We are on to the highly populated third tier.
Our long, winding journey toward putting a bow on the 2024–25 Phoenix Suns season is finally nearing its end. There’s still some paperwork scattered across the desk, a few dusty emails begging for attention, and some administrative odds and ends we’re pretending not to see. But the finish line is coming into focus. Summer is stretching its arms in the distance.
Part of tying it all up is SunsRank, our annual ritual of reflection and reckoning. With Tiers 1 and 2 now officially in the books, we stand at the doorstep of the most maddening, most soul-testing frontier of them all: Tier 3.
The misfits. The question marks. The players who make you laugh, cry, and scream into the void…sometimes all in the same quarter. Buckle up. The real fun is about to begin.
But first, based on the voting of the community, here are the top 5 best Suns thus far:
- Kevin Durant
- Devin Booker
- Bradley Beal
- Grayson Allen
- Ryan Dunn
I’ll admit, the voting in Tier 2 ended up being much tighter than I anticipated. Bradley Beal, in particular, seems to have ignited a fresh wave of frustration within the fan base, and not without reason. Between his uneven performances, spotty availability, and those smug comments about “holding all the cards” thanks to his no-trade clause, he’s worn out a lot of goodwill in a very short amount of time.
Yet, despite all that baggage, Beal still landed as the third-best player on the team. A reminder, maybe, that in the strange math of Suns basketball, even a frustrating constant is still a constant.
And now we set sail for the largest tier this roster has to offer, and truth be told, I’m genuinely looking forward to seeing how the voting shook out here. Tier 3 is what we consider the rotational guys. They might not always be in the rotation because their head coach doesn’t know how to coach, but they possess a skill set to earn a chance to be.
It’s worth noting that when you’ve got eight players landing in the third tier, it’s a pretty clear indication you’re living in Mid-ville, USA. And honestly, it tracks. This is a top-heavy roster. Maybe through the lens of these tiers, the organization can finally identify the missteps in its approach to roster construction. Because this? This isn’t how you build a winner. You don’t stumble into contention with two stars, a handful of “maybe they’re okay” guys, and a roster spot held hostage by a CEO’s dad’s highest-paid client.
Let’s take a look at the brave souls who fell into Tier 3.
Bol Bol
Stats (Team Ranks): 6.8 points (10th), 2.9 rebounds (12th), 0.6 assists (15th), 0.6 turnovers (14th), 0.3 steals (15th), 0.7 blocks (3rd) 52.5 FG% (5th), 34.4 3PT% (9th), 61.2 eFG% (12th), -37 +/-
- Pros: Long, something different to look at for opposing defenses which can be intimidating, plays with confidence, gets the most chants of his name from the home crowd
- Cons: Poor perimeter defender, challenges with lateral quickness, never seems to gain the confidence of his head coach for more than a month
Collin Gillespie
Stats (Team Ranks): 5.9 points (12th), 2.4 rebounds (15th), 2.4 assists (5th), 0.5 turnovers (15th), 0.6 steals (10th), 43.0 FG% (12th), 43.3 3PT% (1st), 55.4 eFG% (11th), -29 +/-
- Pros: Spark of energy on both ends of the floor, surprising three-point shooter, gives off a Nash vibe
- Cons: Isn’t the biggest guy, isn’t the fastest guy, isn’t the most athletic guy
Mason Plumlee
Stats (Team Ranks): 4.5 points (14th), 6.1 rebounds (3rd), 1.8 assists (9th), 0.8 turnovers (9th), 0.6 blocks (5th), 61.9 FG% (1st), 61.9 eFG% (1st), +54 +/-
- Pros: Quality backup to the backup center, Duke education, 96%tile in defensive rebounding
- Cons: Played more than I would have liked to see, proves white men can’t jump, Budenholzer’s golfing buddy (I assume), shoots free throws with his off-hand
Monte Morris
Stats (Team Ranks): 5.2 points (13th), 1.5 rebounds (16th), 1.6 assists (10th), 0.5 turnovers (18th), 0.4 steals (14th), 42.6 FG% (14th), 36.0 3PT% (8th), 50.5 eFG% (15th), +47 +/-
- Pros: Assist-to-turnover ratio, doesn’t foul much
- Cons: Poor perimeter defense, must’ve rubbed Bud the wrong way because he buried him on the bench, shouldn’t wear #23
Nick Richards
Stats (Team Ranks): 9.5. points (6th), 8.6 rebounds (2nd), 0.6 assists (16th), 1.3 turnovers (5th), 0.8 blocks (2nd), 60.5 FG% (2nd), 60.5 eFG% (3rd), -160 +/-
- Pros: Athletic, rim runner, plus rim protector, looks like an NBA center, great contract
- Cons: Inconsistent production, gets lost defending the pick-and-roll, jersey #2 doesn’t look right on him, sub-par passer
Oso Ighodaro
Stats (Team Ranks): 4.2 points (15th), 3.6 rebounds (7th), 3.7 assists (4th), 1.2 turnovers (11th), 0.5 blocks (8th), 60.4 FG% (3rd), 60.4 eFG% (4th), -21 +/-
- Pros: Young, surprising ability to throw it down and the alley oop, high basketball IQ, great passer as a big man
- Cons: Jumper looks like he’s never tried one, hard last name to type out in articles all season long, not quite big enough to be a center and not skilled enough as a scorer to thrive as a power forward
Royce O’Neale
Stats (Team Ranks): 9.1 points (7th), 4.7 rebounds (5th), 2.2 assists (6th), 0.9 turnovers (8th), 0.9 steals (5th), 42.3 FG% (15th), 40.6 3PT% (5th), 58.0 eFG% (7th), -155 +/-
- Pros: Quality three-point shooter, didn’t have as many valleys in his shooting as last season, sneaky good defender at times, every team needs a Royce-type player
- Cons: You forget he’s out there when he’s out there, 00 is such an annoying jersey number
Tyus Jones
Stats (Team Ranks): 10.2 points (5th), 2.4 rebounds (14th), 5.3 assists (2nd), 1.1 turnovers (7th), 0.9 steals (6th), 44.8 FG% (10th), 41.4 3PT% (4th), 57.0 eFG% (9th), -92 +/-
- Pros: Assist-to-turnover ratio, three-point shooting, handled going to the bench professionally
- Cons: Used as an SG instead of a PG by Budenholzer, a small guard who was a turnstile whenever opposing defenses wanted to attack
You get all of that? Good! Because now it’s time to submit your Tier 3 SunsRank ballots!
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