Having frequent trade partners enabled the Suns to acquire key players who became the foundation of the franchise.

Frequent Trade Partners Helped Suns Obtain Franchise Cornerstones
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With the NBA Draft concluded and free agency on the horizon, the Phoenix Suns must strategize on ways to free up salary cap space for the upcoming season.

The Suns’ recent trade with the Wizards for Bradley Beal showcases the innovative and daring nature of NBA offseason transactions. The Wizards also made a bold move by trading Chris Paul to the Golden State Warriors after acquiring him, receiving Jordan Poole and several draft picks in return.

Arizona sportsbooks have labeled the Suns as one of the top NBA title contenders following the offseason changes to their roster.

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In the last five years, Phoenix has added crucial players to their rotation, including Paul (acquired via trade from Oklahoma City in 2020) and Saric (obtained from Minnesota in 2019). They have also brought in valuable bench players such as Landale (acquired from San Antonio in 2022), Shamet (received from Brooklyn in 2021), and Baynes (added from Boston in 2019).

Yengols.com conducted an analysis of the Suns’ frequent trade partners using data from Basketball-Reference.com. The study reviewed the number of trades between the Suns and each team, and also highlighted the most successful acquisition in the team’s trade history with those partners.

The trade partners most frequently engaged with Phoenix

Rank Team No. of Trades Best Acquisition
T1Boston12 Paul Westphal (1975)
T1Detroit12 Jeff Hornacek (1986 2nd Rd. Draft Pick)
T2Washington11 Kyle Macy (1979 1st Rd. Draft Pick)
T2Cleveland11 Kevin Johnson (1988)

BetMGM Sportsbook Arizona has the Suns listed at +600 odds to win the NBA championship, putting them tied for third place with Milwaukee. Boston and defending champion Denver currently hold the top spot with +450 odds.

Which teams are the most frequent trade partners of the Suns?

The Suns seem to favor making deals with four teams in the Eastern Conference: Boston, Detroit, Washington, and Cleveland.

The trade between Phoenix and Washington on Father’s Day marked the 11th trade between the two teams, which includes previous deals like the one in 1979 that brought guard Kyle Macy to the Suns.

Fans using Arizona betting apps who support the Suns are hopeful that the Beal trade will lead to enhanced performance.

Macy posted an 8.2 VORP and averaged 10.6 points, 4.0 assists, and 2.3 rebounds per game for Phoenix from 1980 to 1985, as reported by Basketball-Reference.com.

In 1975, the Suns executed a fantastic trade with the Celtics, acquiring the talented Paul Westphal who would later be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. During his 465 games with the team, Westphal maintained impressive averages of 20.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.

From 1992 to 1995, Westphal played for the Suns before later becoming the team’s coach. During this time, he had a VORP of 20.0 and earned 51.5 win shares, both of which greatly exceeded his contributions with the Celtics. In Boston, Westphal had a VORP of 2.8 and accumulated 9.7 win shares.

The Suns completed a major trade with the Pistons to acquire veteran guard Jeff Hornacek. His time in the Valley from 1986 to 1992 was highly successful, with Hornacek contributing 17.4 VORP and 43.8 win shares to the team.

In 1988, the Suns struck a fantastic deal with the Cavaliers, trading Larry Nance and Mike Sanders for Kevin Johnson, Mark West, and Tyron Corbin. This trade proved to be highly beneficial for Phoenix, as they received excellent value in return.

Johnson accumulated 90.9 win shares and 36.8 VORP in 683 games with the Suns, playing an essential role in the team’s NBA Finals appearance in 1993 and Western Conference Finals appearances in 1989 and 1990.

It remains unclear whether Suns President and General Manager James Jones will make any more significant trades before the season begins. However, now may be a great time to show support for the Suns by capitalizing on Arizona sportsbook promotions before any potential changes in odds.

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Author

Peterson Christopher

For more than seven years, Peterson Christopher has been reporting on sports and sports betting in Arizona. He is currently the lead writer at yengols.com, having previously worked at ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly, and the Green Valley News.

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