Suns recap and notes

The Mavericks selected Peat with the No. 30 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft and traded his rights to the Suns.

The Suns made a late-night splash to close out the first round, dealing into the No. 30 slot to secure Peat. The 19-year-old power forward stays in-state after a highly productive freshman campaign at Arizona, where he anchored the interior for a Wildcats squad that captured a Big 12 championship and advanced to the Final Four. Starting all 36 contests, the 6-foot-8, 245-pound forward earned Third Team All-Big 12 and All-Freshman honors by averaging 14.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in 27.8 minutes per game. Peat is a physically mature, blue-collar frontcourt player who excels at absorbing contact, finishing efficiently around the rim (52.8 percent from the field), and operating as a high-post playmaker. While his lack of vertical explosiveness and sub-optimal perimeter shooting (35.0 percent from deep on low volume; 62.3 percent from the line) cap his upside as a primary scoring option, he is an incredibly stable, high-floor “glue guy”. Phoenix’s front office had been aggressively hunting a first-round entry point to inject youth into their championship-aspiring core, and Peat fits the exact billing of a physical, ready-made contributor. He should challenge for immediate reserve minutes in the Suns’ frontcourt rotation behind Kevin Durant, offering robust interior depth and supplementary playmaking out of the gate.