As various 2025 NBA rookies like Derik Queen, Cedric Coward and Danny Wolf start to showcase their skills in the pros, some Phoenix Suns fans are getting antsy that yet another draft pick could be a flop.
Khaman Maluach, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2025 draft, has not yet been able to carve his way into head coach Jordan Ott’s rotations this season.
That on its own shouldn’t be a huge surprise. The Suns traded multiple first-round picks to acquire center Mark Williams from the Charlotte Hornets in June. Nick Richards, another former Hornet, joins him on the depth chart along with NBA sophomore Oso Ighodaro.
Maluach’s lack of playing time early on is rooted in Phoenix having three more senior big men on the roster for Ott to provide minutes. As a result, Maluach instead has been getting run in the NBA G League with the Valley Suns. His performances there should help calm the fans already believing the Duke product is a bust beyond repair.
Since the end of November, Maluach has posted three gaudy double-doubles in G League play. His most recent outing for the Valley Suns was a Dec. 11 win against the San Diego Clippers in which Maluach scored 22 points, ripped down 19 boards and added four blocks to the ledger.
Prior to that, Maluach (and rookie teammate Rasheer Fleming) poured in a personal best 27 points on 10-of-14 shooting (71.4%) to go with 15 rebounds and another four blocks in a Dec. 3 contest against the Santa Cruz Warriors.
The obvious retort here is, “Well, it’s the G League.”
That's totally fair.
But we can acknowledge that even though Maluach’s performances are coming against lesser competition when compared to the NBA, the level that Maluach is dominating on the glass while scoring at a clip above 70% over his past two outings is meaningful.
That would be true of a player at any age, but Maluach, remember, is just 19 years old. In fact, he celebrated a birthday in September of this year, so he won’t even turn 20 until after his rookie season has long since completed.
As a direct comparison to the aforementioned rookies drafted after Maluach who are already performing well in NBA games: Queen will turn 21 later this month. Wolf is already 21 years old and Coward turned 22 ahead of his rookie campaign.
So, while fans may be frustrated to watch other rookies have breakout games at the highest level, Maluach remains among the youngest of the bunch.
Even former Suns Rookie of the Year winner Amar’e Stoudemire — who was drafted out of high school — turned 20 years old in November of his rookie year.
As with anything in life, context matters. Pieces of Maluach remain a raw talent, but that’s to be expected for a player his age.
He’s not getting minutes above the veterans in Williams, Ighodaro and Richards, but there’s plenty of season left to be played.
There’s also a decent chance the Suns will opt to trade Richards, provided he’s in the final year of his contract. If he’s shipped off elsewhere, that could certainly open up some minutes for Maluach in the coming months.
Ott is clearly committed to winning games and getting Phoenix into the playoff picture, but he’s also acknowledged the need to go deep into his bench in order to keep guys fresh.
The onus is now on the Suns' organization and coaching staff to develop the Sudanese big man into a difference-maker when he does get prolonged NBA minutes. It’s a long season, and even if Maluach doesn’t get his chance to shine, there’s still a lot of upside for fans to bank on.