PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns addressed their need at the center position after Mark Williams suffered a torn labrum by agreeing to a deal with former Portland Trail Blazers center Duop Reath Wednesday night.
The Suns have all 15 standard contracts filled, so Reath will likely be fighting for a spot on the roster in training camp and the preseason, as The Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin reported he is a training camp invite. The deadline for trimming the roster down to 15 players is on Oct. 19.
Still, unless Phoenix brings in more competition at the center position for camp, there seems to be a good chance Reath makes the roster because of the hole for a third center on the team.
This would mean one of Jamaree Bouyea or Haywood Highsmith would likely be waived to make room for Reath because both Bouyea and Highsmith's contracts are not fully guaranteed until Jan. 10, 2027.
Bouyea makes the most sense of these two players after Phoenix brought in Pat Spencer on a two-way contract this summer, as Spencer could eat up a lot of the third-string point guard minutes Bouyea saw last season anyways.
The 30-year-old Reath brings a new element of a true stretch big to the Suns after shooting 35.7% on 2.8 attempts per game from deep over his three NBA seasons in Portland, including 41.8% last year across 32 games.
Reath, who spent six seasons overseas before joining the Blazers in 2023, showed some intriguing flashes with his unique skillset at 6-foot-9, 245 pounds, but was buried in Portland's center rotation throughout the years and suffered a season-ending foot injury in January.
He ended his time with the Blazers having played in 146 games (20 starts), averaging 6.2 points and 2.6 rebounds in 13.3 minutes per game.
Now, he joins a Suns center room that features Oso Ighodaro and Khaman Maluach after Williams' injury, giving him a chance to carve out minutes for himself, especially if Maluach does not develop as Phoenix hopes.
Reath and Maluach were both born in South Sudan and had to overcome several challenges to make it to the NBA, so adding Reath could end up being a huge positive for Maluach's development.
The Suns as an organization have also long been connected to Reath with him being in trade rumors surrounding the team in early 2025 and appearing in two Summer League games with Phoenix back in 2022.
Phoenix now gets a player it has long coveted, while Reath will look to prove he belongs on the roster in training camp and the preseason.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/suns/onsi as What Duop Reath Signing Actually Means for Suns .
