The Phoenix Suns were finally able to sign former Orlando Magic center Bol Bol but had to make a few moves prior to having the roster spot open and cap space to do so.

According to NBA Insider Shams Charania from The Athletic, the Suns signed Bol to a one-year fully guaranteed minimum salary deal, received three second-round picks from the Magic to swap picks, and traded away point guard Cameron Payne (plus a second and cash) to the San Antonio Spurs for a future second-round pick.

With the 2026 first-round swap between the Suns and Magic, Phoenix already swapped their 2026 pick with Washington, so Orlando will get the right to swap their own 2026 pick with whoever has the worst pick out of the Suns or Wizards. The Suns would automatically get the worst of the three 2026 picks.

This then led to Phoenix trading away Payne to the Spurs for a cap dump basically, as the Suns also sent a second-round pick and cash to San Antonio. With the roster spot now open, Phoenix signed Bol, as they were heavily rumored to do so when he was cut from the Magic a few weeks ago.

The Suns save more than $26 million in luxury taxes for this season, but now, Phoenix doesn’t have a true point guard on the team or at least proven depth at the position. As of now, both 24-year-olds Saben Lee and Jordan Goodwin are expected to be the backups at point guard, with less than 3,000 NBA minutes combined in their careers so far.

The Suns signed veterans Damion Lee, 30, and Eric Gordon, 34, in free agency, but they will likely compete for minutes also and be backups at shooting guard. Plus the addition of Bradley Beal at point guard, via trade from Washington, makes the position not as dire. But the veteran 30-year-old Beal has been more of a shooting guard most of his career, so having him plus superstar Devin Booker as the starting shooting guard will be interesting to see it work on the court.

While having Bol helps as a reserve behind Deandre Ayton at the center spot and Kevin Durant as their star power forward, the 7’2″ 23-year-old will have to compete for minutes off the bench. In free agency, Phoenix did address their depth at both positions (center and power forward) by bringing in Drew Eubanks, Yuta Watanabe and Keita Bates-Diop.

But the Suns are playing it risky, as their big four have been out with injuries previously, so the depth they signed will be tested heavily if it comes to that.

Future trade implications come from the Payne trade, as his contract was taxing (literally), but it was wise to use it potentially in a trade closer to the new season’s trade deadline. The 28-year-old would’ve been on an expiring contract worth $6.5 million and that would’ve been more valuable at the deadline instead of now, since the Suns don’t have many other contracts to trade away to free up cap space. Phoenix will likely get a trade exception worth Payne’s contract in the deal, but the other contracts on the roster couldn’t be aggregated as an exception.

Unless Ayton is traded, the Suns are likely not making moves in February, as their only other big cap figure, not including the big four, is starting small forward Josh Okogie, who they re-signed to a $2.8 million Non-Bird or Non-Qualifying Veteran Free Agent deal.

Maybe trades aren’t going to be necessary by the time the NBA deadline comes around in February for Phoenix. Debatably, they have a top-four core starting in the NBA and all have high upside, as a team looking to compete just off their starters alone. Regardless of their fringe free-agent moves to address their depth and backups, the Suns are looking to make a run further in the playoffs as a team that went 45-37 last year as the fourth-best team in the Western Conference.

Having Bol, whether he hits his potential or not, is just a bonus for this team if he can make the most of his minutes off the bench (coming off a healthier season) while competing with the other veteran free agents. But what separates him from the other guys they added is his breakout potential with his age and his length, paired with his handles and athleticism that is rare for a big man with his capabilities of shooting.

Bol is the type of low-risk, high-reward free-agent signing that could pay off in the end if he can showcase the play he built off of last season with the Magic and continue to grow as he is entering his fifth season.

Bol Bol is now a free agent after clearing waivers, as the Orlando Magic declined to guarantee his contract. The Magic traded for Bol in February 2022, and re-signed him during the 2022 offseason, as the contract included a non-guaranteed salary for 2023 into 2024. The 23-year-old inked a two-year, $4.4 million deal and will have to find another team, as it would be his third team in his NBA tenure.

The 7’2″ center forward should have plenty of interest on the market, as a few teams stand out as candidates to bring in the South Sudanese big man.

The Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks are two teams that have needs at those spots. Other teams that also could use a young big man are the Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, San Antonio Spurs, and the OKC Thunder.

But the Phoenix Suns, who are looking to make a serious championship run next year, make the most sense and seem the most interested in the former 2019 second-round pick from Oregon. According to Shams Charania, NBA Insider from The Athletic and Stadium, Bol could be joining the likes of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton and recently acquired Bradley Beal.

Bol was drafted by the Miami Heat, who then sent over his draft rights to the Nuggets back in 2019, where he spent three seasons in Denver. Three years later, Bol was involved in the three-way trade with the Spurs and the Celtics. However, before even debuting in Boston, he was sent to the Magic, as he had his best statistical season before getting cut from the team on July 4th.

Orlando decided to exercise options on Gary Harris and Markelle Fultz prior to free agency but decided to not do the same with Bol.

He averaged 9.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block in 21.5 minutes, starting in 33 games out of the 70 Bol appeared in for the Magic last season. Orlando agreed with Bol to have his guarantee date pushed back, but it ultimately led to the release of the center forward.

Bol was healthier and more consistent for Orlando, as his 1,505 minutes played more than tripled his career total minutes (328) that he played in his first three years in the NBA. His season overall, despite making 32 consecutive starts, still had its highs and lows. Bol came off the bench for a few games from mid-January through mid-March but was out of the rotation completely for seven games before closing the season back on the court.

Still, Bol was a fan favorite at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. In his high school recruiting cycle back in 2018, the big man from Sudan was considered a 5-star prospect and after a rough start with the Nuggets, he displayed his talent with the Magic this past year as one of the taller players in the NBA.

It shouldn’t be long before Bol finds his third new team entering year five of his young NBA career.

A three-team deal with the Spurs and Nuggets will see the Celtics take a chance on injured center Bol Bol while also shedding salary.

The deal will bring Bol, 22, and PJ Dozier to Boston, with the C’s shipping Juancho Hernangomez to San Antonio and Denver receiving Bryn Forbes from the Spurs.

Hernangomez, barely seeing any playing time with the Celtics, will take his nearly $7 million salary with him, saving the team $4.3 million.

Seven-foot-two with a 7-foot-8 wingspan, Bol is set to have surgery on his injured foot and will be out for the next few months; he had been traded by Denver to Detroit recently, but the deal was voided after he failed a physical.

He has a chance to return at the end of the season, but there’s no guarantee. He’ll be a restricted free agent this offseason.

Dozier, 25, has been out indefinitely (ACL tear) since late November; he previously played for Boston on a two-way contract during the 2018-19 season.

The moves won’t help the current Celtics team (23-22, 10th place in the Eastern Conference), but it does save them some salary.

The Detroit Pistons made their first move of the season Sunday by sending Rodney McGruder and a 2022 second-round pick to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Bol Bol.

The 2022 pick was acquired from the Brooklyn Nets, and now Detroit is without a second-round selection in June’s draft.

Bol, son of former NBA center Manute Bol, is 7’2” with a 7’8” wingspan. Taken 44th overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, he’s played 328 career NBA minutes and has averaged 2.7 points and 1.2 rebounds in 6.2 minutes. He averaged 12 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks in about 19 minutes per game in the G League team last season and will be a restricted free agent this summer.

The Pistons are still waiting for the return of center Kelly Olynyk from a left knee sprain.

Born in Sudan, Bol, 22, played nine games in his lone season at Oregon before having season-ending foot surgery and declaring for the NBA Draft.

The 30-year-old McGruder played 17 games this season with the Pistons off the bench after playing in 16 last year. He’s averaged 2.5 points in 9.5 minutes this season.