The NBA Finals matchup might officially be set - but for the Phoenix Suns - what happens on the basketball court is the furthest thing from their minds right now. Instead they are currently trying to find a new head coach - their fourth in four years - and finally appear to be learning from past mistakes in the process.
They also have a massive decision to make on the future of Kevin Durant - and though all is quiet right now - it is surely not going to stay that way for much longer. The Suns need to make roster changes to bounce back from an awful 36 win season, and trading Durant while he still has some real value looks to be the best way to do so.
Finals matchup shows Suns' lack of depth is a huge problem.
Returning to matters on the court, and the fact that two of the deepest rosters in the league in the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers are going to play for the Larry O'Brien trophy is a disaster from the perspective of the Suns. They went all in on a "Big 3" model that a decade ago would have all but guaranteed them a deep playoff run.
But what this season has shown us is how important depth is when it comes to the playoffs. Even the New York Knicks in making it to the last four used a couple of former Suns players who fans had no problem saying goodbye to in the past. The Thunder were able to absorb the absence of Chet Holmgren for over half of the regular season through injury, while the Pacers are the gold standard.
Head coach Rick Carlisle regularly going 11-deep early in games this postseason, with everybody from Ben Sheppard to Thomas Bryant getting a look in. Yes their Game 6 victory over the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals allowed them to go deeper again because of the manner of the win, but both James Johnson and Johnny Furphy somehow saw action in that one.
Which only highlights just how far away from having a complete roster like that the Suns are, and why they will struggle to be competitive as currently constructed. Players like Tyus Jones, Grayson Allen and even Mason Plumlee all sound fine in theory, but that does not represent the kind of depth needed to win a championship.
Owner Mat Ishbia believed - and in his defense at one point he may have been correct - that Booker, Durant and Bradley Beal plus some average role players would be enough. But when Grayson Allen was your third best player last season, and with Jones being viewed as a revelation in the early goings of this campaign, we should have known this season was never going to end well.
Which is another reason why they have to trade Durant as soon as they can. The franchise will be able to get some actual depth back to put around Booker, and not have to rely so heavily on wildcards such as Bol Bol, or second round picks in Oso Ighodaro. The Thunder and Pacers have shown the way, now it is on the Suns to change course and follow their direction, even if it takes them years.