Grizzlies Rumors

Austin Rivers Drawing Interest From 4-5 Teams

December 18th, 2018 at 3:15pm CST by Luke Adams

3:15pm: Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian is now hearing that the Grizzlies won’t be signing Rivers after all. According to Herrington, the team discussed the idea, but doesn’t plan on pursuing a deal at this time.

2:43pm: Four or five teams are still expressing interest in Rivers, according to Charania, who notes (via Twitter) that there’s been no formal offer yet from Memphis, since Rivers is still a Sun. While the Grizzlies still appear to be the frontrunners for the veteran guard, it sounds like it may not be a sure thing quite yet.

1:20pm: Austin Rivers technically hasn’t been released yet by the Suns, but once he’s officially cut and clears waivers, he’s expected to finalize a new deal with the Grizzlies, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Reports on Monday night indicated that Phoenix would be parting ways with Rivers shortly after acquiring him from the Wizards. The 26-year-old was part of the package Washington sent to the Suns in exchange for Trevor Ariza. However, Kelly Oubre was the prize of that package for the Suns, who decided to let Rivers try to catch on with a contending team.

Rivers and his representatives wasted little time in lining up a new deal for the veteran guard, though some details will need to be ironed out before he officially joins the Grizzlies. For one, Memphis currently has a full roster of 15 players on guaranteed contracts. One of those players will need to be traded or released to make room for Rivers.

It will be interesting to see if the odd man out in Memphis is MarShon Brooks, whom the Grizzlies were ready to trade to Phoenix in a three-team Ariza deal on Friday before the trade fell apart because the Suns thought they were getting Dillon Brooks.

MarShon has played fairly regular minutes this season, but would overlap positionally with Rivers, and waiving him might allow the Grizzlies to avoid any lingering locker-room awkwardness after last week’s failed trade. Ivan Rabb and even Chandler Parsons could also be release candidates in Memphis.

Meanwhile, since the Suns haven’t officially waived Rivers yet, they may be in position to negotiate a small buyout with him. Players in Rivers’ situation are typically only open to buyouts if they have a new NBA home lined up — now that the Grizzlies are poised to sign him, perhaps Rivers would be willing to give back the equivalent of his prorated minimum salary, which he’d receive from Memphis on his new deal.

For what it’s worth, the Grizzlies can’t offer Rivers more than the minimum, since they used their full mid-level exception on Kyle Anderson and used their bi-annual exception last season on Tyreke Evans.

After enjoying a career year in Los Angeles last season for the Clippers, with 15.1 PPG, 4.0 APG, and a .378 3PT% in 61 games (33.7 MPG), Rivers has struggled so far in 2018/19. In 29 games (23.6 MPG) with the Wizards, the former Duke Blue Devil posted 7.2 PPG and 2.0 APG with a .392/.311/.543 shooting line. Assuming they’re able to finalize a deal, the Grizzlies will be hoping for a bounce-back performance from Rivers in Memphis.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Grizzlies Owner Talks JJJ, Gasol, Bickerstaff, More

December 17th, 2018 at 1:49pm CST by Luke Adams

Due to an unusual agreement with a pair of minority stakeholders in the Grizzlies, Robert Pera‘s position as the franchise’s controlling owner was tenuous up until April of this year. At that point, Pera reached a deal to buy out those minority owners – Steve Kaplan and Daniel Straus – to retain control of the team and to cement his status as the Grizzlies’ owner going forward.

As a result of his newly stable position, Pera became more involved with the team during the 2018 offseason, as he tells Geoff Calkins of The Daily Memphian in a wide-ranging Q&A. According to Pera, he was personally involved in “pretty much every single one” of Memphis’ offseason transactions, which included signing Kyle Anderson and drafting Jaren Jackson Jr.

Pera weighed in on the decision to draft Jackson and several other subjects, including whether Memphis fans should be worried about the threat of relocation. Let’s dive in and round up some of the highlights from the Grizzlies owner…

On drafting Jaren Jackson Jr.:

“One of the biggest reasons we drafted Jaren and also Jevon (Carter) is we did a really in-depth character background and he comes from very good upbringing. His mother is head of the Players Association of the WNBA. When you have players that have the physical attributes, a feel for the game, and they have solid character and solid upbringing, those are all characteristics of players who are some of the most special players in the league, like a Steph Curry.

On whether he’s confident Marc Gasol, who can reach free agency in 2019, will remain with the Grizzlies long-term:

“I can’t read his mind, but if it were up to me I certainly want him to retire as a Grizzly.”

On giving interim head coach J.B. Bickerstaff the permanent coaching job instead of conducting a full-fledged search in the spring:

“One of the things I preached to the front office, I wanted continuity. I always say to the front office, if you want to build a high-performance team, the guys in the locker room can’t see a new face every other week. Right? You need to build a continuity and a familiarity where people can depend on each other, they know who’s in the room and they know they are going to war with the same people every night. A lot of the players knew J.B., so there’s continuity. But on top of that, we have this selfless style of basketball and culture and he’s a very selfless guy. He has the team’s best interest in mind. He fits perfectly with the team.”

On his ongoing confidence in GM Chris Wallace:

“I obviously had my hands in a lot of the moves this offseason, but the way I look at it is, collectively you make some bad decisions, and we made some good decisions, but we don’t like to point at certain people. It’s a collective effort. Chris and the front office, I think this offseason we really surpassed a lot of expectations.”

On whether Memphis basketball fans should be at all worried about him moving the franchise somewhere like Seattle:

“I don’t want any part in relocation. I have my own career, I’m trying to focus on it, I want to keep distractions and chaos to the minimum. I’m committed to Memphis for the long term. And in the world today, it’s so virtual. I have 15 research and development offices around the world, I probably only spend a third of my time in the U.S. When I’m in the U.S., I’m in a bunch of different cities. My employees are in a bunch of different time zones. I keep track of everything virtually. To me it doesn’t matter where the team is located. Memphis is as convenient a place as any. So, yeah, there should be no concern.”

Grizzlies Notes: Bickerstaff, M. Brooks, Selden, Carter

December 16th, 2018 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

As bizarre as the circumstances were surrounding Friday’s failed three-team trade, it’s not the first time Grizzlies coach J.B. Bickerstaff has experienced that type of situation, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Bickerstaff was serving as interim coach of the Rockets in 2016 when the team traded Donatas Motiejunas to the Pistons, who later voided the deal because of injury concerns.

“The guy we brought back, D-Mo, was a high character kid so there wasn’t concern about him having a negative impact on the locker room or anything like that,” Bickerstaff said. “The emotion that they feel is more of a personal emotion. I don’t think it’s necessarily something that’s aimed at the team or a group of guys. But there’s thoughts in your mind that you go through.”

Bickerstaff offered an apology yesterday to Wayne Selden and MarShon Brooks, whom the organization intended to move to Phoenix in the deal. The trade collapsed over apparent confusion over whether the Suns were getting MarShon or Dillon Brooks.

“It’s a difficult situation for people to be put in,” Bickerstaff said. “Guys who have shown up and worked every day and did everything we asked them to do. Felt bad for them. From the coaching side, I thought the right thing to do was apologize and let them know we understand how it feels, how we appreciate in the last 24 hours how they handled it because they could have handled it in a much worse way.”

There’s more today from Memphis:

MarShon Brooks’ mother learned of the trade on social media during Friday’s game and tried to tell her son about it from the crowd, tweets Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian. However, she was too far away for Brooks to figure out what she was saying. “I’m not frustrated with the situation,” Brooks said about the canceled deal. “It’s a business. I understand that. I will say this though: When guys like a Jimmy Butler or Kevin Durant go to different teams and want to play where they want to play, you see why. It’s a business, on both sides.” (Twitter link)
Memphis may have found a gem in second-round pick Jevon Carter, Herrington writes in a full story. Carter had 11 points and two steals in his NBA debut Saturday and displayed the defensive prowess the Grizzlies were counting on when they drafted him. “It’s just a part of the game. It’s a process,” Carter said of starting his career in the G League. “Every day I come in here, I work, and I just wait. I just give my best effort — being a good teammate on the bench for these guys. I love these guys, so whatever I can do to help is what I’ll do.”
Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace gave his thoughts on the trade fiasco last night, insisting his team wasn’t responsible for any confusion.

Grizzlies GM Speaks Out On Failed Trade

December 15th, 2018 at 6:16pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns traded Trevor Ariza to the Wizards this morning without any involvement from the Grizzlies after last night’s three-team deal collapsed because of confusion over whether Dillon Brooks or MarShon Brooks was being sent to Phoenix.

Memphis GM Chris Wallace spoke to reporters today about the drama and denied that his team had any role in making the Suns think they were getting Dillon instead of MarShon, writes Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian.

“We were very clear about who was in the trade,” Wallace said. “Contrary to reports, it was not Dillon Brooks. It put us in a very difficult situation with our players when individuals from one or both of those teams leaked the deal while we were playing last night. That forced me to do something I’ve never done in 30 years in this league working for seven teams: To drag two players out of the locker room to tell them they’d been traded and then come back and tell them, no, you haven’t been traded.”

The proposed deal would have sent Ariza to Washington, Kelly Oubre to Memphis and Austin Rivers, Wayne Selden and Brooks — either Dillon or MarShon — to Phoenix. It’s obvious why the Suns would prefer the 22-year-old Dillon Brooks, who was a second-round draft pick in 2017 and is coming off a promising rookie season. MarShon Brooks, 29, is with his fifth NBA franchise and was out of the league for more than three years before Memphis signed him last season.

The trade was virtually finalized before the Grizzlies and Suns realized they were talking about different players, which Wallace admits was an unprecedented turn of events.

“”Fortunately MarShon and Wayne are pros and after I explained it to them they’re both OK with the situation and we’re all moving forward,” Wallace said. “But what happened last night was unfathomable. From our standpoint, and we made this very clear, it was not Dillon Brooks.”

Wallace believes much of the confusion came about because the Grizzlies and Wizards were both occupied with games. News of the deal leaked before those games concluded, which may help to explain the contradictory reports. Herrington notes that original reports had Dillon Brooks as part of the deal, so it’s unlikely they came from Memphis.

Wallace explained that the trade began to come together Thursday afternoon, but most of the work was done Friday through “multiple discussions” with Washington. He adds that the three teams could probably have worked out the confusion behind the scenes if news of the deal hadn’t been leaked. He also suggested that the incident may make him wary about future dealings with the Suns and Wizards.

“I don’t carry grudges, but I’m not happy about what happened last night,” he said. “We were put in a very difficult position with our players, a position we take great pains not to get into, and we were forced to talk to them (about a trade) right after a loss in the locker room. This should all have stayed in house, and it didn’t, and that started the avalanche going downhill.”

Latest On Failed Three-Team Trevor Ariza Trade

December 15th, 2018 at 10:02am CST by marksuleymanov

In what was a whirlwind few hours on Friday night, a three-team deal centered around Suns’ swingman Trevor Ariza fell apart. As it was reported, the deal would have sent Trevor Ariza to the Wizards and Austin Rivers to the Suns, and allowed the Grizzlies to acquire Kelly Oubre for Wayne Selden, two second-round picks, and one other player.

The confusion came over the identity of that other player as the Grizzlies believed they were dealing MarShon Brooks while the Suns thought Dillon Brooks was headed their way. We outlined in a pair of stories how the deal fell apart, particularly with the Grizzlies and Suns using the Wizards as a conduit in lieu of direct communication. The deal was scrapped after all three teams spoke directly and the Brooks-related confusion became apparent.

In his latest report, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski added new tidbits of information in regards to the scrapped trade and where Ariza may be headed.

After the original deal fell apart, several other teams began to push Phoenix to enter the fray for Ariza’s services. The Lakers and Rockets were both engaging the Suns for Ariza, Wojnarowski noted. Along with the Wizards, this marks three of Ariza’s former teams being in contention to reacquire him.
The Suns privately insisted they had direct conversations with Grizzlies officials on Dillon — not Marshoon — Brooks and Memphis denied that, per Wojnarowski. The Grizzlies viewpoint is that Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld negotiated the deal and that a miscommunication with interim Suns GM James Jones led to the gaffe.
All the parts in the three-team swap were finalized until the Grizzlies and Suns saw conflicting reports on which Brooks was included in the deal. That led to a direct conversation in which the Suns informed Memphis that a deal would not happen unless it included Dillon Brooks.
Ariza and his agent are hopeful that he finds his way back to the Lakers. However, that seems unlikely at this point as Suns owner Robert Sarver is wary of dealing him to the Lakers after criticism that Tyson Chandler‘s buyout created an easy path to Los Angeles. For what it’s worth, Wojnarowski reports that the Lakers were eager to acquire Ariza.

Wizards, Suns Still Discussing Trevor Ariza

December 15th, 2018 at 12:42am CST by Luke Adams

12:42am: The Wizards and Suns are still talking to try to determine whether they can figure out a new deal involving Ariza, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

12:28am: The Suns will have veteran forward Trevor Ariza away from the team for Saturday’s game against Minnesota as they look to resolve his situation, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter). As we’ve detailed at length tonight, the Wizards appeared to be on the verge of acquiring Ariza before the deal fell apart.

Ariza officially became trade-eligible when the clock struck 12:00 am on December 15, though there’s no rush to move him right away rather than waiting until closer to the February 7 trade deadline. Still, after Friday’s near-deal, perhaps the Suns simply want to move on from the 33-year-old as soon as possible.

For what it’s worth, interim Suns co-GMs James Jones and Trevor Bukstein have displayed a willingness once already this season to move quickly on a roster move, as they bought out Tyson Chandler‘s contract months before the NBA’s usual buyout period.

It’s not clear whether the Suns will try to finalize another variation of today’s failed Ariza trade with the Wizards or if they’ll look to work something out with a new suitor for the forward. An earlier report indicated that Suns owner Robert Sarver is opposed to sending Ariza to the Lakers, who are said to be interested. Jabari Young of The Athletic tweets that the Spurs are also believed to have interest in Ariza, though Sarver may not be enthusiastic about working with San Antonio on a deal either.

Meanwhile, even though Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace issued a statement tonight adamantly denying that his team discussed Dillon Brooks or spoke to the Suns during the negotiating process of the three-team Ariza deal, various reports continue to suggest otherwise.

Charania tweets that the Suns and Grizzlies had a “handful of discussions” involving Dillon Brooks, while Candace Buckner of The Washington Post reports (via Twitter) that those Brooks conversations happened for over a week. The Wizards and Suns were both clear that Dillon Brooks, not MarShon Brooks, was the player that would be involved in the deal, according to both Buckner and Charania. A league source suggests to Buckner that “Memphis maybe got cold feet” (Twitter link).

While Buckner echoes an earlier report that indicated the Suns received Dillon Brooks’ medical info from the Grizzlies, Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian (Twitter link) hears from a source that Brooks’ medicals were never exchanged with Phoenix.

Grizzlies GM Issues Statement On Failed Trade

December 15th, 2018 at 12:05am CST by Luke Adams

For about an hour on Friday night, the Grizzlies appeared poised to finalize a three-team trade with the Suns and Wizards. The proposed deal would have sent Trevor Ariza to Washington and Austin Rivers to Phoenix, and would have allowed Memphis to acquire Kelly Oubre for Wayne Selden, two second-round picks, and one other player.

The confusion over the identity of that last player – whom the Grizzlies believed would be MarShon Brooks and the Suns thought was Dillon Brooks – ultimately killed the trade, as we outlined in a pair of stories.

Responding to a report that the Suns and Grizzlies discussed Dillon Brooks during the negotiating process – and to a report that Suns owner Robert Sarver and Grizzlies owner Robert Pera directly discussed Brooks – Memphis GM Chris Wallace issued a statement to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links) to strongly deny those rumors.

Here’s Wallace’s full statement:

“Robert Pera did not have any conversation with Suns owner Robert Sarver about the reported three-way trade. Our front office also didn’t have any conversations with Phoenix regarding the reported three-team trade prior to it leaking during our game tonight.

“We were floored to learn of the reports involving Dillon Brooks in the reported trade. We never discussed Dillon as part of this trade with Washington – which was the only team we spoke with concerning this proposed deal.”

It remains unclear what exactly happened during these negotiations that led to the Brooks-related mishap, as multiple reports from earlier in the evening suggested that the Suns and Wizards believed Dillon was the Brooks being discussed.

Whatever the truth is, none of the three teams come out of Friday night looking particularly good.

Recapping Friday’s Drama And Resetting The Ariza Market

December 14th, 2018 at 11:09pm CST by Luke Adams

With the calendar having turned to December 15, Suns forward Trevor Ariza is now officially eligible to be traded. However, it appears the veteran forward won’t be going to the Wizards in a three-team trade that included the Grizzlies and was seemingly on the verge of completion on Friday night.

As we explained in updates to our story on those Ariza trade talks, a deal sending the Suns forward to D.C. was about to cross the finish line when Memphis and Phoenix realized they weren’t on the same page on one of the players involved in the proposal — the Suns thought they were receiving promising young forward Dillon Brooks from the Grizzlies, while Memphis believed journeyman guard MarShon Brooks was the player involved in the deal. With the Grizzlies unwilling to include Dillon and the Suns unwilling to trade for MarShon, the potential swap fell apart.

How exactly does something like this happen? Well, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Grizzlies and Suns never spoke directly during the negotiations, using the Wizards as a conduit. However, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7, who is one of the most plugged-in reporters on the Suns’ side, tweets that Phoenix had “multiple conversations” with Memphis over the last 24 hours, and even checked Dillon Brooks‘ medicals.

The Suns never had any discussions about MarShon Brooks with either team, according to Gambadoro, who strongly suggests (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies appear to be the team at fault here.

Conversely, according to David Aldridge of The Athletic (via Twitter), the Grizzlies say they “never” discussed Dillon Brooks with anyone and were always talking about MarShon Brooks, adding that they’re “at a loss” to understand the mix-up. However, Wojnarowski tweets that the Wizards believed in conversations with Memphis that they were talking about Dillon.

As Howard Beck of Bleacher Report observes (via Twitter), in the days before details of potential deals leaked immediately to Twitter, this is the sort of mix-up that would have killed a trade well before word broke publicly. Given how today’s media landscape works though, we learned about the failed deal in real time, rather than seeing it reported as a humorous “what-if” anecdote months or years later.

The ramifications of today’s drama shouldn’t be overlooked — Kelly Oubre and Austin Rivers will presumably remain Wizards, knowing that their team had reached an agreement to trade them. It’ll be interesting to see if that has an impact on them going forward, or if Washington is motivated to work out a new deal to move them to avoid locker-room discomfort.

In Memphis, MarShon Brooks and Wayne Selden are in the same boat. According to Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian (via Twitter), both players were told when leaving the floor tonight that they were being traded, but they’ll report back to the Grizzlies tomorrow.

Meanwhile, before the Brooks-related drama reached its climax -when it still appeared the deal would get done – an interesting detail was reported about Ariza. A source told David Aldridge of The Athletic (Twitter link) that Suns owner Robert Sarver was adamantly opposed to sending the 33-year-old to the Lakers, prompting Phoenix’s front office to pivot to other options. Will Sarver stick to that stance now that today’s deal fell through? Can we essentially rule the Lakers out of the Ariza sweepstakes going forward?

Today’s failed deal also provides a hint of what sort of return the Suns are looking for in exchange for Ariza. Gambadoro tweets that the deal was all about Dillon Brooks for Phoenix, rather than Rivers or Selden. So despite their depth on the wing and their need for a point guard, the Suns appear willing to move Ariza for a promising young player at any position — not just one who fills a position of need.

The Wizards and Suns could still try to find a third team to make an Ariza deal work, with potential trade partners knowing now that Oubre could be had. Of course, reports earlier this week suggested that at least eight teams had expressed some interest in Ariza, and now that we have a sense of what it might take to get him, perhaps some new opportunities will open up for the Suns.

It’s not even out of the realm of possibility that these three teams revisit the framework of today’s deal in an effort to find a compromise, according to Aldridge, who notes (via Twitter) that one source said Sarver and Grizzlies owner Robert Pera talked to each other and discussed Dillon Brooks. In a follow-up tweet, Aldridge notes that Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace strongly denies that Sarver and Pera spoke about this proposed trade.

Whatever happens next, tonight’s Ariza/Brooks drama is just the latest reminder of why the NBA’s rumor mill is so much fun.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Three-Team Trevor Ariza Trade Falls Apart

December 14th, 2018 at 10:09pm CST by Luke Adams

10:09pm: The deal is now considered dead, according to reports from Wojnarowski and Tom Habestroh of NBC Sports (Twitter links).

The Grizzlies and Suns didn’t communicate directly during the three-team negotiations, using the Wizards as a conduit, which led to the Brooks-related confusion, sources tell Wojnarowski and Lowe (Twitter link). Memphis pulled out after the three clubs all talked directly, according to Woj, who tweets that the Suns and Wizards would have to find a new third team to complete an Ariza trade.

9:55pm: The trade is now in jeopardy due to confusion over which Brooks the Suns they believed they were getting in the deal, according to Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe of ESPN (Twitter link). Sources tell Woj that the Grizzlies won’t put Dillon Brooks in the deal.

9:40pm: There’s some confusion over which Brooks is going from the Grizzlies to the Suns in this proposed deal.

As detailed below, Wojnarowski and Gambadoro first reported that it was Dillon Brooks, but Woj issued a clarification to say it was MarShon Brooks. Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian (Twitter links) has also cited sources who say it’s MarShon. However, Gambadoro has insisted multiple times (via Twitter) that it’s Dillon and says the MarShon reports are inaccurate.

We’ll have an update as soon as there’s confirmation one way or the other.

8:57pm: The Wizards are in advanced talks to acquire veteran forward Trevor Ariza from the Suns, league sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. According to Wojnarowski, Washington is making an effort to finalize a multi-team trade agreement involving Ariza tonight. He’ll become officially trade-eligible on Saturday.

Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies will be the third team involved in the deal. In the proposed trade, which is moving toward completion, Kelly Oubre would head to the Grizzlies and the Suns would receive Austin Rivers and two Memphis role players, according to Wojnarowski. Woj adds (via Twitter) that the Wizards would also receive a conditional 2019 second-round pick and a 2020 second-rounder from the Grizzlies.

John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 follows up on Wojnarowski’s report with more details, tweeting that Wayne Selden would head to Phoenix as part of the deal. While Gambadoro and Wojnarowski both originally had Dillon Brooks as part of the package, Woj clarifies (via Twitter) that it’s actually MarShon Brooks, not Dillon, who would be sent to the Suns.

Ariza signed a one-year, $15MM deal with the Suns during the 2018 offseason after a productive four-year run in Houston. Before joining the Rockets, he spent two seasons with the Wizards, including perhaps his best season as a pro in 2013/14, when he averaged 14.4 PPG and 6.2 RPG with a .456/.407/.772 shooting line.

Ariza’s numbers so far this season have been somewhat modest — 9.9 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and .379/.360/.837 shooting. Still, the three-and-D wing would be a seamless fit into virtually any playoff contender’s lineup, and would provide the Wizards with a reliable defender in the frontcourt – at the expense of some backcourt depth – as they look to get back into the playoff picture in the East. His expiring contract wouldn’t create any added cap flexibility for the Wizards next summer, since Rivers ($12.65MM) and Oubre ($3.21MM) are also in the final year of their respective deals.

The deal figures to reduce the likelihood of an Otto Porter trade, since Oubre was viewed as a potential insurance policy for Porter. The Wizards probably couldn’t have realistically paid big bucks to Oubre as a restricted free agent in 2019 if the maximum-salary contracts for John Wall, Bradley Beal, and Porter all remained on their books. It seems they’ll no longer have to worry about re-signing Oubre.

Oubre instead would be on track to reach restricted free agency next summer for the Grizzlies, who are poised to add the promising 23-year-old small forward to their lineup as a result of this move. Oubre has showed steady improvement over his four NBA seasons, and is posting career-highs in several categories in 2018/19, including PPG (13.0) and FG% (.433).

As for the Suns, their NBA-worst 5-24 start reduced their need for a veteran contributor like Ariza, which made him a popular trade target. Reports earlier in the week suggested that at least eight teams had expressed some interest in the 33-year-old, with the Lakers among them. However, a source tells David Aldridge of The Athletic (Twitter link) that owner Robert Sarver was adamantly opposed to sending Ariza to the Lakers, prompting the Suns to pivot to other options.

Phoenix had reportedly been seeking a play-making guard in return for Ariza, and would receive a couple of players in this deal who could fit that bill. While Rivers and Brooks aren’t traditional point guards, they’re both capable of assuming some ball-handling duties for the Suns. Selden, meanwhile, is a swingman who figures to slot in at the two or three in Phoenix.

The Suns currently have 14 players on their roster, so they’d need to waive someone to complete the deal. Eric Moreland, who signed a non-guaranteed contract earlier this week, appears likely to be the odd man out.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Joakim Noah: “Too Lit To Play In New York”

December 14th, 2018 at 8:57am CST by Arthur Hill

Excessive partying may have been responsible for Joakim Noah‘s downfall in New York, the former Knicks center says in an interview with Chris Vernon of Grind City Media (hat tip to Chris Iseman of USA Today).

Noah has looked much better since signing with the Grizzlies last week, averaging 6.2 points and 3.8 rebounds through five games. While those are modest numbers, they are far better than what he posted during two frustrating years with the Knicks.

“I remember after the first game (in New York) I probably had like 60 people in my house,” Noah said. “I’m too lit to play in New York City. Memphis is perfect for me.”

Noah, 33, admits he had the same party habits earlier in his career, but added, “We were lit in Chicago, but I was young. You recover faster, you know?”

Noah was a two-time All-Star and former Defensive Player of the Year with the Bulls before receiving a four-year, $72MM offer to join the Knicks in 2016. He battled injuries in his first season with the team, appearing in 46 games, then played just seven more last year before being suspended following an altercation with former New York coach Jeff Hornacek in practice.

The Knicks waived Noah before the start of this season, using the stretch provision on the remainder of his contract.

“It happened so fast,” Noah recalled. “One year I’m playing 35 minutes a game. And then injuries started piling up. I got this crazy deal with the Knicks, and then the next thing you know I’m not playing anymore. Get kicked off the team. It was a crazy time. I wasn’t sure I was gonna get an opportunity to play again.”

Noah believes he was able to save his career by leaving New York after being released and heading to California to dedicate himself to getting back into game shape. If he can rediscover the all-around skills he displayed in Chicago, Noah could be a valuable backup for the Grizzlies as they fight for a playoff spot.

“I got the call from Memphis. … I decided that this was a good fit,” Noah said. “I’m just really, really happy to be here.”

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