The Phoenix Suns are converting two-way guard Jamaree Bouyea’s deal to a standard contract, making him eligible to play in the postseason, reports ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The deal, his first standard NBA contract, is reportedly for two years. The move keeps the Suns in position to duck the luxury tax by the end of the season while giving them guard depth in the playoffs.
Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro reported on Friday that the waiving of guard Cole Anthony opened a path for Bouyea to a full-time roster spot, and the Suns had until Thursday to pull the trigger on upgrading Bouyea’s contract.
Players on two-way contracts can play up to 50 regular-season games and are not eligible for postseason play. Bouyea was at 33 games played after logging 14 minutes in Thursday’s 113-110 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
The undrafted guard out of San Francisco has been a useful depth guard for Phoenix, tallying nine games of double-digit scoring with a career-high 18 points twice. The Suns are also 6-3 in games where he plays at least 20 minutes.
Bouyea has appeared in 15 of the 16 games Devin Booker has missed due to injuries this season, which is likely to continue until Booker is back from a hip strain.
His 33 games are by far a career high for any one season.
Since entering the NBA in 2022, Bouyea had appeared in 19 games before joining the Suns midseason.
He played five 2024-25 games with the Milwaukee Bucks and nine games in 2023-24 between the Portland Trail Blazers and San Antonio Spurs. He participated in five games as a rookie in 2022-23 (Miami Heat and Washington Wizards).