Phoenix Suns Urged To Trade Jalen Green for 11-Time All-Star

The Phoenix Suns seemingly find themselves at the forefront of major trade rumors at nearly every turn, at least since the introduction of Mat Ishbia as franchise governor in February 2023.

This entanglement has extended to the 2026 offseason - even in lieu of completing a trade for starting wing Miles Bridges - with the help of former Sun Markieff Morris.

Morris, who spent the first 4.5 seasons of his career with the Suns, suggested that the organization should trade for James Harden early Wednesday on X. The suggestion of a Jalen Green for Harden swap has created much conversation amongst the Suns fanbase, although the rationale is rather sound in this case. 

The 11-time All-Star would provide instant stabilization to the Phoenix offense as a steady scorer and one of the best playmakers of this generation. This would take stress off of franchise player Devin Booker while also reinvigorating Phoenix's overall efforts as a three-point-heavy offense. It would also take relatively little long-term commitment to make a move for Harden, as the Arizona State product is soon to be 37 and will likely retire within the next three seasons.

The most intriguing aspect of this would be exactly what is mentioned above, as Harden considers Phoenix one of his three homes (alongside Los Angeles and Houston), which would make the cultural transition much more seamless compared to others.

While the upsides are quite tact, there are drawbacks that make it harder for Phoenix to commit to. Green's upside is clearly something that the Suns' organization still buys into, which creates a timeline dilemma. While Harden fixes many concerns that are plaguing the Suns at the moment, he doesn't boost them into the contending tier while also not serving as a long-term solution. 

Green might not be the player that the consensus expected him to be when he entered the league in 2021, but the 24-year-old continues to flash a tantalizing ceiling that potentially invites the tendency for Phoenix to remain in a position of support.

At the end of the day, a trade of this magnitude is very unlikely to happen. The Suns had a potential opportunity to make a move for Harden during the summer of 2023 and instead opted to bring Bradley Beal to the Valley. That stance isn't likely to have changed - expect Phoenix to enter the 2026-27 season with roughly the same roster that the franchise holds at this moment.

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Kevin Hicks is a contributing writer to SunsRoundtable. He can be reached on X @khicks_21.