The Phoenix Suns beat the Detroit Pistons 100-88 in Las Vegas Summer League play Wednesday at Thomas & Mack Center, improving to 3-1 behind another dominant night from Khaman Maluach. The second-year center posted 23 points and 15 rebounds, Rasheer Fleming added 22 points and eight boards, and Koa Peat scored 19 with three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
The shape of the game tested Phoenix more than the final margin suggests. The Suns built a 17-point lead in the first quarter, watched Detroit erase all of it in the third, then pulled away again to win by 12 — the second straight game they’ve answered a serious counterpunch after closing out Milwaukee on an 11-1 run Monday.
Maluach’s week in Las Vegas now reads 15 and 15 against New Orleans, 21 and 10 with four blocks against Milwaukee, and 23 and 15 against Detroit — three straight double-doubles against three different frontcourts. The production has come in every form the position asks for: deep post seals, offensive rebounds converted immediately, and rim protection that changes the other team’s shot selection. Fleming’s 22 was his loudest scoring night of the summer and came with the physical rebounding Phoenix drafted him for, while Peat has now scored in double figures in all four of his Vegas appearances. For a franchise that spent recent summers hunting stars, a July in which the three youngest frontcourt pieces all look ahead of schedule is a different kind of good news.
On the fantasy side, Maluach is the name to act on. Rebounding and shot-blocking are the two skills that translate most reliably from July to the regular season, and he is stacking both nightly; his dynasty price is climbing and he’s worth a late-round look in deeper redraft leagues if his role grows in camp. Fleming is a deep-league stash, and Peat remains a dynasty watchlist name rather than a draftable one.
