Phoenix Suns Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pelicans, Others In Talks With Bryce Dejean-Jones

February 17th, 2016 at 2:12pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:12pm: The Lakers, Grizzlies, Jazz, Spurs and Suns have contacted Dejean-Jones, though they haven’t necessarily made offers, Kushner tweets.

FEBRUARY 17TH, 12:56pm: New Orleans is waiting until after the trade deadline, Kushner writes. Dejean-Jones would prefer to stay with the Pelicans instead of jumping to another team, according to Kushner, who indicates that he nonetheless wants guaranteed salary that stretches beyond this season. Dejean-Jones is seeking a two- or three-year deal, as Kushner has also reported.

FEBRUARY 11TH, 11:15am: The Pelicans are in talks with Bryce Dejean-Jones about a deal that would bring him back to the team for the rest of the season, and the rookie shooting guard is having conversations with other teams, too, reports Scott Kushner of The New Orleans Advocate (Twitter link). The second 10-day deal that Dejean-Jones signed with the Pelicans expired overnight, and while other NBA teams can sign him to 10-day contracts this year, New Orleans can no longer do so.

The 23-year-old started in eight of his 11 appearances for the banged-up Pelicans, who are missing Eric Gordon and Tyreke Evans because of injuries. Gordon is due back shortly as he recovers from the broken right ring finger he suffered last month, but conflicting reports exist about whether Evans will miss the balance of the season. Quincy Pondexter’s left knee forced him out for the season in January.

Dejean-Jones is averaging 6.3 points and 3.5 rebounds in 19.9 minutes per game, having made 10 of 26 3-point attempts. His connection with the Pelicans dates to the summer league this past July, shortly after he went undrafted out of Iowa State. New Orleans signed him in August to a deal for training camp that included a $50K partial guarantee, but he didn’t make the opening night roster. He appeared in nine games for the D-League affiliate of the Jazz before the Pelicans signed him in January to the first of his 10-day pacts.

The Pelicans already have 14 players under contract through at least the end of the season, so re-signing Dejean-Jones would leave the team without a flexible roster spot. New Orleans has one more game before the All-Star break, tonight at Oklahoma City, and its next game isn’t until February 19th, one day after the trade deadline.

Pacific Notes: Griffin, Scott, Butler, Booker

February 17th, 2016 at 11:06am CST by Chuck Myron

Blake Griffin apologized profusely as he spoke with reporters Tuesday about what he said was “poor judgment” on his part in an incident with Clippers assistant equipment manager Matias Testi that left Griffin with a broken hand, according to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register. Coach/executive Doc Rivers reiterated that he has no intention of trading Griffin, as Woike relays, but Rivers made no secret of the profound effect the situation has had.

“Your actions have consequences, and it doesn’t take long. You can have a bad minute or two minutes, and it changes everything,” Rivers said, as Woike notes. “And it has. This changes a lot of stuff for our team. I think that’s the lesson here.”

It’s still not completely clear when Griffin will return to play, and the Clippers have reportedly had serious talks with the Magic about acquiring fellow big man Channing Frye. See more from around the Pacific Division:

Some within the Lakers are thinking about how Byron Scott would perform as coach if he had more talent, while others ponder just how effective his hard-line approach with the team’s young players has been, according to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times, who writes that the team seems torn about whether to keep the coach for next season. The Lakers are committed to him through season’s end, and while he also has a guaranteed salary for next season, too, his job security beyond this spring is in jeopardy, as the Lakers haven’t been reluctant to eat coaching salaries in the recent past, Bresnahan notes.
Caron Butler is a prime buyout candidate, according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. The Kings reportedly promised to trade him in December, but he’s still with Sacramento.
It’s been a forgettable season in Phoenix, but Devin Booker, whom the Suns drafted 13th overall this past June, gives the team reason for optimism, as Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders examines.

Heat Notes: Dragic, Bosh, Trade Targets

February 17th, 2016 at 9:00am CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat not surprisingly have interest in soon-to-be free agent Mike Conley, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald passes along via Dan Le Batard of ESPN Radio, and Miami is open to hearing offers for Goran Dragic, Jackson writes. However, the Heat are in no hurry to trade their point guard. The Heat like Jeff Teague and Al Horford, but Miami would need to find a third team to involve in a deal to get Atlanta the assets it wants for them, according to Jackson. DeMarcus Cousins and Jahlil Okafor have also held appeal to Miami, at least as of earlier this season, a source who has spoken with the Heat told Jackson. Moreover, the Heat want to further reduce their luxury tax bill and add a shooter, and they’re continuing to try to make the playoffs despite the health scare for Chris Bosh, who has an encouraging prognosis for his long-term health once his latest blood clot issue is resolved, Jackson reports.

See more from Miami:

The most likely course of action regarding Bosh’s health would probably knock him out for three months, according to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel, though agent Henry Thomas told Winderman that it’s too soon to know what will happen.
The Heat probably wouldn’t benefit from missing the playoffs as much as they did last year when they snagged the No. 10 pick and Justise Winslow, making Bosh’s situation potentially devastating for the franchise, contends Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post. Miami’s first-round pick is again top-10 protected, but lottery and draft-night luck played in the Heat’s favor last year.
Jackson lists Mirza Teletovic, Jerryd Bayless and Wayne Ellington as “options” for the Heat as they look for a shooter, though it’s not entirely clear whether the Heat are indeed interested in them.

Western Notes: Griffin, McRae, Durant

February 16th, 2016 at 10:05pm CST by Eddie Scarito

It’s likely the Clippers hang on to Blake Griffin through at least the rest of this season, but he isn’t “untouchable” in trade talk and the Clippers are listening to offers, writes Zach Lowe of ESPN.com. Still, while the team is liable to take a more aggressive stance about trading Griffin if it finds out before the trade deadline that it has no shot at Kevin Durant this summer, the Clips would demand a huge offer just to trade him away before draft time in June, much less Thursday’s 2pm Central trade deadline, according to Lowe. Clippers executives are adamant that they don’t intend to trade their star power forward, with one of them telling Dan Woike of The Orange County Register that the team never offered Griffin and Lance Stephenson to the Nuggets for a package of four players, as had been reported.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

The Kings are seeking a major upgrade at shooting guard and are not looking for younger players who couldn’t provide significant contributions immediately, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee notes (on Twitter). Sacramento is said to be desperate to deal away shooting guard Ben McLemore, with the Timberwolves and other teams reportedly interested in the young wing.
The Mavericks would be interested in Wolves shooting guard Kevin Martin if he works a buyout with Minnesota, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com relays (via Twitter). Dallas would be reluctant to trade for Martin because of the fear he would pick up his player option for next season worth $7,377,500, MacMahon notes.
Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said the team is looking to add a guard via a 10-day deal, but that isn’t likely to occur prior to the team’s next two contests, Dan Woike of The Orange County Register tweets.
The Warriors find themselves in a difficult position at trade deadline time as the team attempts to repeat as NBA champions while trying to set itself up for a run at Durant, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, Tim Kawakami of The Bay Area News Group writes. Golden State has to weigh its pursuit of the all-time regular season victory mark against the chance to land Durant this offseason, Kawakami notes. In order to clear enough cap room to ink Durant outright, the Warriors would need to part ways with a significant chunk of talent, which could derail the team’s chances at bringing home a title in 2015/16, Kawakami adds.
The Suns have recalled shooting guard Jordan McRae from their D-League affiliate in Bakersfield, the team announced. McRae, who is with Phoenix on a 10-day deal, was sent to the D-League so he could participate in the league’s All-Star game, wherein he notched seven points and five assists in 14 minutes of action.
The Kings don’t appear to want to bring George Karl back next season even though they’ve committed to him through the end of this season, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. He’ll have $6.5MM in guaranteed salary remaining on his contract once this season is done.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Atlantic Notes: Griffin, Morris, Johnson

February 16th, 2016 at 6:46pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge doesn’t merely want a short-term upgrade, as he told Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald, leaving Bulpett to surmise that the Celtics don’t have interest in trading for a soon-to-be free agent they’re not confident they can re-sign. The front office objective isn’t merely to help the team grab a better playoff seed in the spring, Ainge said. The Celtics were indeed one of the many teams to inquire about Blake Griffin, a Western Conference source told Bulpett, adding that the Clips have no serious interest in moving him. While the Thursday trade deadline looms ever closer, here’s what else is happening in the Atlantic Division:

Taking a patient approach and sitting out this trade deadline may be the Celtics’ best option despite their stash of draft picks, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com argues. While Boston should explore the possibility of landing a star player, it might be prudent to hold on to that stockpile of assets and make a big move during the offseason, Forsberg adds.
With the Raptors reportedly seeking to upgrade their power forward position, the team is not interested in the Suns’ Markieff Morris, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports relays (on Twitter). Toronto has reportedly expressed interest in Thaddeus Young, Kenneth Faried, Ryan Anderson and Morris, according to multiple reports.
Despite reportedly being miserable with the Nets, small forward Joe Johnson has yet to approach the team about a possible buyout arrangement, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets. Johnson said recently that he wouldn’t dismiss the idea of a buyout from his contract with the Nets, which expires at season’s end, and the Heat, Cavs and Mavs reportedly want to make a run at him if he is released by Brooklyn.
Former Knicks coach Derek Fisher‘s negative remarks regarding future unrestricted free agent Rajon Rondo may have contributed to his ouster in New York, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. Fisher, responding to comments Rondo had made regarding the triangle offense not being a good fit or him, said, “That’s your decision on whether or not he’s elite or not. You can’t ask him, when he wasn’t very successful playing against it, whether or not he wants to play in it. That’s his opinion. That’s fine. He doesn’t play for us. We’re not concerned about his opinion about us at this point.’’ The former coach was said to be a fan of Memphis’ Mike Conley, who is also set to become a free agent this offseason, Berman notes.
Sixers small forward Robert Covington will likely have the most trade value among Philly’s bench players because of his team-friendly contract and ability to stretch defenses with his shooting, Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports opines in his deadline primer for the team.

Chuck Myron and Dana Gauruder contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Morris, Kings, Gasol

February 15th, 2016 at 11:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Suns want a package that includes a younger player and a first-round pick for power forward Markieff Morris, several league executives told Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. Phoenix has no intention of bringing back Morris next season but GM Ryan McDonough could wait until the summer to deal him if he doesn’t get the desired package, Wojnarowski continues. Phoenix already owns five first-rounders over the next three drafts, which motivates McDonough to get more than just a pick for Morris, Wojnarowski adds.

In other news around the league:

The Kings and Magic are under internal pressure to make the playoffs and that increases the chances of those teams making a deadline deal, David Aldridge of NBA.com tweets. Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and vice president of basketball operations Vlade Divac were also canvassing league officials during the All-Star break on possible GM candidates, Wojnarowski reported in his trade deadline update. Divac holds the title of GM but the team is looking for someone who has more experience working with the collective bargaining agreement to assist him, as Wojnarowski details.
The Knicks could make a play for the Bulls’ Pau Gasol, an unrestricted free agent this summer, even though center is not a clear position of need, Marc Berman of the New York Post opines. A source told Berman that money isn’t a primary concern for Gasol, which bodes well for the Knicks. Gasol is one of Knicks president Phil Jackson’s favorite players and he would make a perfect mentor to rookie power forward Kristaps Porzingis, Berman continues. The Knicks could attempt to trade current starter Robin Lopez to open up a spot for Gasol and might also clear cap space sooner by dealing backup big man Kyle O’Quinn, whom they’ve reportedly offered around, before the trade deadline, Berman adds.
Lakers reserve shooting guard Nick Young is hopeful of getting traded to a playoff-bound team, Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News reports. The club wants to move Young, as it tried to do during last season’s trade deadline and the offseason, but has struggled to find a taker, Medina continues. Young has two years and approximately $11.1MM remaining on his contract after this season, with a player option on the final year.
There is only a slim possibility that the Warriors will make a trade before Thursday’s deadline, a source told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

And-Ones: Rubio, Anthony, Cousins

February 14th, 2016 at 9:25pm CST by Will Joseph

Ricky Rubio is “readily available,” writes Frank Isola of the New York Daily News, but Wolves GM Milt Newton earlier this week told Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities that he hadn’t fielded any offers for the point guard. Still, Newton said he would be obliged to listen if a team came calling. The Knicks are in the market for a point guard, but it’s hard to envision New York having the assets needed to acquire Rubio, Isola notes. Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press further clarifies the situation, tweeting that the Wolves are not shopping Rubio, but they won’t immediately hang up the phone if someone calls to ask.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Carmelo Anthony has said he is not looking to leave the Knicks and is not interested in waiving his no-trade clause, but Isola hears Anthony would strongly consider a trade to the Clippers (in the same piece). Isola adds that Anthony has wanted to play with Chris Paul for a while and speculates that a deal involving Blake Griffin would make sense for both teams.
DeMarcus Cousins has been answering to trade rumors all weekend, but the Kings are not going to move him, according to Kurt Helin of NBC Sports’ Pro Basketball Talk. There is little incentive to trade Cousins because he has a reasonable contract, owner Vivek Ranadive loves him and the Kings plan to open a new arena in downtown Sacramento next season, Helin adds. “First of all, I can’t control the trade [rumors] and I can’t control if I’m traded or not,” Cousins said. “But I do want to be in Sacramento, and I know everybody in Sacramento knows that.”
Commissioner Adam Silver hinted that keeping the relative status quo in the next collective bargaining agreement would be OK with him as he spoke Saturday in his All-Star weekend press conference, according to a transcript on NBA.com. “Did we get everything we were looking for in collective bargaining last time? No,” Silver said. “But we feel it’s a fair compromise, and we feel it’s working pretty well.”
Warriors coach and former Suns GM Steve Kerr was inspired to get into coaching because of Jeff Hornacek‘s initial success and expressed disappointment toward Hornacek’s firing, Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic relays. “It’s just a jolt of NBA reality,” Kerr said. “Every coach is sort of a victim of circumstance, good or bad. So much depends on the talent that you have and the support you have and the chemistry in your organization and your locker room. Unfortunately, it’s a really, really hard thing to discover or to create. I feel very lucky to have that here because I know it doesn’t exist in most places.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Blazers, Suns, Celtics Eye Shabazz Muhammad

February 12th, 2016 at 11:40am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 11:40am: The Celtics aren’t interested in dealing for Muhammad before the deadline, one source told Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe.

THURSDAY, 9:29am: The Blazers, Suns and Celtics and other teams are “kicking the tires” on Shabazz Muhammad, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link). The Clippers remain fond of the 23-year-old swingman, Wolfson adds, having first identified the team’s interest in December, though it’s unclear if the Nets and Lakers, two more teams that apparently eyed him earlier this season, still do.

Minnesota was unwilling to trade Muhammad as of December, as Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports reported then, but whether the team has wavered from that stance isn’t known. The 14th overall pick from 2013 has suffered a regression this year, with his minutes down slightly and more significant declines in shooting percentage, shot attempts per game, scoring average and rebounding. He’s seen fewer minutes per game this season than fellow wing players Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, Tayshaun Prince and trade candidate Kevin Martin.

Muhammad is making nearly $2.056MM in the third year of his rookie scale contract, with almost $3.047MM coming next season, the last on the deal. He’s eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer, but given his dearth of playing time, he seems unlikely to receive one.

The Suns would appear to provide the best opportunity for him to see more minutes if he’s traded to Phoenix, especially if P.J. Tucker is no longer there after next week’s trade deadline. The Clippers have been starting Luc Mbah a Moute at small forward, so perhaps an opportunity would exist there. The Celtics and Blazers seem relatively set on the wings.

Pacific Notes: Morris, Griffin, Randle

February 11th, 2016 at 6:50pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Suns will try to trade Markieff Morris before the deadline, but the team isn’t facing immediate pressure, at least in terms of Morris’ contract, to deal him away this season, observes Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. Morris, who’s under contract for three seasons after this one, hinted at a willingness to stay in Phoenix for the rest of 2015/16 in his comments after Wednesday’s game about his shoving incident with Archie Goodwin, according to Coro. “That’s my little brother and we’re going to move forward,” Morris said of the incident. “There’s no hard feelings. It was a tough loss but we’re going to regroup and get back after this break and do some things.”

Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

Virtually every team in the league has checked in with the Clippers regarding the availability of power forward Blake Griffin, but Los Angeles has rebuffed all of them and has no intention on softening its stance against dealing the star, Sean Deveney of The Sporting News notes.
Lakers coach Byron Scott is pleased with how power forward Julius Randle is maturing as a player and a person, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “He’s been fantastic,” Scott said of Randle. “He’s not going overboard as far as trying to go too fast. He’s picking his moments and he’s rebounded the hell out of the ball.”
Luke Walton is more than likely going to remain a Warriors assistant for the remainder of the season despite the young coach being linked to virtually every available coaching post, Tim Kawakami of The Bay Area News Group writes. The scribe cites Walton’s loyalty, the team’s unwillingness to tamper with its winning formula and the low probability that Walton would jump to a team that presses him to make a move in the middle of the season as reasons why he believes the coach will finish 2015/16 in Golden State.
The Suns assigned shooting guard Jordan McRae to their D-League affiliate, Coro tweets. McRae, whom Phoenix inked to a second 10-day deal Monday, is with Bakersfield so he can participate in the D-League All-Star game this weekend, Coro adds.

Latest On Markieff Morris

February 11th, 2016 at 12:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Markieff Morris, Archie Goodwin and interim coach Earl Watson all brushed off an incident during a timeout in Phoenix’s loss Wednesday to the Warriors when Morris shoved Goodwin and teammates had to separate them, as Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic details. It’s not the first confrontation involving Morris to take place on the Suns bench this season, and while the towel he tossed in former coach Jeff Hornacek‘s direction in the midst of a December game resulted in a two-game suspension for the power forward, other teams don’t find it concerning, reports Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports.

“We have to control our emotions,” Watson said, according to Coro. “Other than that, those two are really close. The team is not split. Those two are the closest on the team. They have a bond, a unique relationship. As we’ve seen, unique relationships can lead to something else throughout the league.”

Executives acknowledge that emotions run high and boil over at times during the heat of competition and most say the extra scrutiny surrounding Morris this year magnified the negative public perception of the towel toss, according to Marks. Nevertheless, if such outbursts become common, they could still hurt his trade value, Marks concedes. See more on one of the season’s most significant trade candidates:

Teams with interest in trading for Morris have wondered if the breakdown in communication between the Suns, Morris and his brother Marcus Morris this summer is a harbinger of similar problems they’d have if they traded for Markieff, as Marks details in the same piece. Those teams have looked into the relationship between Marcus and the Pistons and found no issues, Marks adds.
Markieff Morris said after Wednesday’s game that he didn’t regret having shoved Goodwin, notes Paula Boivin of The Arizona Republic. The way that Morris and the rest of the team have responded to the incident is baffling, Boivin contends, believing that Morris’ behavior puts the team in a tough position.
Morris praised Watson for sticking with him, as Boivin relays in the same column, and the coach has been complimentary of Morris since taking over for Hornacek, as his comments before Wednesday game illustrate. “Everybody thought Markieff would be the toughest challenge,” Watson said, according to Coro (Twitter link). “He’s been the easiest challenge.”