Phoenix Suns Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Suns’ James Jones Talks Ayton, Luxury Tax, Draft

May 19th, 2022 at 8:05am CST by Luke Adams

Addressing reporters in his end-of-season press conference on Wednesday, Suns general manager James Jones didn’t make any guarantees about whether center Deandre Ayton will remain with the team long-term, but suggested that the club wants to bring back its top restricted free agent.

“As far as free agency and those things, we’ll address them at the proper time,” Jones said, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. “That happens in July, end of June, but we want to continue to keep our consistency and continuity and keep the guys that we have and continue to help those guys improve upon the things that we did this year.”

Asked during an appearance on the Burns & Gambo show on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM about the Ayton situation, Jones conveyed a similar sentiment, stressing that the 23-year-old has been an important part of Phoenix’s recent success, as Jake Anderson of ArizonaSports.com relays.

“Deandre had an amazing season and he’s progressed every year and improved every year he’s been here, and so he’s a big part of what we do,” Jones said. “His future with us is something we’ll address at the proper time, which is in the future. He’s a free agent and I’ve said all along, he’s about the same things we’re about, which is winning. We’ll address it at the proper time.”

Here’s more from Jones on the Suns:

Although the season didn’t end the way the team wanted it to, Jones said it “was not a disappointment” on the whole and that the early playoff exit won’t change the way the front office operates or result in any major overhauls. “I’m not going to change my approach to team building, which is to create and construct a team that has a ton of depth, a ton of skill and great chemistry,” Jones said, according to Rankin. “We just need to be better and I think after a summer where our guys improve, we will be.”
Asked about potentially lucrative new contract extensions for Devin Booker and Cameron Johnson, Jones acknowledged that payroll increases are part of the territory for a team that has as much talent as the Suns do. “We’re focused on improving the team and those guys, they deserve the credit. They deserve the accolades and the financial rewards that come with being good players and productive players,” Jones said. “It doesn’t preclude us from doing anything. We’re not talking about a luxury tax issues or avoiding those things. That’s not something that’s going to prevent us from continuing to build this team and keep this team together.”
The Suns don’t have any 2022 draft picks, but Jones said, “If there’s an opportunity to get back into the draft, we will,” according to Rankin. Acquiring a late draft pick could be appealing to the Suns since rookie second-rounders have the lowest possible luxury-tax hit — they’re penalized at a lower rate than an undrafted rookie with the same salary.
The investigation into Suns owner Robert Sarver seems likely to be completed before next season, but Jones isn’t focused on that outcome, as Rankin relays. “It doesn’t change what we’re doing on the basketball operations,” the GM said. “Our job as execs and coaches and players is to assemble, build and lead a team to accomplish a goal of winning basketball games. That part of the job doesn’t change.”

2022 NBA Draft Picks By Team

May 18th, 2022 at 8:40am CST by Luke Adams

Not only did the Thunder move up in Tuesday’s draft lottery to claim this year’s No. 2 overall pick, but they’re also one of just three teams with four picks in the 2022 draft. No team’s 2022 selections are more valuable than Oklahoma City’s — in addition to the second overall pick, the Thunder control No. 12, No. 30, and No. 34.

The Spurs and Timberwolves also each own four 2022 draft picks, with San Antonio controlling three first-rounders and No. 38, while Minnesota has No. 19 and three second-rounders.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, four clubs don’t currently own any 2022 draft picks. The Lakers, Suns, and Jazz are three of those teams, and either the Sixers or the Nets will be the fourth, depending on whether Brooklyn decides to acquire Philadelphia’s first-rounder or defer it to 2023.

To present a clearer picture of which teams are most – and least – stocked with picks for the 2022 NBA draft, we’ve rounded up all 58 selections by team in the space below. Let’s dive in…

Teams with more than two picks:

Oklahoma City Thunder (4): 2, 12, 30, 34
San Antonio Spurs (4): 9, 20, 25, 38
Minnesota Timberwolves (4): 19, 40, 48, 50
Orlando Magic (3): 1, 32, 35
Sacramento Kings (3): 4, 37, 49
Indiana Pacers (3): 6, 31, 58
Portland Trail Blazers (3): 7, 36, 57
New Orleans Pelicans (3): 8, 41, 52
Charlotte Hornets (3): 13, 15, 45
Cleveland Cavaliers (3): 14, 39, 56
Memphis Grizzlies (3): 22, 29, 47
Golden State Warriors (3): 28, 51, 55

Teams with two picks:

Houston Rockets: 3, 17
Detroit Pistons: 5, 46
Washington Wizards: 10, 54
New York Knicks: 11, 42
Atlanta Hawks: 16, 44

Teams with one pick:

Chicago Bulls: 18
Denver Nuggets: 21
Philadelphia 76ers: 23
Milwaukee Bucks: 24
Dallas Mavericks: 26
Miami Heat: 27
Toronto Raptors: 33
Los Angeles Clippers: 43
Boston Celtics: 53

Teams with no picks:

Brooklyn Nets
Los Angeles Lakers
Phoenix Suns
Utah Jazz

And-Ones: Musa, Scola, Mannion, Nigeria

May 17th, 2022 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Nets wing Dzanan Musa, a first-round pick in 2018, has been named the Most Valuable Player of Liga ACB, Spain’s top basketball league, for the 2021/22 season, per an official press release.

Fans, reporters, players, and coaches vote on the award, and Musa was the top pick among all four groups, earning the maximum 100 points. Ex-NBA forward Nikola Mirotic finished fourth with 30 points.

After appearing in just 49 games in his two seasons with Brooklyn from 2018-20, Musa returned to Europe and has played in Turkey and Spain over the last two years. He averaged 20.1 PPG, 5.1 RPG, and 3.1 APG on .494/.381/.787 shooting in 29 Liga ACB games (32.0 MPG) for CB Breogan this season.

Former NBA forward Mirza Teletovic stated earlier this year that he’s confident Musa, who just turned 23 years old this month, will return stateside sooner or later.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Veteran forward Luis Scola, who played in the NBA from 2007-17, will exercise his option to assume majority ownership of the Italian team Pallacanestro Varese, the club announced in a press release. Once the paperwork is official, Scola will own 51% of the franchise’s shares.
Former Warriors guard Nico Mannion is drawing some interest from NBA teams as a possible Summer League player, tweets George Zakkas of SDNA in Greece. Mannion remains under contract with Virtus Bologna in Italy for the time being.
Having opened a league office in Lagos earlier this year, the NBA is on the lookout for the next Giannis Antetokounmpo in Nigeria, according to Lindsay du Plessis of ESPN, who spoke to NBA Africa VP Gbemisola Abudu about NBA Nigeria’s goals in the country.
David Aldridge of The Athletic takes a look at what the offseason for the holds for the four teams eliminated in round two, examining the key areas for the Grizzlies, Bucks, Sixers, and Suns to address this summer.

Woj: Deandre Ayton “Is Going To Get A Max Contract”

May 17th, 2022 at 1:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

Deandre Ayton‘s future in Phoenix is an open question after the disastrous end to the Suns‘ season Sunday night, and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said plenty of teams are planning to target the young center in free agency (video link).

Ayton played just 17 minutes in the Game 7 loss to Dallas. He remained on the bench after being pulled early in the third quarter and had a heated exchange with coach Monty Williams that had to be broken up by assistant coaches. Ayton didn’t talk to the media after the game to answer questions about the incident.

According to Wojnarowski, Ayton has felt unappreciated since last offseason, when Phoenix decided against giving him a rookie-scale extension. He will be a restricted free agent this summer when the Suns extend a $16.4MM qualifying offer.

“Deandre Ayton did not feel valued by this Phoenix organization,” Wojnarowski said. “They were not able to come to an agreement on his rookie extension. He saw many of the top players in his class get extensions and he wanted a max deal, he would not move off that. So now he moves towards restricted free agency this summer where he’ll have some more options.”

The top pick in the 2018 draft, Ayton remains extremely valuable as a 23-year-old center who averaged 17.2 points and 10.2 rebounds this season while shooting a career-best 63.4% from the field. Wojnarowski doesn’t expect the Suns to let him leave with nothing in return, but suggests that they could be open to a sign-and-trade deal.

“Ultimately, Phoenix can still match an offer out there and keep him if he signs an offer sheet with another team,” Wojnarowski added. “… [He] is going to get a max contract in the marketplace, somewhere… There are a lot of teams lining up to figure out: how can we acquire him?”

The Suns already have nine players under contract for next season at a total salary of $128.3MM, which is above the projected cap of $122MM. They are less than $20MM below the projected luxury tax threshold of $149MM, so retaining Ayton and avoiding the tax would require some additional moves.

The Pistons are consider the betting favorites to land Ayton if he doesn’t return to Phoenix, tweets Rod Beard of The Detroit News, citing odds from BetOnline.ag. The online gambling site has Detroit at even odds, the Magic at 2-to-1, Spurs at 3-1, Pacers at 4-1, Trail Blazers at 6-1, Thunder at 8-1, Rockets at 10-1, and Bulls at 12-1.

Suns Notes: Paul, Ayton, Booker, Johnson

May 16th, 2022 at 8:44am CST by Luke Adams

The Suns‘ season ended in embarrassing fashion on Sunday night in Game 7 at home vs. Dallas, falling behind by 30 points by halftime and trailing by as many as 46 in the second half before losing by a score of 123-90. After yet another Game 7 loss for Chris Paul, the 37-year-old point guard made it clear he has every intention of returning to Phoenix next season and trying to right the ship.

“You play long enough and you don’t win, every time you lose, they’re going to say it was your best chance,” Paul said, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “But I think for me, us, it’s we’ll be right back next year. I’ll tell you that much. I’m not retiring tomorrow, thank God. Hopefully, I’m healthy coming back. But I’m (going to) keep playing.”

Paul had a poor showing on Sunday, recording just 10 points and four assists and failing to score his first field goal until the Suns were down by 40 points. He played through a left quad injury that limited his mobility, sources tell ESPN’s McMenamin and Marc J. Spears (Twitter link).

In his post-game comments to reporters, Suns head coach Monty Williams took responsibility for the Suns’ sluggish performance and for the loss, but Paul said the blame should fall on his own shoulders.

“I think we just came out and just didn’t have enough,” Paul said, according to McMenamin. “I think Mont said that’s on him, but I think that’s on me, as the point guard, the leader of the team. To come out and make sure you’re getting the right shots and all that.”

Paul has a $28.4MM guaranteed salary for next season, followed by a partially guaranteed $30.8MM salary in ’23/24 and a non-guaranteed $30MM salary in ’24/25.

Here’s more on the Suns:

Suns center Deandre Ayton was pulled early in the third quarter on Sunday and didn’t return to the game after exchanging words with Williams on the sidelines, according to McMenamin, who notes that the former No. 1 overall pick logged just 17 minutes, the third-fewest minutes he has played in a game since entering the league.
Asked after the game about the reason for Ayton’s limited playing time, Williams curtly responded, “It’s internal.” It’s an ominous ending to the season for Ayton, who will be a restricted free agent this summer and will likely be seeking a maximum-salary contract or something close to it.
Ayton’s upcoming free agency will be the primary focus for the Suns this summer, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Insider link) details in his offseason preview. With Ayton up for a new deal and Devin Booker and Cameron Johnson both eligible for extensions, Phoenix’s roster could start to get very expensive, Marks observes.
In his own preview of the Suns’ offseason, Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype also examines potential new contracts for Ayton, Booker, and Johnson.
The Suns could have used injured forward Dario Saric in their series vs. Dallas, suggests John Hollinger of The Athletic, writing that the team was ultimately undone by its lack of perimeter lineups to counteract the Mavericks’ “space ball” approach. Dallas often employed lineups with five capable three-point shooters, reducing the defensive impact of Suns centers Ayton and JaVale McGee.

Suns Notes: Game 7, Booker, Williams, Ayton

May 15th, 2022 at 12:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns didn’t expect to be in a Game 7 with Dallas, but now that they’re here, they’re determined to win it, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Both teams have captured all three games at home, several of them by wide margins, so Phoenix has confidence about playing today’s deciding contest on its home court.

It will be the first-ever seventh game for Devin Booker, who said the excitement was already evident at Saturday’s practice.

“I like coming in here with everybody locked in, top to bottom from the front office looking through the windows — you can feel their demeanor,” Booker said. “That’s why we play the sport. We thought we had something going there [in terms of pressure] during the regular season, trying to break the franchise record [for victories], and this is a whole different beast.”

There’s more from Phoenix:

Coach Monty Williams used the practice session as a “clean-up” to fix some of the team’s bad habits in the series, McMenamin adds. Williams emphasized protecting the basketball, as the Suns have averaged 18.7 turnovers per game in the series, and guarding the three-point line because the Mavericks are making 16.3 threes per game. Williams has also noticed the different atmosphere that Game 7 brings. “You can feel it,” he said. “From the time when we knew we were going to be in a Game 7 until now, the gym is thick with intensity. And that’s how playoff basketball should be.”
In an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, Williams talks about the difficulties he’s had to overcome and the importance of faith in his life. The Suns’ head coach admits he spent about two weeks being severely disappointed about losing in last year’s NBA Finals until he began to fully reflect on all that’s happened. “I had a lot of time to think and pray. I became way more aware of my hypocrisy,” he said. “Here I am again, this reputation for all this stuff, and here I am internally feeling like I deserve something. It took me about a week or two to get to that point where I was like, man, I should be way more grateful and thankful than I am right now.”
Video games have been an important outlet for Suns center Deandre Ayton throughout his basketball career, per Maya A. Jones of ESPN. “I don’t think I could live without the game and that’s real talk,” Ayton said.

Mavericks Notes: Game 7, Ntilikina, Kidd, Crowder

May 15th, 2022 at 11:01am CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks were relaxed at Saturday’s practice ahead of tonight’s Game 7 in Phoenix, writes Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. Coach Jason Kidd, who had plenty of experience with pivotal playoff games during his playing career, is urging his team to enjoy the opportunity and “stay in character” the way it has done all season.

In NBA history, road teams only have a 23.2% success rate in seventh games, and the challenge is particularly daunting for Dallas, which has lost all three games of the series in Phoenix and was destroyed by 30 points in Game 5. But the Mavs are optimistic after responding with a dominant performance of their own Thursday night.

“It’s an emotional lift for us,” Spencer Dinwiddie said. “Obviously Phoenix was the best team in the league in the regular season. Obviously they’re at home, hostile environment. But you know, they also say a Game 7 typically goes to the best player and I believe we have that in this series. It’s going to be an exciting clash of styles.”

There’s more from Dallas:

Frank Ntilikina missed the Mavericks’ first-round series with Utah following a tonsillectomy, but he has been an important contributor against Phoenix, notes Chuck Carlton of The Dallas Morning News. Ntilikina was barely used by the Knicks in last year’s playoffs and had a disappointing four-year run in New York. He’s thankful to get a second chance with Dallas, which signed him in September without requiring him to work out. “Definitely it was stress and tension back then,” Ntilikina said, referring to his time with the Knicks. “But I stayed with it like every player should do and stayed confident in my work. Now I’m just glad to be here preparing for a Game 7, preparing for [Sunday].”
Kidd wasn’t with the Mavericks when they lost Game 7 to the Clippers last season, but he believes being in that environment will benefit them today, Carlton states in the same story. “Guys who participated in it understand what it means so you don’t have to explain what Game 7 means,” Kidd said. “It’s about us executing the game plan and giving us a chance.”
Suns forward Jae Crowder has strong memories of his first Game 7, which happened when he played for the Mavericks in 2014, Carlton adds. “Yeah, I had a lot of vets on my team. I had Vince Carter and Dirk Nowitzki,” Crowder said. “Those guys just talked about the atmosphere, how it was going to be enhanced, how much emotion was going to be in the game. Still, whatever they told me wasn’t enough. It didn’t put in what’s at stake and the emotions behind it. Obviously going through it helped me a lot.”

Booker Should Be In MVP Conversation Going Forward

May 14th, 2022 at 9:33am CST by Dana Gauruder

Devin Booker finished fourth in the voting for the Most Valuable Player award but the Suns guard should be at the forefront of the conversation for next year’s award, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic writes. Along with his scoring and play-making, Booker has cut down on his turnovers and improved defensively.

Poll: Phoenix Suns Vs. Dallas Mavericks Game 7

May 13th, 2022 at 12:05pm CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics and Grizzlies will be looking to pick up wins on Friday night in the hopes of sending their respective Conference Semifinals to a seventh and deciding game. But as we await the outcomes of those games, we can already look forward to one Game 7 — the Mavericks‘ home victory over the Suns on Thursday assured that the two teams will play a win-or-go-home contest in Phoenix on Sunday.

It has been an unusual series so far, with none of the first six games decided by fewer than seven points. The Suns have won their three home games by an average margin of 19 points per game, but have lost their three road games by more than 15 points per contest. Those home/road splits bode well for the NBA-best Suns, who earned home court advantage with their 64-18 regular season record and will host Game 7.

Still, they’ll be coming off their worst performance of the series, a 29-point blowout loss in Game 6. In Thursday’s Mavs victory, Luka Doncic reinforced his claim as the best player in this series, putting up 33 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists, and four steals while the Suns’ All-Star guards – Devin Booker and Chris Paul – combined for eight turnovers and just seven assists.

As Tim MacMahon of ESPN relays, it was the second game this series in which Paul recorded more turnovers than assists in a game, marking the first time in his career that he has done that more than once in a single postseason.

Suns head coach Monty Williams said after Thursday’s loss that his team didn’t match Dallas’ level of desperation. Starting center Deandre Ayton said Phoenix will have to adjust its intensity level for Game 7.

“It’s got to be a together thing where everybody is on the same page,” Ayton said. “And it wasn’t like that (on Thursday). There were a lot of mistakes. It felt like a regular season game, the amount of mistakes we had today. The turnovers, terrible, unacceptable. It was that type of game where it was just unacceptable, man. Them dudes, they wanted it more.”

The Suns are currently six-point favorites in Game 7, per BetOnline.ag, but if Doncic has another huge game and Booker and Paul aren’t at their best, there’s not a ton of room for error. The Mavs were one of the NBA’s best teams down the stretch – they had a better record than the Suns during the final two months of the regular season – and have shown by forcing a Game 7 that they won’t roll over easily.

What do you think? Will the Suns hang on and advance to the Western Finals for a second consecutive year, or will the Mavs pull off the upset?

Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to share your predictions.

Pacific Notes: Biyombo, LaVine, Holmes, Kings

May 11th, 2022 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Suns center Bismack Biyombo expects to be fined for his altercation with Mavericks big man Marquese Chriss in the closing seconds of Tuesday’s game. They both ran down the same tunnel after being ejected and had to be separated by security. Biyombo explained his side of the incident in a video posted by Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic.

“I think it was nothing serious,” Biyombo said, adding that Chriss seemed upset that Phoenix was still trying to score with the game already in hand. “… I think when we play here they play all the way until the end, and I think that’s understandable. It’s the playoffs, you know.”

Any fines or suspensions will be announced sometime in advance of Thursday night’s Game 6. Biyombo is only averaging 8.6 minutes in seven games in this year’s playoffs and Chriss is at 3.8 minutes in four games, so any disciplinary action won’t have a significant impact on the series.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

The Lakers may be a long shot to land free agent guard Zach LaVine, but they shouldn’t be discounted entirely, writes Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report. There has been speculation this week that LaVine may be interested in joining the Trail Blazers, but L.A. could be another option if he wants to head west, particularly since LaVine is represented by Klutch Sports. Pincus examines potential trades involving the Bulls, Thunder, Pacers and Magic that could clear LaVine’s path to the Lakers if he decides he wants to join them.
Kings big man Richaun Holmes has won a court victory in the custody battle that led to him missing the season’s final 11 games for personal reasons, according to James Ham of ESPN 1320. Holmes was accused of domestic violence by his ex-wife, but judges in Los Angeles and Georgia ruled in his favor, granting him sole physical and legal custody of his son.
The Kings hosted six players Wednesday in their second round of pre-draft workouts, Ham tweets. On hand were Grayson Murphy of Belmont, AJ Green of Northern Iowa, Jalen Adaway of St. Bonaventure, Buddy Boeheim of Syracuse, Keve Aluma of Virginia Tech and Grant Golden of Richmond. Sacramento owns two second-round picks at No. 37 and 48. Its first-round pick will be determined by next week’s lottery.