The Phoenix Suns assigned rookie center Oso Ighodaro to the G League Valley Suns on Tuesday, the team announced.

Ighodaro has a path to everyday playing time in the G League after his NBA minutes have decreased since the addition of center Nick Richards via trade with the Charlotte Hornets.

Richards is five games into his Suns tenure, during which Ighodaro only averaged 7.3 minutes over the first three and did not play in the most recent two contests.

Veteran Mason Plumlee has been Phoenix’s primary reserve big, having played 40 minutes over the last two games. Day 1 starter Jusuf Nurkic has been removed from the rotation, but he sits in as a third option with Ighodaro playing for the Valley Suns.

The rookie has averaged 3.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.9 stocks (steals and blocks) in 16.1 minutes per game in 36 appearances so far. He has shot 55.8% from the field and 54.3% from the free-throw line.

Per 36 minutes, his averages increase to 8.4 points and 7.9 rebounds.

The Suns drafted Ighodaro out of Marquette with the 40th overall pick in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft, their second selection after Virginia forward Ryan Dunn (No. 28). Ighodaro is a Valley native who attended Desert Vista High School.

The Valley Suns are in their debut season and play their home games at Arizona State’s Mullett Arena. Their leading scorer is guard and fellow Valley native TyTy Washington (20.5 PPG), who is on a two-way contract along with Jalen Bridges and Collin Gillespie.

Their next home game is Friday at 7 p.m. MST against the San Diego Clippers.

The NBA Suns return to action on Wednesday at Footprint Center against the Minnesota Timberwolves with tip-off set for 7 p.m. MST.

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PHOENIX — Aesthetically pleasing wins aren’t coming anytime soon for the Phoenix Suns, but the sooner they show progress through their mistakes like Monday’s 111-109 win over the Los Angeles Clippers, the closer they will be to achieving those in the future.

And with that said, the Suns putting together more high-level stretches still qualifies as a success even when mixed in with the maddening lows, especially when they hold on for a win. They’ve now won nine of their last 12 to improve to 24-21.

Phoenix played its best first half in weeks to lead by 13 before giving up a 20-6 run in the third quarter filled with nasty turnovers that let the Clippers back in the game and eventually lead. The Suns fought back on two different occasions to take the advantage back to double digits, going up 13 with 5:08 to go, a push-back element worth noting that will be crucial to possess over the next two months.

But watching the Suns attempt to close out a game continues to be like the person that is slipping, and while attempting to recover, keeps repeatedly slipping as they frantically try to regain their balance. Some nights, the Suns are able to stay on their feet, exhale and walk away like nothing happened. Other nights, they fall flat on their face.

Everyone who has watched the Suns the past season-plus has developed an intuition for when the slip begins. The importance of a possession to end in either a stop or a score is amplified because of the looming presence of the game snowballing.

The second of those stretches came over 3:40 of the final frame, a 16-4 collapse the Clippers scored on seven straight possessions during to get within one with 40 seconds remaining.

Phoenix then generated free throws for Bradley Beal off a double-team on Kevin Durant, and once Los Angeles’ Norman Powell was fouled with 19 seconds left down three, it would come down to whether the Suns could execute enough with the free-throw shenanigans. Powell missed his first to make it easier on Phoenix, who wrapped up the win.

This was the type of performance from Devin Booker when he is the complete catalyst, the guy we recognize. He amounted to 26 points, seven rebounds, eight assists and two turnovers in 39 minutes, with several hockey assists too that punished the Clippers’ defensive scheme.

Los Angeles (26-20) has oddly built up an elite defense via giving up lots of 3s. It gives up the third-highest 3-point frequency, per Cleaning the Glass. But because it denies most of them coming from the corner, the Clippers give up the third-lowest shooting percentage on those, making the trade-off worthwhile.

Phoenix, however, has good enough shooters that above-the-break triples become more problematic and it sure was early. The Suns began the game 10-of-15 from 3 to go up 10, and four of those makes actually came from the corners because of the Suns’ strong ball movement.

Booker was the tip of the spear in this, which is always when the Suns are at their best. Booker has infamously annihilated Lue’s defenses in two separate postseasons, so there’s some familiarity there too that probably helps.

The Suns were relentless in targeting James Harden to put him on the ball at the beginning of most of these possessions, the free switches L.A. bizarrely gives up. Phoenix triggered its passing all night off the Clippers’ rotations to go 22-for-47 (46.8%) from 3-point range. The 14 in the first half tied a season high, as did 22 overall.

“We generated open looks all game,” Durant said. “It felt like we could have made 10 more 3s with all the open looks we got.”

Tyus Jones (5 3PM), Booker (5 3PM), Grayson Allen (4 3PM), Durant (4 3PM) and Royce O’Neale (3 3PM) accounted for 21 of those.

“Keep shooting it,” Booker said of reaching 47 attempts. “Everybody shot it well tonight but still encouraging if we come out and shoot blanks, still have to get ’em up. … The recipe is out there. I’m not saying shoot all 3s — I know people are having a hard time adjusting to that. But good ball movement also usually leads to a 3 too.”

The Suns gave up 24 points off their 17 turnovers but were able to balance that out enough with 18 points off the Clippers’ 15 turnovers. Phoenix winning second-chance points 18-14 is a nod to the energy that was there all night.

Clippers center Ivica Zubac finished with 25 points, 16 rebounds and four assists while Norman Powell added 23 points, five rebounds, two assists and four steals. Those two are what continue to elevate L.A. beyond just relying on two stars. This was just a solid Harden performance and Kawhi Leonard couldn’t finish the game after reaching 28 minutes with 5:32 remaining.

Suns center Nick Richards has no doubt played well through five games but he also has a ton to pick up on over the next few weeks that will truly determine how impactful he can be. That issue was on display when he didn’t close the game, putting Mason Plumlee on the floor for the majority of the fourth quarter, and Richards only played six minutes in the second half.

Playing in a losing situation as a more inexperienced player like Richards did in Charlotte to begin his career was more about building up the right habits as opposed to the air-tight execution that turns average teams into great ones. There are tiny details way above our pay-grade in this space that coaches are constantly reinforcing to Richards through a game, with a test like the Clippers providing good minutes to work through it.

That’s things like screening angles, timing on his rolls, the precise positioning of his drop defensively and much more. Plumlee has that stuff down as a long-time veteran so he rightfully had the trust of the coaching staff for crunch time. Richards had a handful of mistakes in his first shift that included three turnovers and two fouls, but through that, made a few energy plays. While that’s not going to offset the negatives, he will have to stick with it through his high motor as the intricacies begin coming more naturally.

O’Neale started in place of Ryan Dunn (left ankle sprain). Bradley Beal remained in a role off the bench.

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The Miami Heat have suspended Jimmy Butler a third time after he walked out of shootaround Monday when informed he would come off the bench behind Haywood Highsmith, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.

“The Miami HEAT are suspending Jimmy Butler without pay effective immediately for an indefinite period to last no fewer than five games,” the team said in a statement.

“The suspension is due to a continued pattern of disregard of team rules, engaging in conduct detrimental to the team and intentionally withholding services. This includes walking out of practice earlier today.”

Butler was coming off his second suspension — the first was for seven games and the second for two. He received the second suspension because he missed a team flight to tip a two-game road trip.

“We have suspended Jimmy Butler for two games for a continued pattern of disregard of team rules, insubordinate conduct and conduct detrimental to the team, including missing today’s team flight to Milwaukee,” the team confirmed in a statement about the second suspension.

What happened before Jimmy Butler’s first and second suspensions by Heat?

The Heat left for Milwaukee around 2:15 p.m. Wednesday. That departure time is earlier than Miami leaves for most of its trips, and it’s unclear if that was a factor for Butler.

The dates for the scheduled games on this Heat road trip coincided with a padel tournament in Miami, one that listed Butler as an honorary chairman and co-captain. Butler’s coffee company, Big Face, was also involved with the event. But it was not known if that had anything to do with him missing the flight to Milwaukee.

Butler ended up attending that event and meeting with reporters.

“I love this city with everything that I have,” he said this weekend at the padel tournament that he co-chaired.

The NBA’s trade deadline is Feb. 6.

Butler was banished for seven games earlier this month, costing him about $2.4 million in salary.

He returned last week and played in each of the last three Miami games, averaging 13.0 points in 29.3 minutes. But he was notably detached from the team during timeouts and breaks in play.

Butler wants a trade — reportedly favoring the Phoenix Suns as a landing spot — and Miami is trying to comply.

But moving Butler and his $48.8 million salary this season is likely going to be more complicated that it would have been in past seasons, largely because of the league’s aprons — salary levels installed as part of the new collective bargaining agreement that restrict the ways bigger-spending teams can make certain moves.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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Phoenix Suns rookie forward Ryan Dunn will not play Monday against the Los Angeles Clippers at Footprint Center due to a sprained left ankle, according to the NBA injury report.

Dunn suffered the injury early in the first quarter of Saturday’s 119-109 win over the Washington Wizards after rolling his ankle on Devin Booker’s foot while launching to the basket.

He exited less than two minutes into the game and did not return, as Bradley Beal checked in off the bench.

“The image tonight was negative and we’ll just see how he feels in the morning,” head coach Mike Budenholzer told reporters after the game.

Dunn rolling his ankle on Books foot 😭 pic.twitter.com/j65jj1VbnN

— Cage (@ridiculouscage) January 26, 2025

Dunn has played in 40 of Phoenix’s 44 games this season and has started the last 12 contests with Beal coming off the bench.

Since his insertion into the starting five (excluding Saturday), Dunn has averaged 10.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 24.9 minutes per game while shooting 35.1% from beyond the arc.

The rookie’s defense and energy have been consistent, and his outside shooting has improved in January compared to the previous two months.

Dunn is the only Suns player on the injury report, excluding two-ways.

Clippers injury report

For Los Angeles, veteran guard and stalwart defender Kris Dunn is out due to left knee injury management. Dunn averages 6.0 points and 1.5 steals per game this season.

Rookies Jordan Miller (illness) and Cam Christie (left ankle sprain) are both out, as is former Suns forward P.J. Tucker, who is not with the team and has not played this season.

The Suns (23-21) enter the matchup 2.5 games back of the Clippers (26-19), who sit in the sixth seed in the Western Conference. Phoenix has won seven of its last nine games.

The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. on 98.7 and the Arizona Sports app.

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Devin Booker on Saturday debuted the Aspen Corner edition of his Nike Book 1 shoe in a Phoenix Suns win over the Washington Wizards.

Devin Booker’s new Arizona-inspired Nike Book 1, dubbed “Aspen Corner,” draws inspiration from Flagstaff’s Aspen trees, which turn yellow in the fall 🍁 pic.twitter.com/BQuo0LsWot

— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) January 26, 2025

It’s the third colorway in the “No Service” pack where each shoe is named after an area in Arizona’s high country, which Booker often returns to during offseasons to get a break from the populous city and avoid Valley summers.

“I go up to Flag every time the leaves turn over and go check that out,” Booker told reporters postgame. “Any bits of stories I can give to the fans or my people without just telling them or yelling in their face, I like to do it.”

Previous editions were named after Sedona and Flagstaff, and the Aspen Corner model stayed true to the theme with the silhouette of Arizona’s tallest peak — Humphrey’s Peak near Flagstaff — on the tongue under the “Book” logo.

“When they told me I was getting a shoe, I was like, ‘What’s a better way to tell stories?’ Because, you know, I don’t really talk that much. So I’d rather just tell stories through different ways like that,” Booker said. “And I think, each story having a shoe, people are finding the connections.”

Will the Aspen Corner colorway be available to purchase?

While the Sedona edition dropped on Jan. 1 at $140 and the Flagstaff colorway is expected to be released to the public on Feb. 13 retailing at $150, the Aspen Corner color will be a player-exclusive version meant for Booker only, according to Sneaker News.

On the latest edition of the State of the Sun Devils podcast, Jeremy Schnell, Jesse Morrison and Damon Allred react to Arizona State men’s basketball’s 76-61 loss to No. 3 Iowa State at Desert Financial Arena.

The Sun Devils started well and led 40-33 at halftime. They shot 50% from three-point range and 56% from the field in the first half.

The game started to unravel for ASU in the second half. The Sun Devils had 11 turnovers in the frame and were just 2-for-12 from three.

Foul trouble also hurt Arizona State in the game. The Sun Devils had five players pick up at least three fouls. Joson Sanon and Jayden Quaintance, debatably ASU’s two best players, fouled out.

The Sun Devils dropped to 11-8 overall and 2-6 in the Big 12 with the loss. They will have to start stacking wins if they want to make the NCAA Tournament.

ASU returns to the court Tuesday at Colorado before welcoming rival Arizona to Tempe on Feb. 1.

TEMPE — ASU men’s basketball nearly added a signature win to its resume on Saturday, but it lost 76-61 after a late surge by No. 3 Iowa State at Desert Financial Arena.

“We’re starting to figure some things out, but ultimately you’ve gotta win. There’s no moral victories,” Sun Devils coach Bobby Hurley said postgame.

The 10th-year program leader pointed out the team’s previous three losses (Cincinnati, UCF, Baylor) all coming in competitive fashion before this one against national-contending ISU.

Curtis Jones willed Iowa State across the finish line without much help on the offensive end, scoring a career-high 33 points on 22 shots. The rest of the Cyclones were 12-for-26.

“He was playing like a different game than everybody else was today,” Hurley said of Jones. “But not only his offense, like he was face-guarding us, denying us on defense, picking up full court. He played a complete game.”

After the Sun Devils had built a 40-33 halftime lead, Iowa State opened the second half with six straight points. ASU held onto its lead until the Cyclones tied the game at 50 with 12:13 remaining.

That was well before Jayden Quaintance, who played through an injury sustained in practice and will undergo a “thorough evaluation,” fouled out in the first minute of a 19-3 run that saw the Cyclones turn a one-point deficit into a 15-point victory.

Fellow freshman Joson Sanon would later also foul out and finish with eight points on 3-for-6 shooting in 25 minutes as he made his return from a high ankle sprain.

Following a timeout during the late surge, chants of “I-S-U” rang throughout ASU’s home arena with the final in sight. The ASU students’ response? “Where’s your trophy?”

With Iowa State in town, the Arizona State football players were on hand, not missing the chance to rub in their Big 12 Championship trophy — won over the Cyclones on Dec. 7.

Defensive lineman Justin Wodtly brought the Sun Devils’ trophy over to where the Cyclones fans were stationed following the battling chants, showing it off one last time for good measure.

Jones said postgame seeing how the football team flaunted the trophy and gave him some added juice in the game.

As for the Curtain of Distraction brought out for the second half, defensive tackle Jacob Rich Kongaika and running back Raleek Brown served as the distraction, bringing the trophy with them.

The Curtain of Distraction 🤝 @ASUFootball pic.twitter.com/ySEdKieMjc

— 942 Crew (@942Crew) January 25, 2025

Hurley said the atmosphere felt like a “home-neutral” environment and later propped up the football team for what it has meant to the athletic department.

ASU’s transition defense takes a step forward

After ASU gave up 28 points off 15 turnovers to West Virginia, 17 points off 14 turnovers to Cincinnati and 16 points off 14 turnovers to UCF, it had a tall task matching up against the Big 12’s leader in turnovers forced per game (15.61).

“It starts (with) just building your transition, getting back quickly and getting matched up fast regardless of what happens on offense. Making sure we’re identifying the threats right away, they can score in transition,” Hurley said on Friday before the game. “We gotta help and we gotta get back and we gotta do it all.”

ASU was much better with its transition defense in the first half, allowing only three points off seven turnovers.

Shawn Phillips Jr. had the team’s best moment in transition defense with a block to prevent a buzzer-beater to end the half, allowing the Sun Devils to enter the locker room with their longest lead of the game to that point. He finished with a career-high four blocks.

Hurley called him a “bright spot in the darkness” and was complimentary of the big man’s attitude throughout the day.

“He took a big step today. Hopefully, we keep taking steps with Shawn, because he’s got great upside if he just stays focused and we keep him going in the right direction,” the coach said.

Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker had some fun using classic scenes from the best picture-winning movie “Forrest Gump” while promoting the new Cortez-inspired Nike Book 1.

Booker posted a series of videos on his Instagram story on Friday, generating his face on Tom Hanks’ body to reimagine iconic moments from the film.

In the movie, Gump ran for three years in the Nike Cortez shoes gifted to him by Jenny.

Booker poses as a scruffy Hanks in the moment Gump decides to stop his run while on the highway near Monument Valley, saying, “I’m pretty tired. I think I’ll go home now.”

Devin Booker and Nike recreate FORREST GUMP 🤣pic.twitter.com/R4b1Ml7EWF

— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) January 24, 2025

Another scene shows Devin Gump telling a woman reading on a bench at the park, “Those must be comfortable shoes. I bet you could walk all day in shoes like that and not feel a thing. I wish I had shoes like that. … Mama always said there’s an awful lot you could tell about a person by their shoes. Where they go, where they’ve been.”

Booker, as he’s done with other Book 1 colorways, dropped off pairs of shoes throughout Phoenix on Friday, posting the locations on Instagram for fans to race to like the famous “Run Forrest, Run!” scene.

The Suns’ star has released several colorways of his first signature basketball shoe, including a Sedona edition and an upcoming Flagstaff-inspired sneaker.

Devin Booker hid signed pairs of his “Forrest Gump” Nike Book 1 around Phoenix for fans to find and keep 📚👀 pic.twitter.com/fvLLsOPWZz

— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) January 24, 2025

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The WM Phoenix Open on Wednesday announced Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth and Billy Horschel as the latest additions for its February 2025 tournament at TPC Scottsdale.

Thomas (No. 21 on World Golf Ranking) will try for his 16th victory on the PGA Tour and first since the 2022 PGA Championship. It will be his 11th time at the tournament, and he has a few top-five finishes under his belt: fourth in 2023, tied for third in 2019 and 2020.

Boasting five top-10 finishes in nine appearances at the tournament, Spieth (No. 71) has 13 PGA Tour wins, most recently winning the 2022 RBC Heritage.

Horschel (No. 16) is coming off a 2024 campaign that included his eighth PGA Tour win (Corales Puntacana Championship) along with an eagle putt to beat Rory McIlroy in a playoff at the BMW PGA Championship, his second win at the event.

“We are less than 20 days away, and already the field for the 2025 WM Phoenix Open is shaping up to be one of the strongest in tournament history,” WM Phoenix Open chairman Matt Mooney said in a release. “The latest round of commitments includes some of the biggest names on the PGA TOUR. We can’t wait to see them out at ‘The People’s Open’ in February.”

The three golfers join last week’s initial commitments of Hideki Matsuyama (No. 5), 2023 tournament winner Nick Taylor (No. 29) and Wyndham Clark (No. 7). Wednesday’s additions make it five top-30 golfers committed.

When is the 2025 WM Phoenix Open?

The first round of the 2025 WM Phoenix Open tees off Thursday, Feb. 6.

The fourth and final round is slated for Sunday, Feb. 9.

Additionally, the Annexus Pro-Am takes place the Wednesday before the first round.

The Arizona Diamondbacks agreed to terms with 21 amateur international signees on Wednesday, headlined by Dominican outfielder Elian De La Cruz.

Wednesday kicked off the latest international signing period, opening the window for amateur international free agents to sign with MLB teams.

De La Cruz, a 17-year-old right-handed outfielder from the Dominican Republic, agreed to a $1.1 million signing bonus, Baseball America’s Ben Badler reported.

FanGraphs ranked De La Cruz No. 33 in the 2025 international free agent class, and MLB Pipeline has him at No. 27 with 55-grade (above average) power and arm strength on the 80-grade scale.

MLB insider Francys Romero ranked him No. 28 due to his power potential:

According to several scouts, he is an outfielder with impressive instincts for the game. I’ve included him in this list because his power could become a significant asset in the future, and he has excellent potential for further physical development. His arm is rated between 50-55 on the 80 scale. While he still needs to refine his plate discipline, De La Cruz is undeniably a legitimate prospect in this class.

Each team is designated a bonus pool at the start of each international signing period, as smaller-revenue teams receive a higher spending cap. Teams can also trade or acquire international bonus pool money, similar to compensation draft picks.

The Diamondbacks entered 2025 with $6,908,600 to spend, the second-highest allotment with the Guardians, Orioles, Pirates, Rockies and Royals. The Athletics, Brewers, Mariners, Marlins, Rays, Reds, Tigers and Twins had bonus pools of $7,555,500, while the other end of the spectrum includes the Dodgers and Giants at $5,146,200.

Starting pitcher Roki Sasaki headlines this year’s class as a 23-year-old pitching phenom from Japan, who reportedly picked the Dodgers, Padres and Blue Jays as his three finalists.

Who did the Diamondbacks sign as international free agents?

Malvin Baez, RHP, Villa Verde, Dominican Republic

Juan Brima, SS, Cotui, Dominican Republic

Alam Bruno, SS, Santo Domingo Centro, Dominican Republic

Johan Calcano, RHP, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Elian De La Cruz, OF, La Vega, Dominican Republic

Mayki De La Rosa, CF, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic

Feliz Genao, 3B, Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic

Santiago Gil, C, Caracas, Venezuela

Rodrigo Gonzalez, SS, Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela

Yaury Jimenez, RHP, Peravia, Dominican Republic

Albert Medina, OF, Carupano, Venezuela

Ismael Mejia, C, Carrizal, Venezuela

Jeshua Mendez, C, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Daonil Montero, SS, Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic

Jose Pitre, CF, Guayana, Venezuela

Eybert Sanchez, SS, Maracay, Venezuela

Victor Santana, 3B, Santo Domingo Centro, Dominican Republic

Angel Suarez, SS, Higuerote, Venezuela

Ronny Suarez, CF, Barlovento, Venezuela

Miguel Valdez, LHP, Santo Domingo Centro, Dominican Republic

Keivan Vasquez, LHP, Higuey, Dominican Republic

Dominican OF Maiky De La Rosa has officially signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Bonus deal: $600,000.

Trained by Cacoon Academy. pic.twitter.com/S0tUUd4M1G

— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) January 15, 2025

The Diamondbacks’ top international free agent of 2024 was Dominican outfielder Adriel Radney, whom MLB Pipeline ranked No. 10 in his class. He was Arizona’s No. 15 prospect at the end of last season after playing in the Dominican Summer League, per Pipeline.

International free agent success stories on Arizona’s active roster include shortstop Geraldo Perdomo (2016) and relief pitcher Justin Martinez (2019), both of whom the D-backs signed as teenagers from the Dominican Republic. Ketel Marte (D.R.), Eugenio Suarez (Venezuela) and Gabriel Moreno (Venezuela) are among players signed by and developed in other farm systems before the D-backs traded for them.

The Diamondbacks this offseason unveiled their new Dominican academy at the Las Américas Complex in Boca Chico with an education center and lighted ballfields for their prospects.

Diamondbacks announce player development staff

On Tuesday, the D-backs revealed their 2025 player development coaching staff, overseen by director of player development Chris Slivka. Slivka is in his first season as farm director after Shaun Larkin transitioned into a new role as third base coach.

Former big leaguer Nick Evans is Slivka’s assistant farm director, while Rick Short is Arizona field coordinator.

Jeff Gardner takes over as Triple-A Reno’s manager for Blake Lalli. Jeff Bajenaru and Doug Drabek return as pitching coaches, Terrmel Sledge is the hitting coach and Shawn Roof the bench coach.

Javier Colina will manager Double-A Amarillo, Mark Reed will skipper High-A Hillsboro and Dee Garner remains the manager at Single-A Visalia.

The full staff is listed online.

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