Rival supporters find it difficult to sympathize with the Phoenix Suns. In addition to Devin Booker, the franchise’s mainstay who is currently enjoying himself well following a victorious Olympic Games in Paris, The Valley is also home to Kevin Durant.

The Suns are in a position to be envied when you add Bradley Beal, Mike Budenholzer as their new head coach, and a revamped bench. Better than many other teams in the league, maybe not as good as owner Mat Ishbia has brazenly declared in the past.

But Stephon Marbury has different ideas, and he wants to add another All-Star to the celebration so that the affluent get even richer.
Marbury, whose fame seems to be growing with time, recently discussed a variety of subjects with Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson on Scoop B Radio. Eventually, the issue of the Suns came up. Marbury stated that Tyrese Haliburton, a scoring point guard, is the key to helping them overcome their current situation.

They require a point guard who can score. They are looking for a guy that can both really go too and get them moving. similar to the young Indiana Pacers player? Tired. This year, he didn’t participate in the Olympics very much. And if he gains strength? He will be released, oh my god!”

Marbury may not even be aware that he is trolling, but the Suns did had the opportunity to select Haliburton in the 2020 NBA Draft. “I enjoy him alongside Phoenix. He is unusual because he runs the ball up the court and is skilled with it, therefore I believe he would be different if he played for Phoenix.”

Rather, they chose Jalen Smith, and the rest is history as they say. The Suns were in the NBA Finals less than a year later, and Haliburton’s acquisition for that run might have been the difference between winning the championship and coming in second. Not that Haliburton is really bothered about this; after all, he recently won an Olympic gold medal, he has his own team, the Indiana Pacers.

When you ain’t do nun on the group project and still get an A🏅 pic.twitter.com/xpshYZhMyA

— Tyrese Haliburton (@TyHaliburton22) August 10, 2024

It seems likely that Marbury is also unaware of how the NBA’s wage cap operates, given that the Suns are unable to acquire Haliburton by simple means. They currently have three players who are max players—Booker, Durant, and Bradley Beal—on their team. Trading Durant for Haliburton is about the only practical option to make this happen, and even that is unlikely.

By the time the next season begins, Durant will be 36 years old, whereas Haliburton is only 24 and has already made it to the All-Star team. He is also an absurdly skilled playmaker and has the ability that is most desired in the NBA today: exceptional 3-point shooting. Even if it meant losing Durant, it would be fantastic if he could travel to Phoenix, but that will never happen.

One ugly statistic that the Suns subtly removed during the offseason.

The Phoenix Suns had a difficult season in many aspects, not just due of their roster’s concentration of stars. The squad’s bench was a sad fact, despite the best efforts of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and even Grayson Allen to keep the team afloat.

The fact that Bradley Beal was forced to miss 53 games during the regular season due to injury made matters worse, forcing Allen to start 75 games out of 75 appearances. Once more, he shocked everyone with a career year, but the bench unit suffered significantly as a result of the starters’ need for his spacing and 3-point shooting.

During the offseason, Phoenix’s front management focused on this issue and implemented the required adjustments to enhance a crucial statistic.

The Suns’ embarrassing bench point total of 26.6 from their previous game should not come as a surprise. The fact that the Los Angeles Lakers and even the eventual champion Boston Celtics also finished in the bottom five should help to somewhat ameliorate this appalling statistic. Even though that figure dropped to 21.1 per game during the playoffs, the squad was still ranked seventh out of 16 that advanced.

For the playoffs, bench scoring isn’t really a problem because Booker, Durant, and Beal will need to collectively score close to 85 points a game. If the Suns are to have a serious chance of winning a title, this must take place. When Allen and O’Neale score 20 points apiece, head coach Mike Budenholzer’s offense takes off.

Going back to the regular season, though, will mean that the team will require bench support to get them through while their starters recover and save some for the postseason. Therefore, it will be quite beneficial to go out and acquire Mason Plumlee, Tyus Jones, and Monte Morris. Their front office has won a major game during the offseason.

Starting with Jones and his 12 points for the Washington Wizards in the previous campaign is good, but what really makes his game is the eight assists he was able to throw out every night. Increased scoring for the three stars, along with Allen and O’Neale, is certain due to his ability to handle the ball and set up his teammates.

11.26.23: Book silenced the Garden 🤫#BESTofNBA pic.twitter.com/s5SbPiyXQq

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) September 9, 2024

Jones will throw the ball where others can easily take it and score because the Suns did not have a traditional floor general on their team the previous season. Morris has one of the best assist to turnover ratios in league history, thus the same holds true for him as well, albeit to a lesser extent. He has scored 10 points a game on average thus far in his career, so even a small contribution of six points and three assists would help.

Then there is Plumlee, who has a career average of 8.4 points per game and is obviously an improvement over Drew Eubanks. Easy layups are guaranteed because of the space he will have, even though that number won’t rise in The Valley. He will have enjoyable two-man games with everyone from Jones to Durant because he knows Morris as well.

Plumlee has no reason why he can’t score a little bit more than half that in roughly 18 minutes per night if starter center Jusuf Nurkic can score 10.9 points per night in Phoenix. The Suns’ point total during the regular season (116.2) placed them tenth overall, however in 2024–2025, their point distribution will change. It implies more output from a bench that is clearly superior.