Phoenix Suns Linked to Major Move for Veteran Defensive Stalwart

A one-year absence in the NBA playoffs for the Phoenix Suns was remedied when the franchise reached the tournament as the eight-seed in the Western Conference in April. 

While the Suns showed encouraging progress over the last year, there's still a steep hill to climb in order to once again contend for a first-ever title - with lack of control over draft picks and bridging the gap between the two aprons being at the forefront of the predicament.

The major road that general manager Brian Gregory will cross this summer is just how committed he is to improving the roster in the short-term, as the franchise will soon complete a trade for Miles Bridges, but also have more moves on the docket in compliment of that deal that can raise the ceiling of the 2026-27 team in the snap of a finger. 

One avenue to immediate improvement is clear - Jalen Green and the remaining two years of his contract. While the Suns shouldn't give up on Green without rhyme or reason, there are deals that could be discussed and sold as win-now moves that are worth it to reinforce Devin Booker's faith in the franchise. 

Bright Side of the Sun constructed a trade that would play directly into improving the short-term fortunes of the Suns - a one-for-one swap involving Green and Jrue Holiday of the Portland Trail Blazers. 

The parameter of a deal would be simple between both sides, but there is much more nuance involved in a hypothetical deal that ultimately complicates the process. 

The Suns are improving tangibly in the short-term from their perspective, as Holiday is still an all-world defender that rebounded on the offensive side of the ball last season. However, Holiday is also 36 years of age and experienced a rough campaign in 2024-25. This would be a drastic leap of faith for the Suns to take - especially when considering that the organization remains steadfast in believing in Green's ceiling.

Portland already has a logjam at guard, as they will be rostering Ja Morant, Damian Lillard, Scoot Henderson, and Shaedon Sharpe in short order - adding Green in a swap doesn't make sense unless more moves are on the table for a team stuck in an uncertain spot.

All in all, this is an intriguing possibility to ponder, but it's overwhelmingly unlikely that a deal of this magnitude will come to fruition.

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