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Raptors Highly Interested In Ryan Anderson

February 11th, 2016 at 1:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Raptors have high interest in Ryan Anderson as the trade deadline approaches, reports Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link). Toronto joins a handful of teams apparently eyeing the soon-to-be free agent for a trade, as well as the Pistons, who’ve reportedly been looking at him but only as a potential offseason signee. The Raptors are seeking power forwards, with Thaddeus Young, Kenneth Faried and Markieff Morris among the names on their radar, according to multiple reports. Toronto has engaged in exploratory discussions about those three as well as P.J. Tucker, another object of their interest, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com, though it’s not entirely clear whether those are internal or external talks.

Anderson is making $8.5MM this season, and the Raptors, who are over the cap and without a trade exception, would have to match for that salary to trade for him, a complicated task given the construction of Toronto’s roster, as Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca has pointed out. Toronto has an extra pick in each of the next two drafts to offer, and GM Masai Ujiri has signaled an intent to eventually trade at least one of those, but any deal would have to involve more than just draft assets going to New Orleans.

Conflicting reports have emerged about the likelihood of an Anderson trade this season, though more of them indicate that he’s not the likeliest trade candidate on the New Orleans roster than the other way around. New Orleans reportedly made Anderson available earlier this season, but the team wasn’t anxious to trade him, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders reported, adding Wednesday that the Wizards have asked about him. The Rockets “kicked the tires” on Anderson earlier this season, Kyler also reported. New Orleans apparently had talks with the Suns that involved Anderson, while differing reports paint an unclear picture of whether the Pelicans turned down an offer from the Kings of Rudy Gay for Anderson.

The subject of the Raptors and power forwards was the topic for our Community Shootaround on Wednesday.

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Latest On Markieff Morris

February 11th, 2016 at 12:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Markieff Morris, Archie Goodwin and interim coach Earl Watson all brushed off an incident during a timeout in Phoenix’s loss Wednesday to the Warriors when Morris shoved Goodwin and teammates had to separate them, as Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic details. It’s not the first confrontation involving Morris to take place on the Suns bench this season, and while the towel he tossed in former coach Jeff Hornacek‘s direction in the midst of a December game resulted in a two-game suspension for the power forward, other teams don’t find it concerning, reports Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports.

“We have to control our emotions,” Watson said, according to Coro. “Other than that, those two are really close. The team is not split. Those two are the closest on the team. They have a bond, a unique relationship. As we’ve seen, unique relationships can lead to something else throughout the league.”

Executives acknowledge that emotions run high and boil over at times during the heat of competition and most say the extra scrutiny surrounding Morris this year magnified the negative public perception of the towel toss, according to Marks. Nevertheless, if such outbursts become common, they could still hurt his trade value, Marks concedes. See more on one of the season’s most significant trade candidates:

  • Teams with interest in trading for Morris have wondered if the breakdown in communication between the Suns, Morris and his brother Marcus Morris this summer is a harbinger of similar problems they’d have if they traded for Markieff, as Marks details in the same piece. Those teams have looked into the relationship between Marcus and the Pistons and found no issues, Marks adds.
  • Markieff Morris said after Wednesday’s game that he didn’t regret having shoved Goodwin, notes Paula Boivin of The Arizona Republic. The way that Morris and the rest of the team have responded to the incident is baffling, Boivin contends, believing that Morris’ behavior puts the team in a tough position.
  • Morris praised Watson for sticking with him, as Boivin relays in the same column, and the coach has been complimentary of Morris since taking over for Hornacek, as his comments before Wednesday game illustrate. “Everybody thought Markieff would be the toughest challenge,” Watson said, according to Coro (Twitter link). “He’s been the easiest challenge.”
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And-Ones: Morris, Dunleavy, Korkmaz, Labor

February 4th, 2016 at 1:49pm CST by Chuck Myron

Markieff Morris said he “never had a problem” with former Suns coach Jeff Hornacek, observes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. The incident in which he threw a towel that connected with Hornacek after the pair exchanged words during a game in December, prompting a two-game suspension for the power forward, was “misperceived,” Morris said. With trade rumors continuing to surround the Suns, see more from around the NBA:

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Western Notes: Howard, Morris, Brown, Kilpatrick

February 4th, 2016 at 9:29am CST by Chuck Myron

Conflicting reports abound on whether the Rockets have explored trading Dwight Howard lately and whether they have a desire to move him. The Rockets have engaged teams about Howard but set a high asking price, league sources told Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), a notion that runs counter to the idea that Houston hasn’t had any Howard trade talk since December, as a source told Calvin Watkins and Marc Stein of ESPN.com and as we passed along Wednesday night. The trade market for Howard is relatively limited anyway, as Sean Deveney of The Sporting News hears, and that apparently extends to free agency, at least as far as the Mavericks are concerned. Dallas doesn’t have interest in giving the center a maximum-salary deal, according to USA Today’s Sam Amick, though Howard’s former teammate and recruiter extraordinaire Chandler Parsons spoke to Amick about his desire to play again with Howard, as Amick relays. See more from the Western Conference:

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Pacific Notes: Russell, Hornacek, Kerr, Morris

February 3rd, 2016 at 9:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

In an interview with David Aldridge of NBA.com, Lakers rookie D’Angelo Russell admitted that he still has much to learn about the game but lamented that the lines of communication between him and coach Byron Scott aren’t more open to help facilitate his growth. When asked by Aldridge if he and Scott communicate freely, Russell responded, “At this day and age, you kind of have a feel for what you did wrong. It might sound weird, but you don’t know what to ask. So like, I turned the ball over. I know I turned the ball over and I’m coming out of the game. I’m not sure if that’s why you’re pulling me out, but I’m not sure what to ask. ‘Cause I know I turned it over. There’s nothing that you can possibly say that’s going to bring that turnover back, or anything that I can possibly do. But it’s like, I don’t know what to ask. It’s like, he wouldn’t, I don’t know, tell me if I don’t ask. So that’s where it’s kind of a blur. ” Russell has previously expressed his frustration at not being on the court late in games and Scott has come under scrutiny for not playing the team’s younger players more this season.

Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Suns GM Ryan McDonough noted that one reason former coach Jeff Hornacek was fired is because the players no longer responded to his leadership, Bob Baum of The Associated Press writes. “I realize Jeff was in a tough spot [because of the injuries],” McDonough said, “but at the same time the team wasn’t competing how we hoped it would or how we think it is capable of competing.“
  • McDonough recommended firing Hornacek to Suns owner Robert Sarver, but admits it was difficult to do so because of his close relationship with the former coach, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic relays (via Twitter).
  • Warriors coach Steve Kerr has not allowed his prolonged absence, nor the team’s stellar record, to curb his fire, and the coach is demonstrating just how valuable he is to the franchise by challenging the team to continue to improve, writes Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post.
  • Suns interim coach Earl Watson intends to make Markieff Morris the focal point of the team’s offense and show him that the organization cares about him as a person, Coro relays. “He is the main focus of our offense moving forward,” Watson said regarding Morris. “I had a feeling that if we gave him positive encouragement and let him know that no matter what we love him, no matter what happens beyond basketball, and gave him an opportunity to play and let him know he is going to play. … Some things are bigger than basketball so when you reach out beyond basketball, players tend to respond well.”
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Western Notes: Howard, Durant, Morris

February 3rd, 2016 at 6:20pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Despite the reports that the Rockets are entertaining trade offers for Dwight Howard, GM Daryl Morey insists the team hasn’t given up on the season and the center is needed if Houston wants to make a playoff push, Brian T. Smith of The Houston Chronicle relays. “We’re just focused on this season,” Morey told reporters. “So is Dwight. If we as a team and he as a player plays like we know he’s capable and has been this year and was last year, all that stuff takes care of itself. There’s no way we make the conference finals last year without Dwight and there’s no way [we] are making the solid playoff push this year without Dwight.

The Rockets haven’t had any meaningful dialogue about a Howard trade since December and aren’t looking to trade him, one source told Calvin Watkins and Marc Stein of ESPN.com, a dispatch that conflicts with earlier reports. Here’s more from out West:

  • Houston plans to make a big push this offseason to sign unrestricted free agent Kevin Durant, and the front office believes it has a legitimate shot to sign the Thunder star, Watkins and Stein note in the same piece. Rockets officials believe privately that they will have as good a chance as any team to lure Durant away from Oklahoma City because of his strong relationship with former teammate James Harden and the room Houston has to pay Durant max-contract money while also re-signing Howard, the ESPN duo note.
  • The Suns have indicated they plan to make Markieff Morris the focal point of their offense, a move that is geared to showcase him to teams potentially interested in trading for the power forward, Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders opines.
  • Nuggets coach Michael Malone raves about the potential of big man Nikola Jokic and believes the sky is the limit for the 20-year-old, Harrison Wind of BSNDenver.com relays (via Twitter). “You can talk about some of these very young bigs who are very talented. I know Nikola Jokic and wouldn’t trade him for anybody in the world,” Malone said.  “He’s a special young man, he’s a special young talent and he’s only going to get better as he continues to get stronger. But he’s a heck of a young talent. I give a lot of credit to [GM] Tim Connelly and the front office for finding him and making him part of this organization.”
  • Former Hornets point guard Jannero Pargo, who signed with the D-League earlier this week, was claimed off waivers by the Thunder‘s D-League affiliate, Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor tweets.
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Raptors Among Suitors For Markieff Morris

February 3rd, 2016 at 1:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Raptors are among the teams interested in trading for Markieff Morris, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com hears, adding Morris to P.J. Tucker among the Suns whom Toronto is reportedly eyeing (Twitter link). Suns GM Ryan McDonough has said he’d like to make at least one trade before the February 18th deadline, and according to Stein, people around the league view the Suns as a lock to do just that. Morris has been the most prominent trade candidate all season long for Phoenix, but though it’s a matter of when, not if, the Suns will trade him, as rival executives told Stein recently, the Suns are holding out for a strong return amid a slow market for the power forward, Stein wrote.

The Suns made Morris “very available” in December, and that apparently hasn’t changed despite a strong performance from him on Tuesday, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM (Twitter link). Suns interim coach Earl Watson said Tuesday that Morris will be the focal point of the Suns offense going forward, notes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic, a stark contrast to earlier this season, when former coach Jeff Hornacek benched the former lottery pick and at times removed him from the rotation altogether. That situation reached a head when Morris threw a towel in Hornacek’s direction during a game, resulting in a two-game suspension. Feelings have been prickly surrounding Morris since his offseason trade demand, though he backed away from the demand at the start of training camp.

The Raptors have been starting 35-year-old Luis Scola at power forward, seemingly a signal that the team is in need of an upgrade at the position. Morris is in the first season of a four-year, $32MM extension he signed with Phoenix in 2014, so adding him without sending long-term salary commitments to Phoenix, or to another team in a more complex deal, would add to an already daunting burden for the years ahead. Toronto has nearly $70MM in guaranteed salary on next year’s books, not counting any money for soon-to-be free agent DeMar DeRozan.

DeRozan and Kyle Lowry are friends of Morris, but a couple of other Raptors don’t speak as highly of him, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. Morris engendered public antipathy with his trade demand, his high volume of technical fouls last season, and his legal troubles, which entail felony aggravated assault charges stemming from a January 2015 incident.

Phoenix has reportedly been targeting young players and draft picks lately in exchange for Morris, and the Raptors have recent first-round picks Lucas Nogueira and Bruno Caboclo, as well as an extra first-round pick for both this season and next. The Suns reportedly spoke with the Pelicans and Rockets about Morris trades earlier this season, and the Pistons are also reportedly interested.

What do you think a workable Morris trade between the Raptors and Suns would look like? Leave a comment to share your ideas.

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Fallout From/Reaction To Suns Coaching Change

February 2nd, 2016 at 10:29am CST by Chuck Myron

The Suns, as constituted, simply aren’t good enough, GM Ryan McDonough acknowledged today in a radio appearance this morning on the “Doug & Wolf Show” on Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link). McDonough also said that he accepts responsibility for the state of the team and, when asked about his own job security, said he hadn’t been given any guarantees and hadn’t asked for any (All Twitter links).

“It is our job to coach the players we have and to fill our roster to the best of our ability and we haven’t,” McDonough said.

See more from McDonough and others as the Suns dig out from under Monday’s firing of Jeff Hornacek and the appointment of assistant coach Earl Watson as interim head coach.

  • Watson will be a candidate for the long-term head coaching job, McDonough also said in his radio appearance (Twitter links). McDonough added in response to a question that he hasn’t reached out to Sixers assistant and former Suns head coach Mike D’Antoni, whom the team has reportedly been poised to target.
  • Players expressed support for Watson when the Suns shook up their assistant coaching staff in late December, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Markieff Morris and Watson get along, notes Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
  • The Suns still have a roster built to run the two point guard attack that Hornacek orchestrated, and Hornacek’s firing is a signal of potential changes to come in the team’s approach to player personnel, Coro writes in the same piece. Turnover issues and the emergence of lottery pick Devin Booker, a traditional shooting guard, further that notion, Coro adds.
  • The Suns set up Hornacek for failure when they neglected to pick up his team option for next season before this season began, making him a lame duck, and when they failed anticipate the fallout from the Marcus Morris trade, contends Paula Boivin of the Arizona Republic. Hornacek deserved some of the blame, but not as much as the Suns organization assigned to him, Boivin opines.
  • Hornacek’s firing won’t change the problems that hang over the franchise, which sorely lacks a culture of mutual respect and trust between ownership and the rest of the organization, contends Ben Golliver of SI.com.
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Pacific Notes: Morris, Stephenson, Randle

January 31st, 2016 at 10:31am CST by ChrisCrouse

Golden State sits atop the Pacific Division with a record of 43-4, which is tied for the best 47 game start in NBA history. The Warriors beat the lowly Sixers in dramatic fashion on Saturday night by a score of 108-105 on a last second buzzer-beater by Harrison Barnes, who will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season. The team will take on the Knicks at Madison Square Garden tonight, and as the Warriors await their next opponent, let’s take a look at some notes from their foes in the Pacific Division:

  • Markieff Morris views this year’s Suns differently than the 2012/13 team that lost 57 games, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic writes. “Three years ago, when we were losing, we still were having fun,” Morris said. “It was just put together the wrong way. Now, it’s more like a rebuilding type of thing. We’re playing a bunch of young guys. It’s hard because it’s something different every game. Back then, we had a bunch of talented guys but some guys didn’t fit in. It’s a tough situation.” Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors examined Morris as a trade candidate earlier this month.
  • The Clippers may opt to give offseason addition Lance Stephenson a bigger role with Blake Griffin sidelined, Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times writes. “I still say he’s going to help us,” coach Doc Rivers said of Stephenson, who was the subject of trade chatter earlier this season. “But I just like his spirit. He’s ready every night, he wants to play. He’s been a great team guy.” The 25-year-old had an impressive game against the Lakers on Friday night, accumulating 16 points and five rebounds while shooting 6 for 7 from the field.
  • Julius Randle is showing signs of improvement and Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders believes he is one of the most promising young power forwards in the NBA. Randle is pulling down 9.7 rebounds per game, which is good for 12th most in the league this season.
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Pacific Notes: Griffin, Morris, Weems

January 30th, 2016 at 1:05pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Thanks to the rash of backcourt injuries that have plagued the Suns this season, Sonny Weems is finally getting his opportunity to play, and the shooting guard hopes to demonstrate how valuable he can be to the team, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic writes. “I think I can do a lot more,” Weems said. “I think I’m a more complete player than most think I am. It’s still a long season. I still have got time to show the complete game that I have.”

Weems noted that he still tries to speak regularly with his former CSKA Moscow coach, Ettore Messina, who is an assistant with the Spurs, but he runs into trouble doing so, Coro adds. “I’m stuck here for the next two years and he’s there so we can’t talk about anything,” said Weems, whose deal includes a team option for next season. The guard did note that he appreciates the opportunity Phoenix has given him but he wants a more substantial role, Coro relays. “I actually like Phoenix,” Weems said. “You really can’t complain when you see the sun shine every day and it’s 70 degrees. I really like it. As far as playing time, I wish I had more playing time. Of course, every NBA player wishes he could play a lot more. I understand the business. I’m just waiting my turn. When it comes, I’m going to be ready. I love Phoenix.”

Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers notes that power forward Blake Griffin, who is expected to miss up to two months after breaking his right hand in an altercation with the team’s equipment manager, is genuinely remorseful for the incident, Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com relays. “He feels awful about it, and he’s let everyone know that,” Rivers said. “That’s all you can do. You have to forgive people at some point. I believe that. We built Richard Nixon a library. I mean, my goodness. You forgive people. You really do. You kind of move on, and you build it back.” Rivers also noted that the franchise will defer to the league in regard to any discipline meted out, Arnovitz adds. “Both parties will get together,” Rivers said. “Usually the league leads on that stuff.“
  • It’s still a matter of when, not if, the Suns will trade Markieff Morris, executives from around the league tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com, but Phoenix is holding tight in search of better offers with his market value trending relatively low, according to Stein.
  • The Clippers sent $456,921 to the Rockets as part of the Josh Smith trade, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders notes (on Twitter).

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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