12:54pm: Bledsoe will return to the Suns’ facility this week and begin working with staff members, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. Bledose won’t rejoin the team, but he will use the facility to remain in game shape in anticipation of a trade (Twitter link).
12:07pm: Suns guard Eric Bledsoe received a $10K fine from the league for the tweet that sparked trade talks and led to his dismissal from the team, according to Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic (Twitter link).
Bledsoe, who reportedly asked Suns management to trade him during the preseason, hasn’t played since sending out a tweet that read, “I Dont wanna be here” on October 22. Bledsoe denied the message had anything to do with the team and said it was directed at a hair salon, but GM Ryan McDonough didn’t believe that explanation. Bledsoe was sent home the next day and hasn’t rejoined the team.
As Bobby Marks of ESPN noted (via Twitter) when Bledsoe first published his tweet, the NBA has the ability to penalize a player for a “public statement detrimental to the NBA,” and issued an identical $10K fine to Markieff Morris two years ago when Morris publicly demanded a trade out of Phoenix.
The Suns have been listening to trade offers for the 27-year-old Bledsoe, but haven’t found one to their liking. A rumored deal this week involving the Pistons and Reggie Jackson has apparently fallen through.
Bledsoe Go away man Pheonix need next year a Big PF Abd luka Doncic from Draft
Thats ridiculous. The leauge has no idea what the context of the tweet is. They really have to play nancy drew with this
agreed. slippery slope
The league doesn’t allow teams to tamper, but let players do it. That’s wrong! Paul George, Carmelo
Anthony, and Bledsoe are under contract and disrupted their teams.
Well no, because he has the right to quit and forfeit that money. But why would he do that when he can complain and collect those millions.
If an employee publicly announces that they want out, I would hope their boss shows them the door.
How many times in NBA history has an owner sent a player home making $14.5 million a year? Please name them for me!
They should fine McDonaugh for being incompetent but i guess that’d be a recurring fee
On what basis is he being fined?
That one must never be unhappy with their employer, even when the employer has failed on every level to provide a healthy working environment?
Just updated our post to add an extra paragraph explaining the NBA’s possible rationale and some added context re: Markieff Morris.
Copied and pasted from above. There is your answer.
NBA has the ability to penalize a player for a “public statement detrimental to the NBA,” and issued an identical $10K fine to Markieff Morris two years ago when Morris publicly demanded a trade out of Phoenix.
Where is it that internet commenters work, anyway? I don’t get why it’s so confusing that many things that you do outside the scope of your actual job duties can have consequences back at work.