Phoenix Suns Have Painfully Obvious Trade to Make After NBA Draft

Phoenix agreed to a trade with the Charlotte Hornets on draft night that would confidently bolster their frontcourt. Mark Williams was on his way to the desert.

Most will remember Williams from the failed trade debacle with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers rescinded the trade after concerns with the physical of the former Hornets center.

The Suns clearly did not share these concerns as they sent the 29th overall pick and a future first-round pick in 2029 to the Hornets to acquire Williams. A formidable one-two punch at the center spot of Williams and Maluach is now in place for Phoenix.

Where does that leave Nick Richards? The athletic center arrived in Phoenix midway through last season and assumed the starting role.

Richards averaged 9.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks in his 22.7 minutes per game with the Suns. The five-year pro shot 60.5 percent in his 36 games played in a Phoenix jersey.

Richards is too good of a player to simply leave buried on the depth chart in Phoenix. Unless the Suns are ready to deploy some incredibly jumbo packages with their lineups up front, there may not be enough minutes for the two-way big man.

This should give Phoenix the opportunity to use Richards as a trade piece to upgrade other spots of the roster. Finding a way to upgrade the rest of the roster as a result would be something worth monitoring the Suns for this offseason.