jimmy.
Very nice. This definitely helps with a Butler trade.
Man I want to see how they pull this off.
Even if they keep the picks. Suns can pull off a solid trade at draft. This is a deep draft.
There’s a couple ways to look at this. Number one, Danny Ainge is not quite the genius people make him out to be.
Phoenix Suns 2031 1st round draft pick? They’ll be crappy and on the way to being good again by then lol.
But the other side of the coin is, he has 36 first round picks in the next five years (or so it seems,) so he might as well package a few of them together to get an unprotected pic.
I think that’s a generally smart move. I guess there’s risk in everything, but what I dislike is that he’s hoarding pics instead of building the team.
He better come up with his Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum draft picks pretty soon or he’s just playing a numbers game and kicking the can down the road.
I admit I am not a diehard NBA fan. I don’t get the trade in that the Jazz gave up 3 1st for 1? I get it is a good trade for the Suns. How is this a good trade for the Jazz? What am I missing.