Three big questions the Suns must answer as they move on from the Big Three era

The key will be finding passing and playmaking on a roster without a true point guard. It may come down to whether Green can finally start sharing the ball and making his teammates better in his fifth season.

2. Can owner Mat Ishbia stop meddling?

Since Mat Ishbia took over as Suns owner in February 2023, the team has had four different head coaches: Monty Williams, Frank Vogel, Mike Budenholzer and their new coach, Jordan Ott. While none but Williams especially had success in Phoenix, it speaks to Ishbia's impatience and impulsiveness that he changed coaches so often, at the cost of tens of millions of dollars.

The blockbuster, win-now trades for Durant and Beal happened under Ishbia, where the team sacrificed four first-round picks, five first-round pick swaps and six second-rounders for the veteran stars. The team sent the Charlotte Hornets one first-rounder to dump Nurkic and another to acquire Williams. Meanwhile, Ishbia has been sued by former employees and minority owners six times since November 2024.

Ishbia said this summer he was going to "take accountability" and "do it the right way" in the long term, but it remains to be seen if Ishbia has the patience to wait and develop a winner.

3. Can new additions improve the defense?

The Suns had the third-worst defensive rating in the NBA last season and much of it came from a lack of dynamic players. The team was third-worst in blocked shots and forced the second-fewest turnovers in the league. The defense may have been even worse than it looked, since opposing teams shot unusually poorly from three-point range against Phoenix.

There's reason to believe that they can stop teams better this season, especially if Williams, who has missed 57 percent of the games in his career, stays healthy. Brooks is a solid perimeter defender who can take the other team's best scorer. Ryan Dunn showed defensive potential as a rookie. Plus, while Green hasn't stood out as a defender, he can't be worse than Beal.

If Phoenix can simply be an average defense this season, it would go a long way to having a respectable season and restore hope to the franchise after the disappointment of the Big Three era.