Bleacher Report names Suns as top three worst cap situations in NBA

Pincus on Suns’ cap struggles over the next five years:

“Credit to the Suns for acknowledging that the roster had dead-ended, but Beal’s contract, which stretches $19.4 million a season through 2029-30, will limit flexibility for a long time. Phoenix could have taken a step further in a rebuild by trading Booker, but since the team owes all of its first-round picks to other teams (either outright or via swap) through 2031, bottoming out wasn’t viewed as a viable option.”

The team will have $22 million in dead money with Beal and Nassir Little’s contract, which won’t bode well with guard Devin Booker’s massive two-year, $145 million extension. During this next five-year stretch, the Suns will have $7o to $90 million dedicated to Booker and dead money, which will account for essentially 50% of the team’s cap space.

For a franchise that doesn’t control its own draft picks during that span, it’s a recipe for disaster. Since Phoenix likely won’t trade Booker to recoup draft picks, it might be entering a purgatory period that will have very little for fans to look forward because of the team’s lack of flexibility to make moves/upgrades to the roster.