Suns harebrained scheme to attract LeBron James is sign of front office incompetence

The Phoenix Suns enter the 2024 offseason in dire need of adding depth around the core of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. Unfortunately, the organization has very few avenues in which they can acquire depth as of right now.

Despite that, there is at least one big name that the Suns are trying to add -- another superstar to potentially create a Big 4. And Phoenix is reportedly willing to do the most blatant thing to try and make that happen.

Per Doug Haller of The Athletic ($), the Suns may explore the possibility of drafting Bronny James this offseason under the premise of potentially luring the USC Trojans guard's father, LeBron James, to Phoenix on a minimum contract this offseason.

This comes as Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that the Suns will seemingly host a workout for Bronny.

Outside of the No. 22 overall pick, the Suns are short on ways they can add depth in the offseason. Cap space is all but nonexistent as the contracts of Beal and Jusuf Nurkic looking untradeable. Phoenix also is short on first-round picks for the foreseeable future and, outside of moving Grayson Allen, they're likely looking at a number of minimum contract signings to help the cause. To make it even worse, the Suns also don't have a second-round pick over tampering with Drew Eubanks.

Mat Ishba is a newbie in this world and his ability to construct a winning roster remains in question. So it's worth wondering if he would really risk his best chance to add depth by drafting Bronny James in order to entice LeBron to come to Phoenix.

Will the Suns draft Bronny James with their first-round pick?

Obviously, we have no idea what the outcome will be at the No. 22 pick right now and if the Suns would draft Bronny James with their only pick. Given the inexperience and bold decision-making we've seen from Ishba to this point -- and general manager James Jones' connections to LeBron -- however, it can't be ruled out.

That doesn't mean it wouldn't be a monumental mistake, though. With the limited assets Phoenix has to fill out the roster. It's a Sund team that could use established role players or more pro-ready talent in the draft. The younger James might develop into a solid 3-and-D wing in the NBA but he also likely needs time to blossom into that type of player and role. He's not an immediate difference-maker by most projections.

Put simply, Bronny James isn't the answer the Suns are looking for. And if it does end up happening, it would look like a bad fit and, frankly, bad business in Phoenix.