Suns center Deandre Ayton said that owner Robert Sarver’s suspension and $10MM fine was much deserved, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic writes.
“At the end of the day, the actions are unacceptable,” Ayton said. “My thoughts go out to all the people that were affected by his actions.”
Coach Monty Williams and GM James Jones said they were blindsided when the investigation revealed the depth of Sarver’s actions within the organization, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.
“I was in disbelief,” Williams said. “When you see the bullet points and then when you go through it, um, you start to think about how these things impact the people.”
“I would say just a state of shock,” Jones added. “You don’t want that around the organization. You don’t want that to be the issue.”
We have more on the Suns:
- Devin Booker is happy that the Suns matched the Pacers’ offer sheet for Ayton, he told Rankin. “I’m excited for him,” Booker said. “That’s a weight lifted off his shoulders. You understand that this isn’t just basketball. It comes down to business at some point. The only way you can learn and understand those situations is if you’re in them. I think he learned a lot.”
- Jae Crowder will sit out camp as the team seeks a trade for the veteran forward. Jones said the situation is a “difficult” one, Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports tweets. “It’s a team thing for us,” he said. “This is a difficult situation to navigate.”
- Where will Crowder wind up? Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype tackles that subject and believes the Cavaliers, Sixers and Hornets top the list of potential suitors.
- The fact that Sarver announced the franchise is up for sale doesn’t mean that the issues uncovered during the investigation and the backlash the league experienced after revealing its punishment have been erased, Windhorst opines.
Ok so the coach and GM don’t have a clue. Of the racist culture of their office. Like they deal with this guy all the time. Money shuts up a lot of people. If you ask me.
I still don’t get what is up with a Crowder trade. He actually called it a team move. Crowder has to be one of the main TEAM guys they have. Just don’t get it at all.
I think crowder wants to start somewhere, which is fair bc he would start for a decent amount of teams. Suns making the right call by starting Johnson, but they could still use crowder on the team imo. Tough situation
He’s only going to want to go to a team that intends to compete, and the Suns won’t want to strengthen a rival, so that really limits the market a lot. Maybe to Atlanta for Hunter?
Crowder to Dallas would be a perfect fit for them as their starting PF. I wonder if Maxi Kleber going the other say would interest Phoenix: a hybrid backup PF/C who stretches the floor and is respectable on the defensive end.
You would be shocked at how well a lot of closet racists go at editing what they say to who. Also, I bet in the GM doesn’t talk to the owner more than 6 to 7 times a year.
Crowder just wants to be a starter and he knows Cam Johnson is just better. Last season showed that if his shots not falling his defense takes a hit too. I wish Crowder the best out of the 4 teams suggested i would see if i could get Kevin Love for Crowder (if the money matches). I did see a crowder for Derrick Rose but i dont think the Knicks would do that
The Phoenix Suns are having a bad off season. The Robert Sarver news is terrible. The way they played Deandre Ayton wasn’t cool. Then the way they doing Jae Crowder ain’t right either. I wouldn’t be surprised if they miss the playoffs this season. They got exposed in the playoffs and are trending in the wrong direction.
Not so sure about the ‘missing post-season’ part though.