Phoenix Suns Trade for Nick Richards from Hornets

The Phoenix Suns have made a move to help bolster their frontcourt. The team has reportedly traded for Nick Richards from the Charlotte Hornets to go along with a second-round pick. In return, the Suns will send Josh Okogie and three second round picks to the Charlotte Hornets.

Phoenix’s frontcourt has been a point of concern all season. Now, they will have some additional reinforcements who will also provide extra depth. With Jusuf Nurkic falling out of favor with head coach, Mike Budenholzer, one has to wonder what this means for the Bosnian center’s future with the Suns. Given Richards’ ceiling and youth, the Phoenix Suns have to be excited about their new-look frontcourt going forward. 

Phoenix Suns Trade Josh Okogie, Three Second Round Picks for Nick Richards 

Nick Richards’ Impact 

One can see why the Suns were willing to trade for Nick Richards. He is a young player with a ton of upside. In 21 games this year, Richards has tallied 8.9 points, 7.5 total rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game. His rim-protection will be extremely welcomed by the Suns who have been in desperate need of interior defense this season.

Richards is also tallying a career-best defensive rating of 110 so far this campaign. On top of this, he is also averaging a block percentage of 5.9 percent, a defensive box plus/minus rating of +0.2, and a defensive win-share total of +0.6. While these numbers may not seem significant, bear in mind he was playing with the Hornets are a team clearly in the midst of a rebuilding phase. Now that Richards is with a team with legitimate playoff aspirations, his talents and potential will be put to full use going forward. 

Phoenix’s Season

The Suns will miss Josh Okogie’s perimeter defense. However, the need for a defensive presence in the paint outweighed the luxury of having a great perimeter defensive anchor for the Phoenix Suns. As of January 15th, 2025, the Suns sit at the 11th seed in the Western Conference and are on the outside looking in when it comes to the Play-In Tournament picture.

Given the talent on paper, it is safe to say this squad has underachieved to this point of the season. A change was certainly needed. It is difficult to gauge whether this change will be enough for the Suns this season. However, it cannot hurt given the lack of rim-protection we have seen from the Phoenix Suns this year. As for Richards, he now has the opportunity to play meaningful basketball for the first time in a while.