"This is the week the Suns will start work as a team, but they won't be a complete one.

There is still roster work ahead for the Suns, who will start practicing Saturday at Grand Canyon University Arena.

The Suns need to sign free agents, but there is no reason to expect them to chase the top ones.

Every Suns move will be made with July 1, 2012, in mind. The Suns want to preserve the cap space they have set up for next summer's free agency, when they could sign one or two maximum-salary free agents from a potential pool led by Dwight Howard, Chris Paul and Deron Williams.

The free-agent names will not be so scintillating for this contracted off-season, which began Wednesday with teams able to sketch deals with player agents. Teams can begin signing free agents Friday, when the Suns will first meet as a team.

The Suns are focusing free-agency pursuits on adding a wing player and a point guard. Keeping the rights to Aaron Brooks, a restricted free agent averaging 12.3 points and 4.5 assists in China, puts a $5 million salary-cap hold on the books that keeps the Suns over the salary cap.

That prevents them from pursuing any amnesty waivers and limits spending to some or all of the $5 million midlevel exception for a wing player and another for a point guard. Brooks' Guangdong contract binds him to play in China until its postseason ends in March."