Khaman Maluach drops major declaration on managing pressure

Coming into the 2026-27 season, one of the biggest reasons for the Phoenix Suns to be optimistic is the continued development of big man Khaman Maluach. A lottery pick, Maluach had a decent rookie season and impressive NBA Summer League ahead of his second season in the league.

But each passing year comes with increased expectations, especially with being a lottery pick. As the Suns prepare for the upcoming NBA season, Khaman Maluach is doing his best not to pay attention to any of the outside noise, as per Suns reporter Shane Young.

“There’s no pressure really,” Maluach said. “Outside noise doesn’t affect me. I just have to focus on staying with the process of really being where my feet are. Don’t overthink everything, and don’t think too [far] in the future.”

The No. 10 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Maluach was coming off a strong freshman season at Duke before declaring for the draft. As a rookie, he appeared in 46 games for the Suns, including one start, at a little over eight minutes per game.

He averaged 3.0 points and 2.9 rebounds while shooting 53.3 percent from the field and 71 percent from the free-throw line.

But during his time at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, he showed why the Suns are high on his potential. Through four games, he averaged 19.5 points, 12.8 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.2 steals and 2.0 blocked shots with splits of 53.2 percent shooting from the field, 40 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 68.4 percent shooting from the free-throw line.

During his rookie season, Maluach also got development reps with the team’s G League affiliate, the Valley Suns.