Phoenix Suns Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Notes: Hardaway, Tanking, Draft, Kidd

March 6th, 2019 at 6:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

“Mind blowing” is the phrase Tim Hardaway Jr. used to describe the experience of being traded away from the Knicks twice, relays Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Hardaway, who returned to New York on Monday to face the Nets, said he was surprised and disappointed to learn he had been shipped to Dallas as part of the Kristaps Porzingis deal. Hardway had signed a four-year, $71MM contract with the Knicks 18 months earlier.

Hardaway wishes he and Porzingis had been given more of a chance to succeed in New York. The Knicks were 11-10 last season when Hardaway was sidelined by a stress fracture, and by the time he returned, Porzingis was lost for the season with a torn ACL.

“We definitely had something good going here my first time back with KP and myself in the lineup at the same time. Then I got injured, then he got injured. And then it kind of went downhill from there,” Hardaway said. “I let [Knicks management] know what we had was special and I really think they didn’t give us an opportunity to have KP. That’s what I told them. But it is what it is. We move forward.”

He added that the Knicks never told him about the trade, and he was given the news by his agent.

There’s more Knicks news to pass along:

The bottom spot in the league will be at stake tonight when the Knicks travel to Phoenix, Bondy notes in a separate story. New York holds the top position in our Reverse Standings at 13-51, a half game ahead of the Suns. Although the league’s worst three teams will all have a 14% shot at the No. 1 pick, Bondy states that the top spot is still important because the team that holds it can’t fall below the No. 5 pick. Since 1980, the top five draft positions have produced All-Stars at least 30% of the time, while just 19% of No. 6 picks have achieved that honor.
The draft will get “shaky” for the Knicks if they land outside the top two, a college scout tells Marc Berman of The New York Post. There don’t appear to be any sure-thing prospects outside of the Duke duo of Zion Williamson and R.J. Barrett.
Hall-of-Famer and former head coach Jason Kidd spoke to the Knicks at today’s shootaround, writes Steve Popper of Newsday. A long-time friend of head coach David Fizdale, Kidd had plenty of advice to pass along, particularly for the point guards. Kidd has been out of coaching since being fired by the Bucks last season, and has been mentioned as a possible replacement for Luke Walton with the Lakers. “That guy is a basketball genius,” Fizdale said of Kidd. “I just don’t see how at some point he’s not running another team.”

Kelly Oubre Wants To Remain With Suns Long-Term

March 5th, 2019 at 11:00pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Kelly Oubre Jr. will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season and while he’s only been in Phoenix for a few months, he’s sure that he wants to stick around long-term.

“Why would I go anywhere else?” Oubre said (via Kellan Olson of Arizona Sports) “I’m here, I’m getting established and I’m not a guy that really wants to be on a million teams in my tenure in the league and I just want to create a dynasty and a legacy here in Phoenix with [Deandre Ayton], [Devin Booker], [Mikal Bridges], all the guys in the locker room. It’s beautiful.”

The Suns have a ways to go in creating a dynasty. They own the second-worst record in the league, as our Reverse Standings show. Despite the lack of success, Oubre believes the team is improving and better days are coming.

“We’re learning from our mistakes that we’ve made in previous games and throughout the season and we’re starting to realize that we are definitely capable of competing with the best so we have to continue to go out there and prove that,” Oubre added. “We’re just trying to get some momentum going into next year.”

The Wizards sent Oubre to the Suns earlier this season in the Trevor Ariza deal, but hours before that, the former first-rounder was nearly dealt to the Grizzlies in a three-team trade that fell apart at the last minute.

“I’m just so happy that Phoenix, (GM James Jones) made the call and traded for me to come to Phoenix man because that was the biggest blessing of my career so far,” Oubre said. “…One-hundred percent I would love to remain Phoenix.”

Celtics Notes: Lineup, Irving, Ojeleye, Rozier

March 4th, 2019 at 1:52pm CST by Luke Adams

After snapping a four-game losing streak on Friday vs. Washington, the Celtics suffered another home loss on Sunday against the Rockets. The game once again left Boston’s players and coaches grasping for answers, with Kyrie Irving and head coach Brad Stevens both suggesting that the C’s simply have to “play better,” as Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com relays.

While there has been an assumption for much of the season that the Celtics will eventually figure things out and hit their stride, there are only 18 games left in their regular season schedule, and time is running out, writes Bontemps. Some league observers believe Boston needs to shake up its starting five, but Stevens isn’t sure it’s that simple.

“You know, obviously, we’ll look at everything,” Stevens said. “We’ve been looking at everything after every game. Every night when you go to bed, every minute when you wake up, you’re always thinking about that. There’s things that — that are helpful in that, and things that are not helpful. And if it’s the root of your issues, then I think the — then a small tweak can help. I’m not sure that that’s our root [problem].”

Here’s more from out of Boston:

Second-year forward Semi Ojeleye, who isn’t even a regular part of the rotation, made an effort to motivate his teammates on Sunday, yelling at them in a third-quarter huddle to “wake the f–k up,” as Jay King of The Athletic details. The Celtics were down by 28 points at the time. “Making or missing shots isn’t going to determine our wins or losses,” Ojeleye said after the game. “It’s really about effort right now. And I was just trying to tell guys to wake up. The look on everybody’s faces was like we already lost the game, and it was the start of the third quarter.”
Both King and Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer pointed to Marcus Morris‘ comments from last month about things not being “fun” this season in Boston, suggesting that the team’s demeanor on and off the court continues to line up with that sentiment. King writes that recent opponents have noticed the Celtics’ tension on the court, while O’Connor wonders if the club’s identity this season has become “discontent.”
Source around the team tell O’Connor that Irving’s persona has changed since around the start of February, and that he has become more “disengaged and detached from those around the team.” Of course, as O’Connor observes, February 1 was the day that Kyrie was asked again about his upcoming free agency and replied that he doesn’t “owe anybody s–t.”
League sources tell O’Connor that the Suns offered a protected first-round pick for Terry Rozier before the season, but Boston wanted an unprotected first-rounder.

Suns Notes: Front Office, Sarver, J. Jones

March 4th, 2019 at 9:21am CST by Luke Adams

In an interesting, in-depth piece for ESPN.com, Kevin Arnovitz explores the Suns‘ front office, going into detail on the messiness and dysfunction in Phoenix over the last several years. Within the story, Arnovitz makes the case that the Suns have “no discernible direction,” as the roster, front office, and coaching staff have all undergone frequent changes since the club’s last playoff berth in 2010.

Arnovitz’s report includes several notable notes and rumors on the Suns – plus a terrific story involving live goats – and is worth checking out in full, but here are a few of the highlights:

After speaking with nearly two dozen NBA insiders, including current and former Suns players and employees, Arnovitz suggests that there’s a general consensus on some of the factors plaguing the franchise. He describes them as follows: “An interventionist owner (Robert Sarver) with more authority than expertise, a front office marred by instability, an undermanned scouting department, and a dated facility that isolates the decision-makers from the players and coaches.”
While former Suns GM Ryan McDonough was described by Arnovitz’s sources as having a “deep knowledge of scouting and information-gathering,” his communication and people skills weren’t considered to be as strong. Arnovitz’s sources also believe McDonough tended to value job security over his personal convictions, and would be more likely to defer to Sarver than to forcefully argue his case on personnel matters.
The “final straw” for McDonough’s tenure in Phoenix was his inability to fill the point guard spot during this past offseason, sources tell Arnovitz.
While co-interim GM James Jones has received praise for his ability to communicate with players, he’s often not in attendance at strategy and scouting meetings, deferring to fellow co-interim GM Trevor Bukstein, who is more a cap specialist. While Jones tells Arnovitz that he doesn’t want to get in Bukstein’s way, Phoenix’s front office structure has confused rival teams, who aren’t necessarily sure whom to call when they want to do business with the Suns.
The Suns parted ways with several members of the scouting department when they dismissed McDonough in October, and haven’t replaced those execs and scouts, per Arnovitz. Jones has the authority to hire replacements, but has elected not to do so. “One thing to think about was whether or not the size of the scouting staff was adequate, and whether they were efficient or productive,” Jones said. “It’s more than having people flying all over the country just to say that we are visible and say we were there. If you’re utilizing more video and technology, you may not need as much manpower and man-hours.”
Although Arnovitz has spoken to some execs who agree with Jones’ stance on scouting, others believe it “denigrates the value of information that can be gathered on-site” at a time when lottery picks are Phoenix’s best road back to contention.

Free Agent Stock Watch 2019: Pacific Division

March 3rd, 2019 at 8:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Every week, Hoops Rumors takes a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents next offseason. We examine if their stock is rising or falling due to performance and other factors. This week, we turn our attention to the Pacific Division:

D eMarcus Cousins, Warriors, 28, C (Up) – Signed to a one-year, $5.3MM deal in 2018
Everyone was curious to see how healthy Cousins would look after returning from the Achilles injury and whether he’d fit in with the star-laden Warriors. So far, so good. Other than getting a couple nights off on back-to-backs, Cousins hasn’t had any physical setbacks. He’s settling in as a third or fourth option in the attack, averaging 23.3 PPG over the last three games. He’s also given the Dubs a defensive presence in the middle. Cousins may not find a max deal this summer but he’ll get something close to it from one of the teams with ample cap space.

Garrett Temple, Clippers, 32, SG (Down) – Signed to a three-year, $24MM deal in 2016
The defensive specialist didn’t move the needle as a starter with the Grizzlies and he was dealt to the Clippers just before the trade deadline. Temple is the No. 5 option when he’s on the court but he hasn’t made the most of his limited opportunities, shooting 33.9% from deep after knocking down a career-high 39.2% of his long-distance shots last season in Sacramento. Temple’s age will work against him in the open market. Forget about an $8MM average in his next contract. He’ll be shopping for the veteran’s minimum this time around.

Rajon Rondo, Lakers, 33, PG (Down) – Signed to a one-year, $9MM deal in 2018
A strong argument can be made that Rondo’s decision to sign with the Lakers ruined the season for two franchises. With Rondo at the point, the Pelicans reached the second round of the Western Conference playoffs last season. They wanted him back but he jilted them to join Los Angeles. New Orleans’ season went sour, leading to Anthony Davis‘ trade demand. Rondo has been a poor fit with the Lakers and his PER is a well-below-average 11.7. He’s played heavy minutes during the Lakers’ recent slide, including a 1-for-10, four-assists, two-turnover stinker against Phoenix on Saturday.

Troy Daniels, Suns, 27, SG (Down) — Signed to a three-year, $10MM deal in 2016
Daniels is essentially a one-trick pony and he hasn’t been allowed to perform it as often as he did last season. Daniels, who is playing for his fifth team, has seen his minutes drop to an average of 13.3 per game under first-year coach Igor Kokoskov with quite a few DNPs mixed in. His 3-point shooting hasn’t suffered — his 40% average mirrors what he did last season when he appeared in 79 games and averaged 20.5 MPG. Daniels’ shooting ability should keep him in the league a few more years but he may have to settle for one-year deal or a partially guaranteed two-year contract this summer.

Alec Burks, Kings, 27, SG (Down)– Signed to a four-year, $42MM deal in 2015
Burks was better off playing regularly on a bad team than spot minutes on an improving club in the playoff hunt. Burks flourished with Cleveland after getting dealt by Utah early in the season. He posted averages of 11.6 PPG, 5.5 RPG and 2.9 APG in 28.8 MPG with the Cavs, who then shipped him to the West Coast in a three-team swap. Burks has done next to nothing with Sacramento, scoring 2.6 PPG in 12.1 MPG through seven games. Burks has only attempted five 3-pointers since the deal and missed all of them. Burks needs a strong finish to reestablish his value in unrestricted free agency.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Ray Spalding Gets Multi-Year Deal From Suns

March 3rd, 2019 at 12:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

12:26pm: Phoenix has officially signed Spalding for the remainder of the season, announcing the news in a press release. The Suns’ roster still stands at 16 players.

8:44am: The Suns will sign Ray Spalding for the rest of this season, with a partial guarantee for next year, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The new contract comes as a 10-day deal that Spalding had with Phoenix is set to expire. The 21-year-old hasn’t taken the court yet for the Suns, but he did get into one game for the Mavericks before being waived in January.

Dallas selected the ex-Louisville star with the 56th pick in the 2018 draft. He was a starter in the G League, averaging 15.9 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game with the Texas Legends. The Mavericks released him to open a roster spot to complete the Kristaps Porzingis trade.

The Suns will still have a roster opening once the Spalding deal is complete, but they will now have 14 guaranteed contracts.

Suns Fine Josh Jackson $20K

February 28th, 2019 at 10:47pm CST by JD Shaw

Suns forward Josh Jackson was fined $20K by the organization today, according to Gina Mizell of The Athletic (Twitter link). Jackson failed to show up at a team meet-and-greet autograph session on Wednesday, causing the team to discipline him for his actions.

Pacific Notes: Kokoskov, Daniels, Brewer, J. Green

February 27th, 2019 at 11:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Suns coach Igor Kokoskov won’t have to worry about being dismissed before the season ends, co-interim GM James Jones said in an interview today with Arizona’s Sports Station. Kokoskov has guided Phoenix to a league worst 12-50 record in his first year as an NBA head coach, but the front office hasn’t discussed making a change, even in the midst of a 17-game losing streak.

“We’re committed to Igor, and we’re committed to finishing the season out on a high note,” Jones said. “We have room for improvement. That’s the challenge across the organization for us to improve upstairs as well as downstairs, on the court, off the court. So we’re going to push it. But Igor, it’s a tough job but he’s up to the challenge.”

Kokoskov received a three-year contract when he was hired last May, so the Suns would be on the hook for two more years of payments if they were to replace him. He had spent 18 years as an assistant coach, including five with Phoenix, before taking the job.

There’s more tonight from the Pacific Division:

Suns guard Troy Daniels hasn’t played much this season, but he reminded teams on Monday that he still has his shooting touch, relays Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Daniels came off the bench for 14 points, including 11 in the third quarter, as Phoenix snapped its long losing skid. The 27-year old will be an unrestricted free agent this summer and is ready if a new opportunity presents itself. “It’s 29 other teams out here,” Daniels said. “I would love to stay with the Suns and play for the Suns, but I’ve got to do what’s best for me. I just want to go out there and play as hard as I can and help this team as much as I can this year and hope for the best next year.”
Corey Brewer still isn’t sure what’s going to happen when his second 10-day contract with the Kings expires tonight, tweets James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area. His preference is to remain with Sacramento, but the Kings would have to sign him for the rest of the season. Brewer, who has played in three games during his time with the team, plans to talk to his agent tomorrow to see what Sacramento’s front office has planned. He has already gone through two 10-day contracts with the Sixers this season.
JaMychal Green was surprised to be traded for the first time in his career, but he has turned out to be a good fit for the Clippers, writes Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. L.A. now has Green, ex-Grizzlies teammate Garrett Temple and Patrick Beverley to take turns guarding the opponent’s best scorer.

Suns Launch Search For New GM

February 27th, 2019 at 4:28pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns have started the interview process to find a new general manager and plan to make changes in their basketball operations department before the draft, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports.

James Jones and Trevor Bukstein, who are currently serving as co-GMs, may remain with the team even if neither gets the permanent job, Gambadoro adds. They have been sharing the role since former GM Ryan McDonough was fired in October, a week before the season began.

Sporting the league’s worst record at 12-50, Phoenix has been in turmoil for most of the season. Gambadoro notes that ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski provided a critical review of the organization on Tuesday, citing uneasiness in the league office about how the Suns are being managed.

“This is an organization that is in a spiral in almost every way,” Wojnarowski said. “It is a concern for the NBA. Owner Robert Sarver has not seemed to learn a lot of lessons throughout the years about his management style, his hands-on nature and his ability to put an infrastructure in place and allow it to build an organization.”

After firing McDonough, Sarver said it was time for the Suns to move beyond the rebuilding process and become competitive. Gambadoro points out that four evaluation specialists were dismissed at the same time as the GM, and the team has only hired ex-Sun Ronnie Price to take their place.

Eight 10-Day Deals To Expire By End Of Weekend

February 27th, 2019 at 11:04am CST by Luke Adams

Several teams around the NBA signed new players last week in order to get back to the league-mandated roster minimum of 14 players after slipping below that number at the trade deadline. While those clubs are complying with NBA rules for the time being, many of them just signed players to 10-day contracts and will have to consider additional moves once those deals expire.

At the moment, there are 11 active 10-day contracts around the league, with one more – B.J. Johnson to the Hawks – reported but not yet official. Eight of those 11 active deals are set to expire by the end of this weekend, so here’s a quick look at each of those situations:

February 27

Corey Brewer (Kings)
- Brewer’s 10-day contract, his second with the Kings, will expire after Sacramento’s Tuesday matchup against Milwaukee. So, as of tomorrow, the team will have to decide whether to re-sign him for the rest of the season or let him go. If the Kings don’t bring back Brewer, who has appeared in two of their last three games, they’d be down to 13 players and would have two weeks to get back up to 14.

March 1

Henry Ellenson (Knicks)
- Ellenson played a key role in the Knicks‘ comeback win over Orlando on Tuesday, filling the box score with 13 points, nine boards, five assists, and two steals. He’s still on his first 10-day deal, and the Knicks would dip to 13 players without him, so I’d be surprised if he doesn’t get a second contract from the club.
Jordan Sibert (Hawks)
- The Hawks are reportedly poised to sign B.J. Johnson to a 10-day contract, which would keep them at 14 players even if they don’t bring back Sibert. Sibert has yet to play in a game for Atlanta, so it’s hard to get a sense of which way the team is leaning on a possible second 10-day deal.
Emanuel Terry (Heat)
- The Heat are flirting with the luxury tax line, which is probably bad news for Terry. Miami figures to be very careful about not signing players earlier than they have to for the rest of the season, which means Terry may not be re-signed right away – or at all – once his first 10-day contract expires this Friday night.
Jodie Meeks (Raptors)
- Meeks has come out firing in his first two games with the Raptors, putting up 13 shot attempts in just 24 minutes. Toronto’s production from beyond the arc has been inconsistent this season, so Meeks’ outside shot may earn him a longer look from the team. However, like Terry in Miami, he may not be re-signed immediately when his first 10-day contract expires, since the Raptors will want to do all they can to minimize their tax bill.

March 2

Ray Spalding (Suns)
- For a lottery-bound team like the Suns, it makes sense to use their open roster spots to audition young prospects who might prove worthy of sticking around on next season’s team. It’s not clear if Spalding, who is on his first 10-day contract, fits that bill, since he hasn’t seen any action so far. If Phoenix doesn’t re-sign him, the roster count will be at 13 players, and the club would be required to add someone eventually.

March 3

Chris Chiozza / Terrence Jones (Rockets)
- Like the Heat and Raptors, the Rockets are very aware of where their team salary is in relation to the tax line, and will likely avoid carrying more players than they have to. When Choizza’s and Jones’ deals expire on Sunday night, Houston may be happy to drop below the roster minimum for a little while again before getting back up to 14 later in the month.

The other three active 10-day contracts around the league belong to Isaiah Canaan (Bucks), Tahjere McCall (Nets), and Cameron Reynolds (Timberwolves). Those deals will run through March 6, March 7, and March 8, respectively.

Meanwhile, it’s also worth keeping an eye on the Thunder, who have been carrying 13 players since Scotty Hopson‘s and Richard Solomon‘s 10-day contracts expired on Saturday night. Oklahoma City projects to be the NBA’s biggest taxpayer this year, and will likely be patient when it comes to filling that 14th roster slot.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.