Strengths, Upsides and Concerns of Suns Drafting Koa Peat

The Phoenix Suns clearly had a target in mind in the 2026 NBA Draft and pounced on the opportunity to trade into the first round and select Arizona forward Koa Peat.

The Arizona native now gets to stay home and fulfill his dream of playing for the Suns after being selected 30th overall.

Here are the biggest strengths, upsides and concerns with the Suns' newest young talent:

Strengths

At only 19 years old, Peat has a heck of a resume that proves what a winner he is going into the NBA.

In high school, Peat won four consecutive state championships at Perry, became the only player to be named the Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year three times in boys basketball and was a McDonald's All-American his senior year.

He also won four gold medals with Team USA on junior national teams from 2022-25 (2025 FIBA U19 Men's World Cup, 2024 FIBA U17 World Cup, 2023 FIBA Americas U16 Championship, 2022 FIBA U17 World Cup).

Peat had an up-and-down lone season at Arizona, but when it mattered most, he showed up in the tournament, winning 2026 NCAA West Regional Most Outstanding Player and leading the Wildcats to their first Final Four appearance in 25 years, as Arizona finished with its best record in school history at 36-3.

As a player, the 6-foot-8, 245-pound Peat is at his best when he puts pressure on the rim offensively and takes pride in being able to switch onto any position defensively, two areas the Suns value and need more out of this upcoming season.

Upside

Everyone, including Peat, understands that it will take some development for him to get consistent playing time in the NBA.

His game needs to be a lot more refined and might take some time, but the Suns seemingly have a vision for him and value what he already can bring to the table, so he is in a great spot to continue to get better.

If Peat's jumper comes along and he plays a similar style to what he has shown in the past, he could develop into an Aaron Gordon or Paolo Banchero-type player depending on what his role is.

The Suns will hope he can be a building block for the future.

Concerns

The biggest concern with Peat is his jumper and how his bully-ball style of play will translate into the NBA.

Peat became a lot more well-rounded as the season went on at Arizona in several areas, which included his switchability defensively, playmaking on offense and overall ability to do whatever it took for the Wildcats to win games.

Going into the NBA, he will have to find just how his unique playstyle can make the best impact and adding a reliable jump shot will help with that.

Another concern for Peat going to the Suns is that Phoenix liked to play really small last season and did not have young forwards Rasheer Fleming and Ryan Dunn, who are two players Peat will be battling for minutes for at his position, in the rotation at the end of the year.

The Suns are going to have to be open to playing bigger beginning next season, and Peat will have to show that he can be a valuable option for them at either the small or power forward positions.