Former All-Star guard joining Suns for stretch run

The 35-year-old guard recently joined the Salt Lake City Stars in the G League in hopes of landing another NBA opportunity. He showed he still has his scoring touch, averaging 32.5 points in four games while shooting 45% from three-point range.

Thomas will provide another veteran scorer with playoff experience for a Phoenix team that’s locked in a tight race to avoid the play-in tournament. The Suns entered Saturday night percentage points behind Sacramento for the sixth spot and one game ahead of eighth-place Dallas.

The 11-year veteran has been out of the NBA since the 2021-22 season when he made brief appearances with the Lakers and Mavericks before ending the year with the Hornets.

Thomas was an All-Star with Boston in 2015-16 and 2016-17 before suffering a right hip injury that derailed his career. He bounced around the league after that and most of his recent stops have been on 10-day contracts.

Phoenix plays in Milwaukee at noon Central time on Sunday and has a three-day break before its next game, so Thomas may not sign his new deal right away. Assuming his contract begins when the team returns home on Wednesday, he will be eligible for six games over the following 10 days. A second 10-day deal would take him close to the end of the season, but the Suns would have to give him a standard contract to make him eligible for the playoffs.

Phoenix has a roster opening, so a corresponding move won’t be necessary before Thomas can be added.