Dream Trade Targets for Suns

With the Phoenix Suns struggling, could the addition of any of these stars solve their problems?

Dec 16, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings guard De'Aaron Fox (5) drives to the basket against Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) during the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images / Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns are going through a very rough patch right now as they enter their Christmas-Day matchup tomorrow with a 14-14 record and losers of eight of their last 11 games.

The way the Suns' roster is constructed, they are very much in "win-now" mode, but that simply hasn't translated to consistency on the court in the team's second season with a core of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal.

Throughout the last few weeks, rumors of the Suns being interested in trading for Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler for a package centered around Beal have been flying.

Beal's no-trade clause, Phoenix's limited future draft capital and the Suns' restrictions of being over the second-tax apron really constrict what packages Phoenix can offer to bring in Butler or any other star. The Suns cannot include more than one player in a trade or take back more salary than they send out since they are over the second apron.

Phoenix has navigated the apron restrictions to some degree, including surprisingly landing Tyus Jones on a veteran-minimum deal this summer and signing Royce O'Neale and Grayson Allen to long-term extensions. It has cost owner Mat Ishbia, as the Suns currently have the most expensive roster in NBA history.

Under Ishbia, the Suns have also shown to be willing to pay the price in trades for stars like Durant and Beal.

With that said, here are three high-priced trade candidates, other than Butler, who would be dream targets for the Suns to land, would fit on the roster and could realistically be available by the Feb. 6 trade deadline. All most likely would have to involve Beal waiving his no-trade clause, which would be the most difficult part of all of these deals:

De'Aaron Fox

The Sacramento Kings currently find themselves with a worse record than the Phoenix Suns at 13-17, and there have been reports that their franchise star De'Aaron Fox could ask out if the Kings aren't in position to win.

The 27-year-old Fox declined the Kings' three-year, $165 million extension offer this October and has $34.8 million remaining on his current contract this year and $37.1 million next season.

The Suns don't have any players other than Beal, Durant and Booker making over this amount, so they would have to trade one of them.

Teams will be lining up for Fox if he does become available, and although he would fit in excellently on the Suns with his defense, pace of play and clutch ability, the Suns' offer of a one-for-one star swap with Beal plus their 2031 first-round pick will probably not be enough.

Jerami Grant

Grant is a more feasible target for teams to acquire without giving up as much as Fox. His five-year, $160 million contract does not meet the timeline of the Portland Trail Blazers' rebuild.

With that said, the Suns would like to get more than just Grant from Portland since they would have to trade one of their stars to take back less salary than they send out.

The 30-year-old Grant is having a bit of a down year so far this season, averaging 15.1 points on a lowly 37.7% shooting, but the 6-foot-7 forward could fit in nicely alongside Booker and Durant.

Grant alone would not be enough for the Suns in this deal and Portland would also not make much sense for Beal to waive his no-trade clause too. If the Suns could get some future draft capital and/or a center like Robert Williams III on top of Grant, it's definitely worth considering.

Zion Williamson

Williamson has simply not panned out to his full potential since being drafted No. 1 overall in 2019 due to his inability to stay on the court.

This is the same problem the entire Suns team faces now, as do Williamson's New Orleans Pelicans, who are at the botttom of the Western Conference with a 5-25 record.

Williamson has not played since Nov. 6 with a hamstring injury. The Pelicans are in a bit of a predicament if they should continue to try to build alongside Williamson or pay their other players like Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum, who could also be available by the deadline.

Like Fox, the 24-year-old Williamson could have suitors lining up for him, but does come with more question marks due to his track record with health than Fox.

The Suns would once again have to offer one of their stars and their 2031 first-round pick for Williamson, who is on the second season of a five-year, $197.2 million contract.

The 6-foot-6 forward would be an interesting fit currently for Phoenix, but also give the Suns a young superstar to build around for the future.

All in all, there aren't much star options, other than arguably Butler, who are realistic options and make sense for the Suns (and for Beal to waive his no-trade clause for) to bolster their win-now championship window.

There are some role players the Suns could look into trading for with their other trade pieces. You can read about some of these options by clicking here.