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The 2025-26 Phoenix Suns proved to be one of the most pleasant surprises of the NBA campaign, as they snuck into a playoff spot in the Western Conference after missing out the season prior.
Phoenix managed to win 45 games in the first season of the Jorsan Ott era despite the fact that numerous injuries forced the head coach to switch up the starting lineup on a consistent basis.
The Suns have made some major moves over the last week in rounding out the upcoming roster - including trading up to select Koa Peat with the 30th pick in Tuesday's draft - with the hopes that better injury fortune and a deeper roster overall will lend to an improvement in total victories.
Explore the projected starting lineup for the Suns in the season ahead below.
PG: Devin Booker
SG: Jalen Green
SF: Dillon Brooks
PF: Rasheer Fleming
C: Mark Williams
Booker is best served as a pure score-first two-guard, but the current structure of the roster points towards Phoenix's starting lineup once again being built around the 12-year vet at the one-guard spot. The six-time all-star has grown immensely as a playmaker over the last several seasons, but it has to be accounted for that his prowess as a playmaker improves when he gets into a groove as a bucket-getter.
Green should inherently be the starting two-guard heading into the season due to the contract he holds alone - the five-year vet had enough high level performances during his brief campaign to justify this as well. Collin Gillespie and Grayson Allen hold realistic arguments to start here, but Green has to hold precedence due to his overall upside and on-ball scoring ability.
Brooks is a shoe-in to start. The 10-year veteran has been a regular fixture as a starting player over his tenure in the NBA, and arguably had the best season of his career in 2025-26.
O'Neale has a real case to start at power forward after starting 67 games out of a possible 78 in the last season - although the stage appears to be set for Fleming to receive a major bump in responsibilities in year two of his career. The 2025 second round selection has already become an impressive interior defender while also showing immense upside offensively.
Williams is the clear-cut starting center when healthy, but Oso Ighodaro is more than capable of taking on spot starts, and there is a distinct possibility that 2025 lottery pick Khaman Maluach will be ready to start by season's end.
Join The SunsRoundtable
Head over to the SunsRoundtable page and hit the "Join" button under the featured story... it's completely FREE! You'll have the opportunity to engage with other Suns fans who live and breathe the team, share your thoughts on the organization, and more. If you're asked to sign up or download the Roundtable app... that's free too.
Kevin Hicks is a contributing writer to SunsRoundtable. He can be reached on X @khicks_21.
Continue reading...
Phoenix managed to win 45 games in the first season of the Jorsan Ott era despite the fact that numerous injuries forced the head coach to switch up the starting lineup on a consistent basis.
The Suns have made some major moves over the last week in rounding out the upcoming roster - including trading up to select Koa Peat with the 30th pick in Tuesday's draft - with the hopes that better injury fortune and a deeper roster overall will lend to an improvement in total victories.
Explore the projected starting lineup for the Suns in the season ahead below.
PG: Devin Booker
SG: Jalen Green
SF: Dillon Brooks
PF: Rasheer Fleming
C: Mark Williams
Booker is best served as a pure score-first two-guard, but the current structure of the roster points towards Phoenix's starting lineup once again being built around the 12-year vet at the one-guard spot. The six-time all-star has grown immensely as a playmaker over the last several seasons, but it has to be accounted for that his prowess as a playmaker improves when he gets into a groove as a bucket-getter.
Green should inherently be the starting two-guard heading into the season due to the contract he holds alone - the five-year vet had enough high level performances during his brief campaign to justify this as well. Collin Gillespie and Grayson Allen hold realistic arguments to start here, but Green has to hold precedence due to his overall upside and on-ball scoring ability.
Brooks is a shoe-in to start. The 10-year veteran has been a regular fixture as a starting player over his tenure in the NBA, and arguably had the best season of his career in 2025-26.
O'Neale has a real case to start at power forward after starting 67 games out of a possible 78 in the last season - although the stage appears to be set for Fleming to receive a major bump in responsibilities in year two of his career. The 2025 second round selection has already become an impressive interior defender while also showing immense upside offensively.
Williams is the clear-cut starting center when healthy, but Oso Ighodaro is more than capable of taking on spot starts, and there is a distinct possibility that 2025 lottery pick Khaman Maluach will be ready to start by season's end.
Join The SunsRoundtable
Head over to the SunsRoundtable page and hit the "Join" button under the featured story... it's completely FREE! You'll have the opportunity to engage with other Suns fans who live and breathe the team, share your thoughts on the organization, and more. If you're asked to sign up or download the Roundtable app... that's free too.
Kevin Hicks is a contributing writer to SunsRoundtable. He can be reached on X @khicks_21.
Continue reading...
