The Big Question: Is Phoenix the League's Most Expensive…

By the Suns Nightly Desk · Thursday, October 1

Phoenix enters 2026-27 at $216.2 million in payroll, over the luxury tax line, with most of its draft picks through 2030 tied to swaps rather than Phoenix's own control. The roster is unsettled before a single game — Mark Williams out, Dillon Brooks facing a DUI charge, Duop Reath hurt on arrival — while the team waits to see if last season's 45-37, playoff-missing finish was a floor or a ceiling.

Suns Nightly artwork — Illustration by Hoops Nightly.

The price tag. Phoenix carries $216.2 million in payroll, over the $200.4 million luxury tax line and past the first-apron threshold. Devin Booker ($57.1M), Jalen Green ($36.3M), Miles Bridges ($22.8M), Dillon Brooks ($20.0M) and Bradley Beal's $19.4 million player option make up the top five deals.

What picks are left. Houston owns Phoenix's 2027 first-round pick from the Durant trade, and New York owns its 2029 second-rounder. Everything else through 2030 — both rounds in 2027, 2028, 2029 and 2030 — is a swap, not an outright pick.

Last season's return. Last season Phoenix went 45-37 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2019-20, when it finished 36-46. The net rating was 1.4, with an offense that ranked 17th and a defense that ranked ninth.

Booker's side of it. Devin Booker is 29, entering his 11th season, coming off 26.1 points, 3.9 rebounds and 6.0 assists a night across 64 games last season. His extension runs through 2029-30 and pays the richest annual salary of any contract in the league.

The case against. Jalen Green averaged 17.8 points but played only 32 games last season. Dillon Brooks now faces a misdemeanor DUI charge tied to a March arrest. Mark Williams is out, with a return date still unclear, and new center Duop Reath was already day-to-day the day he joined the team.

Ott's room to maneuver. Jordan Ott opens his second season as head coach with little room to maneuver: the roster is already assembled, the money is committed, and most of the draft capital through 2030 is tied up in swaps rather than control of Phoenix's own picks.

The answer. The math says this: a 45-37 team that missed the playoffs, paying top-of-market money with its draft capital mostly swapped away, has to win now. Booker's extension and Bridges' arrival were bets on this core; 2026-27 is when Phoenix finds out if the bet pays off.

On deck Phoenix opens the preseason October 5 at Detroit, then October 7 at Chicago, October 10 at home against San Antonio (ESPN2) and October 14 at San Antonio again. The regular-season opener is October 21 at Portland.

Are the Suns over the luxury tax this season?

Phoenix's payroll is $216.2 million, over the $200.4 million luxury tax line and past the first apron.

What draft picks do the Suns still control outright?

Houston owns Phoenix's 2027 first-round pick and New York owns its 2029 second-rounder; most of the rest through 2030 are pick swaps rather than picks Phoenix fully controls.