The 2024-25 Phoenix Suns' starting lineup, per coach Mike Budenholzer: Tyus Jones, Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Jusuf Nurkic.
"Certainly, we feel like Tyus has established himself as a great starting point guard in our league and he will be our starter," Budenholzer told NBA.com's Steve Aschburner. "When you put him out there with Kevin, Brad, Book and Nurk [Jusuf Nurkic], we feel like we've got a strong starting five. And a really strong bench behind them."
Four of the five starters are the same as last year's. Jones, signed to a minimum contract this offseason, will replace Grayson Allen and relieve Booker of the responsibility to initiate the offense.
"Tyus can help us play faster," Budenholzer said. "He's great with the kick-heads, he's great with getting teammates involved in transition. But then also in the halfcourt. He's a guy who has always been a high assists guy, low turnovers. He can get us organized. Everyone talks about how much talent we have. Hopefully he can put them in positions to be their best."
It is not exactly breaking news that Jones will be in the starting five. Upon agreeing to join the Suns, he told ESPN that the team recruited him to be their starting point guard. Josh Bartelstein, the team's CEO, also referenced this in interviews with the Arizona Republic and Arizona Sports. If you thought that Phoenix might facilitate this by getting a bit weird -- like, say, making Beal the sixth man or making Durant the nominal starting center -- then Budenholzer has officially squashed that.
This lineup is a bit small on the wing, and it lacks a perimeter stopper. There's a ton of playmaking, though, and the potential to put up a ton of points. Signing both Jones and backup guard Monte Morris suggests that the Suns wanted to be able to create easier scoring opportunities for their stars. With Allen coming off the bench, a full season of Royce O'Neale filling in the gaps and the addition of Mason Plumlee, they have more depth than they did last season.
The big question now is how Phoenix will close games. When it's in a tough spot against an elite opponent, will Budenholzer turn to one of Allen or O'Neale? And if so, will it be Jones or Nurkic who has to sit? Decisions like these are situational, but Budenholzer's coaching staff has surely thought about them already.