Sources: Suns trim roster, waive guard Johnson

The Phoenix Suns are waiving guard Keon Johnson to trim their roster to 15 for the start of the NBA season, sources told ESPN on Sunday night.

Johnson, 21, landed with the Suns as part of a three-team trade with Portland and Milwaukee in September but fell victim to a numbers game on a veteran-laden roster that the Suns expect to compete for a championship this season.

Johnson’s release clears the way for Bol Bol to make the opening night roster. He signed a one-year free agent deal with the Suns this summer.

Johnson, the 21st overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft out of Tennessee, started his career with the Clippers before moving on to the Trail Blazers. Phoenix acquired him along with Jusuf Nurkic as part of the deal that sent Deandre Ayton to the Blazers and Damian Lillard to the Bucks.