PHOENIX — Head coach Jordan Ott and the Phoenix Suns are aware.
Following the move of Kevin Durant and three more trades during the second day of the 2025 NBA Draft, Phoenix landed rookies Khaman Maluach (No. 10), Rasheer Fleming (No. 31) and Koby Brea (No. 41). The trio will play a major role in the future of the franchise over the next 3-5 years, hence the anticipation from the fanbase to watch them grow across that time.
Through 14 games, none have cracked the rotation.
Phoenix is instead relying on lower-upside but more reliable veterans at their positions, namely with Maluach in the center pecking order behind Nick Richards and Oso Ighodaro. Meanwhile, it’s Fleming on the wing trying to beat out Nigel Hayes-Davis and Isaiah Livers.
This is how the Suns will establish their principles and style of play. Those two rookies lean toward the “raw” side of things as prospects and are not in the “plug-and-play” category.
Eventually, Phoenix will have to play them.
A wretched bottom-half of the Western Conference and a surprising start to the year for Phoenix have opened the door for play-in ambitions, but the Suns’ next two years are all about player development once a foundation is set.
Ott’s pretty much there in setting the foundation, so when does he pull the trigger on bumping his young players’ minutes? While we wait to find out that answer, the Suns will be keeping their rookies fresh by giving them game action at the G League level.
They clearly still want the rookies to practice and travel with the team as much as possible, valuing what that does for development, too. But there will be homestands or even quick trips back home that will also match with when the Valley Suns are playing at home. That’s when Maluach and Fleming will join Brea — who appears to be traveling with the G League squad for now — to get some run in.
“They’re not in our rotation right now, they want to play,” Ott said Friday. “It’s great development. Instead of playing here versus coaches, go play against other NBA players. It’s important to get those reps, but it’s also beneficial to us that it’s right down the road.”
This is something of great value Phoenix did with Ighodaro and Collin Gillespie at times last year, a major benefit from when owner Mat Ishbia decided to 1) bring back a G League affiliate prior to last season and 2) came to an agreement with Arizona State’s Mullett Arena in Tempe. That arena is less than a half-hour drive away for the rookies as opposed to over half of the other G League affiliates, which are either more than an hour away from the NBA arena or in a different state entirely.
This past week, with the Valley Suns’ fixture on Friday being sandwiched by NBA home games on Thursday and Sunday, the Suns had Maluach and Fleming make their G League debuts without missing a Suns practice.
Fleming scored 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds in 30 minutes, while Maluach scored nine points and added three blocks before fouling out in 26 minutes.
They were right back with the NBA squad the very next morning.
“It was just good to be on the floor playing in an actual game,” Fleming told Arizona Sports on Sunday. “It was fun overall. Just glad to be out there for sure.”
That is a vast difference compared to what the Suns had to do just a few years ago. First-round pick Jalen Smith did a stint with the Agua Caliente Clippers in 2021, traveling to the COVID bubble in Florida and having to be given minutes by another organization’s affiliate. Ott remembers assistant coach Mike Muscala’s time having quick one-off appearances for the Atlanta Hawks that also required trips to different states.
Another change is the quality of basketball. Back in the days of the D-League, it was fair to question how much it would really help a younger player get better. But now that each team has an affiliate, that means there’s more synchronized play because the same systems are being used.
Ott alluded to how some more proper funding has come through for things like more robust coaching staffs and availability of training equipment.
“For the last 6-10 years, it’s been at a high level,” Ott said. “There’s a lot of good basketball players in the world, there’s a lot of good basketball players here in the NBA and in the G League. If you don’t know, go watch.”
A watch will show it’s still not as organized and structured as you’d like. While the Suns waiving two-way contract signee CJ Huntley and adding guard Jamaree Bouyea on Monday might have had something to do with the health of the NBA team as well, another plus of that swap was undeniably giving the rookies a more experienced guard, setting the table for them after three Valley Suns games lacked that presence.
Regardless, the reps will hold value for the kids. They just want to play.
“It’s good development for me overall,” Fleming said. “I don’t see anything wrong with it. At the end of the day, I’m just trying to play basketball.”