Phoenix — With the addition of these players, the Phoenix Suns’ roster of two-way positions and regular contracts is complete.
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“Free agent G TyTy Washington Jr., has agreed on a two-way contract with the Phoenix Suns, Kevin Bradbury of @LiftSportsMNGMT tells ESPN,” Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports. Washington, a Kentucky native and first-round selection in 2022, has appeared in 42 NBA games for the Bucks and Rockets.
Free agent G TyTy Washington Jr., has agreed on a two-way contract with the Phoenix Suns, Kevin Bradbury of @LiftSportsMNGMT tells ESPN. Washington — a 2022 first-round pick out of Kentucky — has played 42 NBA games with the Rockets and Bucks. pic.twitter.com/57XX4gvxct
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 2, 2024
After averaging 12.5 points per game in his one season at Kentucky, Washington—a native of Phoenix who attended Cesar Chavez and AZ Compass Prep for high school basketball—was selected with the 29th overall choice in the 2022 NBA Draft. Washington signed a two-way contract with the Bucks last summer after playing his debut NBA season with the Houston Rockets, where he averaged 4.7 points on 36.3% shooting and 23.8% 3-point shooting in 31 games along with 1.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists.
This occurred following his inclusion as a salary-matching component in the transaction that sent Washington to the Atlanta Hawks and Dillon Brooks to Houston. After that, he was traded for Patty Mills in a salary-dump deal to the Oklahoma City Thunder. After being dismissed by OKC, he joined Milwaukee, where in 11 games, he averaged 1.3 points on 30% shooting while playing 5.1 minutes per game.
The 6-foot-3, 22-year-old Washington was a member of Milwaukee’s G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd, for 24 games last season. On 46.7% of his field goals and 42.6% of his three-pointers, he averaged a team-high 21.3 points, along with 4.2 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 8.3 assists, and 4.2 rebounds. Former Wisconsin Herd head coach Chaisson Allen, who joined the team in 2021, was brought on by the Suns to support head coach Mike Budenholzer as an assistant.
Washington averaged 26.6 points in eight games with Houston’s G League franchise in 2022, shooting 40% from the field and 25.7% from three, grabbing 7.8 rebounds, 6.9 assists, and 1.6 steals.
Earlier in the season, the Suns also added former Denver Nuggets point guard Collin Gillespie and undrafted Baylor wing Jalen Bridges to two-way contracts.
In addition to the 15 available roster places, teams may add three players on two-way contracts. Two-way players are not allowed to play in postseason games and are limited to 50 NBA games of action per season.
Depending on how many games he plays in both the NBA and G League, Washington might be one of the best players for the Suns’ new G League affiliate, the Valley Suns.
The Suns’ anticipated depth chart with Washington looks like this.
After observing him wear his jersey in Paris, Devin Booker gives a fan his shoes.
In the streets of Paris, Devin Booker gave a fan a pair of shoes quite kindly. wandering around the city, Booker noticed a fan wandering around in his Suns jersey while he was live on Instagram. Subsequently, Booker invited the fan to accompany him and inquired about his shoe size. He took a photo with the fan after revealing a trunk full of his Nike trademark sneaker, the Book1 Pythons.
Devin Booker gifted a pair of his Python Book 1's to a fan who was wearing his jersey 🙌
(via dbook / IG)pic.twitter.com/aVjFQOmW8j
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 1, 2024
Booker was being so kind, and he really didn’t have to give this admirer such a priceless present. However, he made the extra effort to be kind and encouraging to someone who was treating him in the same way. Maybe this fan will wear these sneakers to tomorrow’s Team USA match versus Puerto Rico, where Booker is anticipated to participate.
Since the beginning of the Olympics, Devin Booker has been a dependable starter for Team USA. He played well in their first game against Serbia, putting up 12 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. He played a major role in their convincing victory over Serbia, who were regarded as one of the tournament’s harder teams.
Booker then performed admirably against South Sudan, finishing with 10 points, 1 rebound, 6 assists, and 1 steal. Although head coach Steve Kerr has been switching around the starting lineups, Booker is anticipated to start against Puerto Rico tomorrow. However, this is not a given.
Anthony Edwards has not typically been included in the Olympic starting lineups by Booker. Edwards has come off the bench anytime Booker leaves the game, despite claiming to be Team USA’s best option. The roster of Team USA is an embarrassment of riches because they have access to several of the greatest players in the world.
Is Steve Kerr Going to Rotate the Squad Again?
Steve Kerr, the head coach, has demonstrated that he is not scared to switch things up and start different starting lineups when he thinks it is suitable. He notably decided to leave Jayson Tatum out of the match against Serbia, a move he later admitted made him feel foolish but one he still stuck by.
Joel Embiid was taken out of the South Sudan game as soon as Tatum was brought back into the starting lineup. After the game, Kerr said that Embiid was only left out because he preferred a quicker team that would be easier to interchange up in order to counter the larger players from South Sudan.
It would not be shocking if Kerr started with a larger roster to attempt and put pressure on Puerto Rico at the rim, given that their team is marginally smaller than many countries competing in the Olympics. Kerr might choose to start Joel Embiid, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, Stephen Curry, and LeBron James.
Until now, Team USA has prospered in spite of Kerr’s ongoing adjustments. Furthermore, it is unlikely that they will experience rotational issues very soon considering their current lineup. But as the tournament progresses, they might find it more difficult because they don’t have a reliable starting lineup.
