Phoenix Suns: 5 steps to the ‘ideal’ 2019 offseason

Step 4: Sign Al-Farouq Aminu and round out the rotation

With Tyler Johnson stretched, Warren and Jackson dumped, Russell’s $27 million salary and the No. 8 pick in the draft factored in, plus the cap holds for Holmes and Kelly Oubre Jr. still on the books, the Suns would be sitting around $97 million in total salary cap allocations.

That leaves them with a little wiggle room before the $109 million salary cap, which they’d need to pour into a starting-caliber power forward. Clarke is promising and should be an NBA-ready prospect, but he’ll still be a rookie. If the Suns want to approach 30-win territory, they’ll need a drastic upgrade from last year’s starting 4, Dragan Bender.

Three options standout as potentially affordable, veteran players who might actually consider Phoenix if the price is right: Nikola Mirotic, Thaddeus Young and Al-Farouq Aminu. Here’s how they compared statistically last year:

• Nikola Mirotic: 46 GP, 15.2 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 1.2 APG, 43.9 FG%, 36.5 3P% (on 6.0 3PAs)
• Thaddeus Young: 81 GP, 12.6 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.5 SPG, 52.7 FG%, 34.9 3P% (on 1.8 3PAs)
• Al-Farouq Aminu: 81 GP, 9.4 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 1.3 APG, 43.3 FG%, 34.3 3P% (on 3.5 3PAs)

Mirotic’s 3-point shooting stands out the most. He attempted by far the most triples, shot the best percentage, is still only 28 years old and made 38.2 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s. If he’s interested in Phoenix, he’d be the best option.

Unfortunately, he’ll have tons of suitors, and the Suns might not have the space (or the desire) for the overpay it’d require to really get his attention on the free agency market — especially for a player who missed 36 games last year and has been inconsistent throughout his career.

Young is a solid, well-respected veteran in this league, but he’s also 31 years old, attempted the fewest 3s of the group and shot the worst percentage on catch-and-shoot looks (34.3 percent). That leaves Aminu, who could be leaving the Portland Trail Blazers this summer due to their cap sheet crunch.

Aminu will turn 29 in September, but he’s still in his prime, is a multi-positional defender and has been in this league — and on a playoff team — for a long time now. He’d be a great addition to the locker room, and though he’d eat up most of the Suns’ remaining cap space, he’d be worth the investment if they could get him to agree to a two- or three-year deal in the $10-11 million range.

Since we need to keep it realistic, let’s assume it’d take an $11 million annual salary to pique his interest. That’d put the Suns at just under $108 million, right below the salary cap line at $109 million.

From there, the team would need to round out the rotation with veteran minimum contracts or the mid-level exception, valued at $9.2 million. A few potential targets, particularly to help shore up the wing rotation, would include guys like Thabo Sefolosha, Darius Miller, Ed Davis, Jonas Jerebko, Nik Stauskas, Iman Shumpert, Omri Casspi, Taj Gibson, Noah Vonleh, Amir Johnson and Mike Muscala.