Suns' Royce O'Neale on verge of $44 million contract
06/29/2024 02:02 PM
Royce O’Neale and the Phoenix Suns are set to agree to a four-year, $44 million contract with the start of free agency just days away, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
“O’Neale’s agents Mark Bartelstein and George Roussaskis of Priority Sports have been negotiating on the contract for months and now land a key part of Suns’ rotation a new long-term deal,” reported the NBA insider. “O’Neale arrived in a deadline trade with the Nets.”
Royce O'Neale plans on signing a new 4-year, $44 million deal with the Suns, per @wojespn. pic.twitter.com/XxZFBLfnD1
— ClutchPoints NBA (@ClutchPointsNBA) June 29, 2024
As a result of the NBA’s new early negotiation window for teams and their own free agents, O’Neale and the Suns were able to avoid the complications of free agency altogether with this new four-year deal. O’Neale was traded to Phoenix ahead of the trade deadline by the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team deal that sent a 2026 first-round pick swap to the Memphis Grizzlies and three second-round picks from the Suns to the Nets. Former Grizzlies first-round pick David Roddy also landed in Phoenix as a result of this trade.
O’Neale, 31, formed a strong bond with superstar forward Kevin Durant during their time with the Nets during the 2022-23 season. With the veteran forward on the trade block and the Suns in need of an experienced forward who could stretch the floor and provide toughness on defense, O’Neale was a match made in heaven for Phoenix.
Royce O’Neale’s impact with Suns
In a total of 30 games with the Suns, eight of which he started, O’Neale averaged 8.1 points and 5.2 rebounds per game while shooting 37.6 percent from the floor. O’Neale’s 59 total threes in his two months with the Suns ranked third on the team behind only Grayson Allen (87) and Durant (65) from the moment of his arrival.
There is no denying that the Suns traded for O’Neale with the intention of re-signing him this offseason. Despite having one more year left on his contract at the time of the trade, Phoenix understood that the veteran was going to be an integral part of their rotation.
For years, O’Neale has been known for being one of the best “glue guys” in the NBA. Essentially, he holds his teams together with all the little things he can accomplish on the court. Aside from his shooting and rebounding abilities, O’Neale has always been known to be an above-average defender who can virtually guard any position. That is why he is such a valuable player for the Suns to have.
After locking O’Neale up on a new contract, the Suns’ payroll now exceeds $220 million, giving them the league’s highest tax bill for the 2024-25 season. Owner Mat Ishbia is not afraid to spend money if it puts his team in a better position to win a championship, and keeping O’Neale was an essential part of the organization’s championship equation.
Assuming they do not make any drastic moves in the offseason to trade Jusuf Nurkic, the Suns will head into the new season with the same starting group that won a total of 49 games during the regular season this past year. The major difference is that instead of having O’Neale for two months to finish the season, new head coach Mike Budenholzer will be able to turn to the veteran right away for production in the frontcourt.
The bottom line is that O’Neale impacts winning. The Suns went 18-12 with O’Neale on the court, and his +139 plus-minus was the highest on the team since his arrival on February 10. With the two sides sharing mutual interest in a new deal, they were able to come to terms on an agreement before his unrestricted free agency.
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