Sun eventually recovered and traveled with the Lakers as a member of their playoff roster, but he was not activated. Since he was a member of the team when the Lakers ultimately won their championship, he did receive a ring and was crowned as an NBA champion. He is the first ethnic Chinese player to win an NBA championship. Following the death of Kobe Bryant in 2020, Sun posted a tribute to Bryant on his Weibo account, writing: "After I came to the Lakers, I was lucky to be your teammate. This is the dream of many people."