NBA Notes: Suns, Jalen Green, Warriors, Stephen Curry, Lakers

Suns

Could Jalen Green eventually find himself back on the trade market?

It’s at least a possibility worth watching, with Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report recently listing Green among five “sneaky” trade candidates, as relayed by Donnie Druin of NBA On SI.

The question isn’t really Green’s talent. It’s his fit alongside Devin Booker.

Phoenix posted a plus-8.7 net rating with Collin Gillespie and Booker sharing the backcourt last season, compared to plus-2.8 with Booker and Green, Swartz noted.

Green is still only 24 and obviously can score. But he’s another natural shooting guard next to Booker, and Phoenix has spent years trying to find the right balance between giving Booker playmaking responsibilities and allowing him to do what he does best.

Perhaps Green settles into the perfect role and this becomes irrelevant. If not, his name is probably one worth remembering once trade season arrives.

Warriors

Stephen Curry is eligible for another extension, but Joey Akeley of Warriors On SI makes an interesting case for why he shouldn’t sign it yet.

In fact, waiting could actually help Golden State.

The Warriors are positioning themselves to potentially create significant cap space in 2027. If Curry waits until free agency, Golden State could theoretically use that room first and then exceed the cap to re-sign him using Bird rights.

Signing an extension beforehand would eat into that flexibility.

There’s risk for Curry, of course. A major injury could theoretically affect his next contract, although we’re also talking about Stephen Curry and the Warriors. It’s difficult to imagine Golden State suddenly deciding not to take care of the greatest player in franchise history.

The bigger question is whether the Warriors can actually turn that future flexibility into another run at a championship.

Still, after years of being financially boxed in, having options wouldn’t be the worst thing.

Lakers

The Lakers changed just about everything around Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves this offseason. Apparently not everyone is convinced it will work.

ESPN recently named Los Angeles the team most likely to disappoint in 2026-27, according to Ryan Ward of Lakers On SI. The Pistons, Warriors, Heat and Celtics rounded out the five.

That’s certainly one way of looking at the post-LeBron Lakers. Marcus Smart, Rui Hachimura, Luke Kennard, Jaxson Hayes and Deandre Ayton are among those who also departed, leaving Los Angeles with what amounts to a significant roster reset around Doncic.

Interestingly, ESPN’s panel remains plenty bullish on Doncic himself. He received the most votes to win another scoring title and finished third in MVP voting behind Victor Wembanyama and Nikola Jokic.

So perhaps the message isn’t that Doncic won’t be great. It’s that nobody is quite sure how good everyone around him will be. Given the amount of turnover, that’s probably fair.