PHOENIX — It's time for some major NBA stars to find new homes as free agency has opened ahead of the 2024-25 season.
Already we have seen players such as Paul George and Klay Thompson decide they would rather play on new teams next season, and others like James Harden and Andre Drummond stay put.
Phoenix Suns 2024 Free Agent Tracker
The Suns were fairly quiet in the early hours of free agency, and here is a look at the moves the team has made since free agency opened on June 30 at 3 p.m.
Center Mason Plumlee signs with Suns
The Suns' first free agent signing of 2024 is center Mason Plumlee, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. Plumlee, who is the brother of former Sun Miles Plumlee, reportedly signed a one-year deal to come to Phoenix.
The former Duke Blue Devil was a first-round pick by the Brooklyn Nets in 2013 and was named to the 2013-14 NBA All-Rookie Team. He has spent his career as a journeyman, having spent time with the Nets, Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, Charlotte Hornets and Los Angeles Clippers before signing with Phoenix.
Over his career, Plumlee has averaged 8.4 points per game, 6.8 rebounds per game and 2.4 assists per game. He has appeared in the playoffs seven times and has played in 71 playoff games.
Plumlee's veteran minimum deal is for one year and $3.3 million, according to Spotrac.com.
The Suns officially announced Plumlee's signing on Friday.
Guard Eric Gordon signs with Philadelphia
The first 2023-24 Sun officially not coming back to the Valley is Eric Gordon, who has signed with the Philadelphia 76ers, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.
The 76ers signed Gordon to a one-year, $3.3 million veteran minimum contract, according to Spotrac.
In 68 games with the Suns last season, Gordon averaged 11 points per game, 1.8 rebounds per game and two assists per game.
The 76ers will be Gordon's fifth team. He was drafted in the first round of the 2008 NBA Draft by the Clippers and has also played for the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans (Gordon was on the team when they changed names in 2014), Houston Rockets and Suns.
Center/Forward Drew Eubanks signs with Utah Jazz
Drew Eubanks, who came to Phoenix as a free agent in June 2023, is headed north as Wojnarowski reports he has agreed to a two-year, $10 million deal with the Utah Jazz.
Eubanks played in 75 games last season with the Suns, averaging 5.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists. He shot 60.1% from the floor and made all three of his three-point attempts last season.
The former Oregon State Beaver has also played for the San Antonio Spurs and Portland Trail Blazers.
Guard Collin Gillespie signs with Suns
Guard Collin Gillespie, who was a member of the 2023 NBA champion Denver Nuggets, has signed a two-way contract with the Suns, according to Wojnarowski.
He signed two-way contracts with the Nuggets in both 2022 and 2023 and made his NBA debut with Denver on Oct. 24, 2023, in the Nuggets' season-opening win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Gillespie appeared in 24 games for the Nuggets last season, averaging 3.6 points, 0.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists.
In eight games with the Grand Rapids Gold, the Nuggets' G-League affiliate, Gillespie averaged 21.1 points, 8.9 rebounds and 10.5 assists.
He played college basketball at Villanova from 2017-22 and averaged 11.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists. He was a two-time Big East Conference Player of the Year and was named to the All-Big East Conference First Team twice.
He was a freshman on the 2017-18 Villanova team that won a national championship.
Guard Monte Morris signs with Suns
The Suns now have a contender for their vacant point guard position after the team signed guard Monte Morris on Tuesday, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.
The Suns were in need of a point guard after leaving the position open last season after waiving Chris Paul, who later signed with the Golden State Warriors (Paul is now with the San Antonio Spurs). The Suns needed a floor general last season, and Morris will help fill that role in 2024-25.
Morris signed a one-year, $2.8 million deal with the Suns, according to Spotrac.
Originally a second-round draft pick by the Denver Nuggets out of Iowa State in 2017, Morris has played with the Nuggets, Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves.
Over his career (375 games) in mainly a backup role, Morris has averaged 10 points per game, 2.5 rebounds per game, and 3.8 assists per game. Morris only played 33 games last season and averaged 5.0 ppg, 1.7 rpg and 2.1 apg.
The Suns officially announced Morris' signing on Friday.
Guard Damion Lee re-signs with Suns
The Suns are bringing back one of their key bench players, as they have agreed to re-sign guard Damion Lee, according to Wojnarowski.
Lee, who is the brother-in-law of Warriors star Steph Curry, originally signed with the Suns in July 2022 and has played just one full season with the team as he missed last season after tearing his right meniscus during training camp.
In the 2022-23 season, Lee played in 74 games with the Suns averaging 8.2 points per game, 1.3 assists per game and 3.0 rebounds per game.
Lee signed a one-year, $2.8 million contract with Phoenix, according to Spotrac.
Suns sign draft pick Ryan Dunn
2024 28th overall NBA Draft pick, forward Ryan Dunn, has signed his rookie contract with the Suns, the team announced Wednesday.
Dunn was a defensive standout at the University of Virginia and averaged 8.1 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.3 blocks last season.
His 2.3 blocks per game led the ACC and was 16th in the nation.
Dunn's brother, Justin, a 2016 MLB first-round draft pick, also lives in the Valley where he is training as he recovers from shoulder surgery.
The Suns acquired the draft rights to Dunn in a draft night trade with the Denver Nuggets, who traded up for the Suns' original pick (No. 22) and selected former Millennium High School star DaRon Holmes II.
Dunn signed a four-year, $13 million deal with the Suns, with an average annual value of $3,249,588, according to Spotrac. The deal contains team options for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons. Dunn will make between $2.5 and 2.8 million the first three years of the deal. If the team picks up Dunn's option for the 2027-28 season, his salary will jump to $5.03 million.
Suns sign draft pick Oso Ighodaro
One day after locking up their first-round draft pick, the Suns signed their second-round pick, forward Oso Ighodaro, the team announced Thursday.
Ighodaro, who played high school basketball in the Valley at Desert Vista High School in Ahwatukee, was the 40th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. The Suns acquired his rights in a draft night trade with the New York Knicks.
Ighodaro played collegiately at Marquette, where he was named to the All-Big East Second Team in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. In his final two seasons with the Golden Eagles, Ighodaro averaged 12.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.0 steals.
Ighodaro won a 6A state championship with Desert Vista in the 2019-20 season.
He signed a four-year, $7.9 million deal with the Suns, according to Spotrac. His deal contains a club option for the 2027-28 season.
Forward Jalen Bridges signs with Suns
Undrafted rookie Jalen Bridges signed a two-way deal with the Suns, the team announced Thursday.
The 6'4", 213 lbs. forward played at Baylor, averaging 12.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.1 steals, all of which were career highs. Bridges was named to the All-Big 12 Third Team this past season.
Bridges played two seasons at Baylor after starting his collegiate career at West Virginia.
Bridges is from Fairmont, West Virginia, and played high school basketball at Fairmont Senior High School. He led the Polar Bears to four straight state championship games and won two of them and was the 2019 winner of the Bill Evans Award, which is given annually to the Player of the Year in West Virginia.
Suns Pre-Free Agency Moves
The Suns made several moves ahead of free agency beginning, bringing back a couple of their own free agents.
Forward Royce O'Neale re-signed with the Suns on June 29. His deal is for four years and $44 million, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
Center Bol Bol also agreed to re-sign with the Suns, according to Wojnarowski. Bol's deal is for one year and $2.9 million, according to Spotrac. In 43 games last season, Bol averaged 5.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.4 assists.
Guard Josh Okogie declined his player option on June 28 and is now a free agent.
Phoenix Suns 2024 Free Agents
Here are the members of the 2023-24 Suns roster that are now free agents.
- Center/Forward Udoka Asubuike
- Guard Saben Lee
- Guard Josh Okogie
- Guard Isaiah Thomas
- Forward Ish Wainright
- Forward Thaddeus Young
Players under contract for the Phoenix Suns
Here is a look at the players the Suns have under contract heading into next season.
- Guard Devin Booker (signed through 2027-28 season)
- Guard Bradley Beal (signed through 2026-27 season)
- Forward Kevin Durant (signed through 2025-26 season)
- Guard Grayson Allen (signed through 2027-28 season)
- Center Jusuf Nurkic (signed through 2025-26 season)
- Forward David Roddy (signed through 2025-26 season)
- Forward/Guard Nassir Little (signed through 2026-27 season)
- Forward Royce O'Neale (signed through 2026-27 season)
- Center Bol Bol (signed through 2024-25 season)
- Center Mason Plumlee (signed through 2024-25 season)
- Guard Collin Gillespie (signed through 2024-25 season) — Two-Way Contract
- Guard Monte Morris (signed through 2024-25 season)
- Guard Damion Lee (signed through 2024-25 season)
- Forward Ryan Dunn (signed through 2027-28 season)
- Forward Oso Ighodaro (signed through 2027-28 season)
- Forward Jalen Bridges (signed through 2024-25 season) — Two-Way Contract
Arizona sports
The city of Phoenix is home to four major professional sports league teams; The NFL's Arizona Cardinals, NBA's Phoenix Suns, WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury and MLB's Arizona Diamondbacks.
The Cardinals have made State Farm Stadium in Glendale their home turf and the Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix is home to both the Suns and the Mercury. The Indoor Football League’s Arizona Rattlers play at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale.
Phoenix also has a soccer team with the USL's Phoenix Rising FC, who play at Phoenix Rising FC Stadium in Phoenix.
The Valley hosts multiple major sporting events every year, including college football's Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl; the PGA Tour’s highest-attended event, the WM Phoenix Open; NASCAR events each spring and fall, including Championship Weekend in November; and Cactus League Spring Training for 15 Major League Baseball franchises.
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