Phoenix Suns Rumors | Hoops Rumors

B.J. Johnson To Sign With Suns

November 25th, 2020 at 4:10pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Small forward B.J. Johnson is set to sign a deal with the Suns, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (via Twitter).

Johnson, 24, was on a two-way contract with Magic for the 2019/20 season but did not receive a qualifying offer from Orlando. Details of Johnson’s agreement with the Suns are unknown as of this writing, but it’s unlikely to be a fully guaranteed deal.

The 6’7″ wing went undrafted out of La Salle in 2018. After a stop with the Magic’s G League affiliate, the Lakeland Magic, at the start of the 2018/19 season, he logged limited time for the Hawks and Kings before landing back in Orlando in the fall of 2019. He appeared in just 10 games for Orlando, averaging 8.3 MPG.

In 28 games (all starts) for the Lakeland Magic during the 2019/20 season, however, Johnson averaged 22.8 PPG, 6.4 RPG, and 2.1 SPG. He had a shooting line of .461/.414/.784. For his efforts, Johnson was rewarded with a 2020 All-NBA G League Second Team inclusion.

Suns Sign Lottery Pick Jalen Smith

November 24th, 2020 at 9:20pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Suns have signed lottery pick Jalen Smith, according to a team press release.

Assuming Smith received the usual 120% above the rookie scale, he’ll make $4,245,720 in his first season and a total of $19,328,334 over the next four seasons.

He’ll look to get some minutes at the power forward and center spots on a team with playoff aspirations. He played two seasons at Maryland.

The 6’10” Smith averaged 15.5 PPG on 53.8% shooting from the field and 36.8% from 3-point range, plus 10.5 RPG and 2.4 BPG as a sophomore. He finished third in the nation with 21 double-doubles last season.

Suns To Guarantee Abdel Nader’s Salary

November 24th, 2020 at 3:50pm CST by Luke Adams

Abdel Nader‘s salary for the 2020/21 season is set to become fully guaranteed on Saturday, and the Suns won’t waive him before then, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link). As a result, the small forward’s $1,752,950 salary will be locked in for ’20/21.

The 58th overall pick in the 2016 draft, Nader played for the Celtics as a rookie and has spent the last two years in Oklahoma City. He averaged a career-high 15.8 minutes per game in 55 contests for the Thunder last season, recording 6.3 PPG and 1.8 RPG with a respectable .468/.375/.773 shooting line.

Traded from Oklahoma City to Phoenix last week, Nader was obviously overshadowed by that deal’s headliner, Chris Paul. However, based on Gambadoro’s report, it sounds like the 27-year-old in the Suns’ plans for the coming season.

Nader will provide depth on the wing for the new-look Suns, who have reportedly reached deals to sign Jae Crowder, Langston Galloway, E’Twaun Moore, and Damian Jones in free agency.

Former Sun Kelly Oubre Takes Shot At Robert Sarver

November 24th, 2020 at 12:52pm CST by Arthur Hill

After being traded from Phoenix to the Warriors, Kelly Oubre appeared to take a shot at Suns owner Robert Sarver, notes Nick Friedell of ESPN. “I can play for an owner — somebody who actually cares about the organization and not just the perception of the organization on the media end of it,” Oubre said in a radio interview.

Wolves Notes: Rubio, Edwards, Davis, Beasley

November 23rd, 2020 at 5:52pm CST by Luke Adams

In a conversation with Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, Ricky Rubio discussed his first stint with the Timberwolves, his impending second stint with the franchise, and the experience of being traded twice in the span of days. Rubio said he found out about his involvement in the Suns‘ Chris Paul trade last week when Shams Charania broke the news on Twitter.

“It’s not the way you want to know, especially my agent was talking with the team and they said my name was off the table when all the rumors and all the stuff happened,” Rubio said. “You feel like everything that they have said to you all year and buying into a new project and a young team and they need you, blah, blah, blah. It seems like nothing’s true.”

As Krawczynski writes, Rubio wasn’t upset about the move itself, since he understands why the Suns would want Paul. Still, he was stung by the way he found out. Now, after initially making his NBA debut for the Timberwolves as a 21-year-old, the point guard is looking forward to returning to the team as a veteran who can help guide a young squad.

“It started to really make more sense for me to really connect the puzzle and get to Minnesota and help a young team with a lot of talent and already have done really good things,” he told Krawczynsi. “I feel like I can fit in the puzzle.”

Here’s more on the Wolevs:

In an in-depth story on how the Timberwolves decided to use the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft on Anthony Edwards, Krawczynski cites sources who say that the team never really got close to trading that pick. The Wolves were unwilling to accept what they considered subpar value to move down and risk missing out on the Georgia guard, per Krawczynski. “He stood head and shoulders above any player in this draft and we were excited to be at No. 1 to be able to select him,” president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas said of Edwards.
Michael Rand of The Star Tribune makes a case for why he believes veteran center Ed Davis could be the Timberwolves’ most important new player for the 2020/21 season.
Three days after agreeing to a new $60MM deal with the Timberwolves, Malik Beasley made a court appearance today. Beasley, who faces a pair of felony charges related to a September incident, was told to have no contact with the alleged victims and a potential witness, tweets Krawczynski. His next court appearance will be on December 17.

Suns Waive Elie Okobo

November 23rd, 2020 at 5:39pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns have waived backup guard Elie Okobo, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The 31st overall pick in the 2018 draft, Okobo spent two years in Phoenix, appearing in a total of 108 games. He averaged 4.8 PPG and 2.2 APG in 15.5 minutes per contest during those two seasons.

Okobo became expendable as a result of Cameron Payne‘s strong play during the summer restart and the Suns’ offseason backcourt overhaul. Chris Paul, E’Twaun Moore, and Langston Galloway are joining Devin Booker and Payne.

Okobo’s $1.66MM salary for the 2020/21 season would have become guaranteed if he remained under contract through this Thursday. By waiving him, the Suns won’t be on the hook for any of that money. Okobo, meanwhile, will become an unrestricted free agent if he goes unclaimed.

Suns Sign Langston Galloway

November 23rd, 2020 at 5:26pm CST by Luke Adams

NOVEMBER 29: The move is official, according to the RealGM Transactions Page.

NOVEMBER 23: The Suns have reached a contract agreement with free agent guard Langston Galloway, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). It’s a minimum-salary deal for Galloway, reports John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (via Twitter).

Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter link) reported earlier this afternoon that Phoenix had interest in signing Galloway.

Galloway flew somewhat under the radar in 2019/20 as part of a Pistons team that was never in the playoff hunt. However, he enjoyed arguably the best individual season of his career, with 10.3 PPG on .435/.399/.859 shooting in 66 games (25.8 MPG).

In Phoenix, Galloway will provide extra depth in a talented backcourt that already features Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and E’Twaun Moore. He and Moore figure to give the Suns some scoring punch off the bench.

Pacific Notes: Hield, Oubre, Crowder, Oturu

November 23rd, 2020 at 12:43pm CST by Luke Adams

The Kings only have two options now on Bogdan Bogdanovic: either they let him walk for nothing or they match Atlanta’s four-year, $72MM offer sheet.

While the Kings no longer have the opportunity to extract any assets in a Bogdanovic sign-and-trade, the team might be able to salvage some value by matching Bogdanovic’s offer and then trading Buddy Hield, opines Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. However, as Anderson writes, conversations with people around the league suggest there are mixed opinions on Hield’s trade value.

One of Anderson’s sources referred to Hield as untradeable, while another said that there are likely multiple teams that value the sharpshooter, adding that the Kings would probably seek “a good young player or players and draft picks.”

While I don’t agree that Hield is untradeable, I expect it would be difficult for the Kings to extract fair value for one of the NBA’s best shooters if they match on Bogdanovic. Potential trade suitors know that Hield would probably welcome a change of scenery and that the Kings likely don’t want to pay both players long term, limiting the team’s leverage.

Here are a few more items from around the West:

New Warriors wing Kelly Oubre Jr. anticipates being able to contribute his energetic scoring and defense to a team in desperate need of his help on the wing, as he told David Aldridge of The Athletic in a recent interview. “They have a lot of weapons, of course, but I’m also a weapon, on offense and defense,” Oubre said. “I feel I can kind of bring that flux of just lucid, position-less basketball back to the organization. I can guard one through five.” Oubre, an unrestricted free agent in 2021, was brought in using a portion of the Warriors’ $17MM trade exception to help replace Klay Thompson, who will miss his second consecutive season due to injury, this time with a torn Achilles.
Jae Crowder will be instrumental in helping the new-look Suns make a concerted playoff push, as Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic details. Signed to a three-year, $30MM contract, Crowder will essentially replace Oubre as a sharp-shooting, switchable defensive wing.
The Clippers will almost certainly be limited to offering Daniel Oturu a two-year, minimum-salary contract, since they don’t have the mid-level exception available and will want his cap hit to come in at the rookie minimum, writes John Hollinger of The Athletic. Hollinger wonders if Oturu’s agent might try to squeeze the Clippers by asking for a second-year player option on that deal.

Alex Kirschenbaum contributed to this post.

Suns Re-Sign Dario Saric To Three-Year Deal

November 23rd, 2020 at 9:30am CST by Luke Adams

NOVEMBER 29: Saric’s agreement with the Suns is now official, the team announced in a press release.

NOVEMBER 23: The Suns and restricted free agent Dario Saric have agreed to a new deal, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Agents Jeff Schwartz and Mike Lindeman tell Wojnarowski that their client will sign a three-year, $27MM contract.

Saric averaged 10.7 PPG, 6.2 RPG, and 1.9 APG in 66 games (24.7 MPG) for the Suns in 2019/20, with a shooting line of .476/.357/.844. The 26-year-old, who was the 24th-ranked player on our list of this fall’s top free agents, will resume his role as a stretch four in Phoenix for the coming season.

While Frank Kaminsky and Aron Baynes are no longer in the picture for the Suns, the team did reach an agreement to sign Jae Crowder, who figures to see some time at the four as well as the three.

In addition to bringing back Saric and landing Crowder, the Suns also traded for Chris Paul, agreed to re-sign Jevon Carter, struck a deal with E’Twaun Moore, and selected Jalen Smith with the No. 10 pick in the draft. The Suns are looking to build on their 8-0 performance during the NBA’s summer restart and return to the playoffs in 2021.

With Saric off the board, Brandon Ingram and Bogdan Bogdanovic are the only non-two-way restricted free agents whose contract situations have yet to be resolved. Ingram is expected to re-sign with the Pelicans, while Bogdanovic is waiting to see if the Kings will match the offer sheet he signed with Atlanta.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Free Agency Rumors: Ibaka, Iwundu, Hernangomez, Bazemore

November 22nd, 2020 at 8:08pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Big man Serge Ibaka was not bereft of contending suitors in free agency, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Scotto notes that the Raptors, the team with whom Ibaka spent most of the last four seasons, apparently offered a one-year, $12MM deal to Ibaka for an encore appearance in 2020/21. Toronto was believed to be unwilling to offer multiple years, which would have cut into the team’s projected 2021 cap space.

The Nets also wanted Ibaka, but could only afford a taxpayer mid-level exception, which would have started at $5.7MM this season. Ibaka ultimately inked a two-year, $19MM contract with the Clippers.

Here are more free agency rumors:

Though swingman Wesley Iwundu ultimately opted to sign a two-year, veteran’s minimum contract with the Mavericks, the Hawks, Pelicans and Kings were also in the running for Iwundu’s services this offseason, Scotto reports in the same piece.
The Mavericks and Kings also considered adding reserve center Willy Hernangomez before he agreed to terms with the Pelicans on a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal, per Scotto. Hernangomez’s 2019/20 club, the Hornets, also apparently wanted to re-sign the 26-year-old big man.
Scotto reports that former Kings wing Kent Bazemore also found himself in high demand this offseason before agreeing to a one-year veteran’s minimum deal with the Warriors. The Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Celtics, Suns, Knicks, Nets, and Hornets were all interested in adding the three-and-D vet this offseason.