What Players Phoenix Suns Will Protect in Expansion Draft

The Phoenix Suns are quite likely to enter a period of drastic change in the NBA landscape over the next two-plus years.

ESPN's Shams Charania relayed the belief that both Las Vegas and Seattle are gearing towards becoming expansion franchises by the 2028-29 season.

If there wasn't enough Phoenix's management already has to deal with, they also must navigate the potential reality of becoming at-risk of losing core players when a prospective expansion draft is held. 

In this exercise, we choose the eight players that Phoenix protects from being a potential selection come 2028.

Protected: G Devin Booker, G Jalen Green, G Collin Gillespie, F Dillon Brooks, F Rasheer Fleming, F Koa Peat, C Khaman Maluach, C Oso Ighodaro

The three easiest players to protect jump right off of the page. These players are Booker, Maluach, and Gillespie. While Booker is gearing up towards making $70 million-plus in the coming years, it would be a PR (and possible team structure) disaster to make him available to essentially be claimed. 

Maluach (at the time) is the Suns' most promising prospect. It would be malpractice to let the second-year former lottery pick go, although much can change over the next two years. 

Gillespie is a major piece of the new identity the franchise is adopting under head coach Jordan Ott, and is now pacing to be in the middle of his prime two years down the road. 

As for the other selections, this is assuming Green earns a new deal with the Suns, while Brooks is a crucial piece of the organization - now and moving forward. Opting to keep Peat, Fleming, and Ighodaro comes down to prioritizing youth, athleticism, and defense.

Unprotected: G Jordan Goodwin, G Jamaree Bouyea, G Luke Kennard, F Haywood Highsmith, F Ryan Dunn, F Miles Bridges, C Mark Williams

Perhaps the most shocking players slipping to the unprotected ranks are Bridges and Williams. 

Why would Phoenix allow an expansion franchise to pick up two players that were brought to the city for first round draft picks? In Bridges' case, this is under the premise that Fleming becomes the player he has the ability to be.

In Williams' case, it's more likely that Phoenix will be able to retain him in comparison to Ighodaro. It would be a tasking proposition to convince an expansion franchise to take on a player who is capped out at 60 games played in a single season. 

While this possible outcome is far down the road, it is vital to start discussing these possibilities now, as the future of the franchise not only hinges on the players on the Suns, but also on how the potential rivals of the future build up to start.