The Phoenix Suns have had a good start to the season despite Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal missing time. They are 9-7 and hold the seventh seed in the Western Conference.
Phoenix is on a five-game losing streak, but they will welcome back both Durant and Beal in their game Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Suns are 8-1 with Durant in the lineup this season compared to them being 1-6 without him, so his and Beal’s return should help the Suns.
With their big three healthy and their offseason additions playing well, the Suns look as though they will be a championship contender. Of course, this all relies on the health of their stars, especially Durant and Beal who have dealt with multiple injuries over the past few seasons.
Even with the Suns looking like a championship team, they could still make a move before the trade deadline to improve their roster. They could trade for Walker Kessler from the Utah Jazz to improve their frontcourt depth and inside defense.
In a possible trade, the Suns could send Mason Plumlee, Oso Ighodaro and picks to Utah for Kessler and Patty Mills. This works well for both teams as the Jazz, who are stuck in a rebuild, add another young talent in Ighodaro as well as Plumlee, who is on an expiring contract. Utah would also add more draft capital to help set them up for the future.
For Phoenix, adding a young center in Kessler would greatly improve their frontcourt depth. Jusuf Nurkić has played well as the Suns’ starting center, but the lack of depth behind him is worrisome. Plumlee has not had the best season and Bol Bol has played in only four games, so adding Kessler would give them a reliable backup center.
Kessler has had a solid start to the season as he is averaging 9.4 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game, all of which are better numbers than last season. He is also shooting 67.8% from the field, up from 65.4% last season.
This trade helps improve the Suns’ frontcourt depth and defense, which would help them improve their odds of winning a championship this season, especially if their big three stay healthy.
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