Free agency and trade ideas: Which wings do we go after this summer?

[Revived]

If we get LeBron, we’re almost guaranteed a playoff run of some kind.

Without LeBron, all we have is “potential” and that can go either way as we have seen with many of our recent prospects. Idk how it would work salary wise, perhaps Warren + Johnson and Ayton for ‘Bron.

A big 4 of Booker, LeBron, Bridges, Oubre would do some serious damage. Especially if we can trade our own pick and get a PG like Holliday or somehow trade for Conley. Some cheap defensive big for the Kevon Looney role.

Don’t forget that if LeBron gets traded, it would light a fuse under him and even at 34, a completely basketball focused and motivated LeBron is a top 10 player in the league.

I think Ayton has a chance at being pretty good but considering the Suns are closing in on a 10 yr playoff drought, I’ll take the sure thing even if it’s only for 2-3 years.

I don’t expect most people to agree with me though and I understand their perspective as well.

[lilfishi22]

If we get LeBron, we’re almost guaranteed a playoff run of some kind.

Without LeBron, all we have is “potential” and that can go either way as we have seen with many of our recent prospects. Idk how it would work salary wise, perhaps Warren + Johnson and Ayton for ‘Bron.

A big 4 of Booker, LeBron, Bridges, Oubre would do some serious damage. Especially if we can trade our own pick and get a PG like Holliday or somehow trade for Conley. Some cheap defensive big for the Kevon Looney role.

Don’t forget that if LeBron gets traded, it would light a fuse under him and even at 34, a completely basketball focused and motivated LeBron is a top 10 player in the league.

I think Ayton has a chance at being pretty good but considering the Suns are closing in on a 10 yr playoff drought, I’ll take the sure thing even if it’s only for 2-3 years.

I don’t expect most people to agree with me though and I understand their perspective as well.

I disagree it would make serious damage. There just isn't enough experience on this team even with Lebron directing it. If it was PRIME Lebron, I might sing a different tune since that Lebron can legitimately carry a team to the Finals or conference finals by himself but this Lebron needs help in the form of both talent, experience and production. We have talent but the production is not dependable (not enough experience) and we don't have experience either.

I don't think a playoff spot is guaranteed. I know you said almost but I really think we're more likely to miss it than make it.

Also lighting a fuse under Lebron isn't going to turn back the clock on a 35yo (turns 35 at the end of the yr) with over 56,000 NBA minutes on that body. He's still an elite palyer but he's not the consistent wrecking machine he once was and he needs reliable help now more than ever. I'm talking about an AD level talent with solid role players for any sort of high end playoff aspirations to become a reality.

[Ghost of Kleine]

Lebron on the Suns would be a nightmare. And we're going to have to give up Ayton or something valuable for a few years of Lebron that's clearly on the decline.

Hard pass

This. For a team like Phoenix Ayton is more valuable than Bron. If guys wanted to come play with him they would be in LA right now. He's having trouble getting guys to LA, just got their coach fired, has had a hand in GMing teams horribly, and would want all youth tossed off the team for his boys. Very hard pass from me on any deal that would include Ayton or Booker, and they'd get better offers without us including either of them.

Voice of reason, speaking the unpleasant truth.

[Blonde]

No worries man, Boston will definitely be a panic mode over the possibility of Irving leaving, And definitely look to keep him.

The way they ended this season I'm not sure Boston will want to keep anyone. Just a shameful performance.

Kyrie is a hell of a talent but I do not like the cut of his jib.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using RealGM mobile app

Pretty accurate man....I agree, Although I would be willing to possibly take Marcus Morris off their hands for them using the midlevel exception. And Theiss for a little more than the veterans minimum. Especially IF Holmes commands above what we're willing to bid for him in free agency.

Curious why you like Daniel Theis so much? I’ve seen you throw him into a ton of offseason suggestions. He’s pretty much strictly a 3rd string center who would be lucky to carve out a Lou Amundson career. He’s not deserving of more than a vet minimum deal.

And do you not remember the circumstances of Marcus Morris’ departure from the Suns? Besides, there’s really nothing he does on the court better than TJ Warren at this point (besides stay healthy).

[Kerrsed]

BIG YIKES!

Read on Twitter

Ive said it before (About a million times) and will say it again, stay the F away from this kid!

[lilfishi22]

BIG YIKES!

Read on Twitter

Ive said it before (About a million times) and will say it again, stay the F away from this kid!

Ehhh he was incredibly overrated last year and now this...

[Ghost of Kleine]

The way they ended this season I'm not sure Boston will want to keep anyone. Just a shameful performance.

Kyrie is a hell of a talent but I do not like the cut of his jib.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using RealGM mobile app

Pretty accurate man....I agree, Although I would be willing to possibly take Marcus Morris off their hands for them using the midlevel exception. And Theiss for a little more than the veterans minimum. Especially IF Holmes commands above what we're willing to bid for him in free agency.

Curious why you like Daniel Theis so much? I’ve seen you throw him into a ton of offseason suggestions. He’s pretty much strictly a 3rd string center who would be lucky to carve out a Lou Amundson career. He’s not deserving of more than a vet minimum deal.

And do you not remember the circumstances of Marcus Morris’ departure from the Suns? Besides, there’s really nothing he does on the court better than TJ Warren at this point (besides stay healthy).

I hear what you're saying man, But a couple things that should be considered ...........

We only have between 8-9 million to address our needs positionally, as well as overall roster depth too, So aside from players such as these, Who else would you realistically expect us to actually be able to get?........Just curious......

For example, With Theiss, He is only making a salary of around $ 1.3 million currently. Or slightly more than the veterans minimum currently

But while he would provide what Holmes currently provides, As an energy and hustle big, Who blocks shots.

The big difference between him and Holmes is that he is a good perimeter shooter too, Particularly in shooting the 3 point shot, As he is a career 35% 3 point shooter.

Meaning unlike Holmes, He could actually see spot minutes at the 4 spot for us and quite reasonably space the floor for Ayton.


Additionally he should be capable of backing up Ayton at center as well. And most likely, For a lower pricetag than what Holmes will command in free agency.


Which is of course important when considering our limited cap space with which to try and improve our roster.

Also, Whilst he may currently be seen as a 3rd string center, I believe that given his skillset, He could quite possibly outperform that current perspective with our team.

Especially under a coach like Monty Williams, who apparently excels at player development.

And that would make him a bargain veteran pick up for us to address depth in the front court obviously.

Now with respect to Marcus Morris, Of course I remember the circumstances surrounding his unfortunate departure, in that both he and his brother were exceptionally upset over being split up, Being traded to Detroit.


Which of course the suns did as a salary dump in order to try and pursue Aldridge. Although I do personally believe that his brother Markieff was the instigating malcontent, That would seek to cause trouble, and stir his brother up a lot. Just an opinion.

But also, That was a few years back, and the hope would be in that the brothers have matured during their years in the league, ( at least Marcus) and understand now that this is obviously a business.

And one that they get paid quite well for. And as such, there's just times in which players will get traded, as it's just part of the game.


Also, that was under an entirely different front office, And GM. So at the very least, I'd have Jones talk with him, And see if the past can stay in the past, and ask him if a offer of a better contract than the 5 million that he recently made can help him move forward as a professional??

And worst case scenario, he hasn't matured enough and still holds a grudge, And then we move onto the next target, No big loss!!!..... But as the saying goes.........You lose out on 100% of the opportunities that you don't try for.

And he plays tough, has size at 6'9. Shoots the three well at 37% and is currently only making a salary of 5 million.

So again, Perhaps an increase in money could help him let "bygones be bygones" for a team with a different/improving culture than what he experienced when he was here, And that could use his skillset honestly.

That's where the interest with him stems from. But again, If he's still butthurt, No big deal, As he's not the only option out there right?

Lastly, with respect to Warren, His inability to stay healthy, and actually contribute on the court consistently ( as you're obviously not really contributing, while on the bench in your street clothes) is an important factor to be considered.

And one that has not only lowered his perspective trade value around the league, But also to a degree, diminishes the value of his contract too. As it's not that much of a bargain to be paying 10+ million a year to a player, who spends half the season on the bench honestly.

Especially when that money could be directed to a player that would be able to consistently be an available rotation player. Also one that preferably doesn't have tunnel vision issues and can reasonably play good help defense.

So he kind of does have that over Warren honestly.....Ohhh.....and again at nearly half the salary. So there's that consideration that makes him intriguing to consider.

But again, Only IF he's matured some is of course the determining factor I'd say.

[alamin330]

BIG YIKES!

Read on Twitter

Ive said it before (About a million times) and will say it again, stay the F away from this kid!

Ehhh he was incredibly overrated last year and now this...

He’s a starting caliber pg playing backup minutes. He’s right. He sacrificed more for real for the Celtics who refused to trade him due to them valuing kyrie. Celtics also made it so that he doesn’t showcase himself for a good contract how oubre was given that chance. I agree with him and take that more as a sign of a team player than someone who will be destructive.
Kyrie is overrated. I put him, rozier and Bledsoe in the same tier.

[JDJ26]

BIG YIKES!

Read on Twitter

Ive said it before (About a million times) and will say it again, stay the F away from this kid!

Rozier is essentially Reggie Jackson with a short fuse.

[Saberestar]

BIG YIKES!

Read on Twitter

Ive said it before (About a million times) and will say it again, stay the F away from this kid!

Ehhh he was incredibly overrated last year and now this...

He’s a starting caliber pg playing backup minutes. He’s right. He sacrificed more for real for the Celtics who refused to trade him due to them valuing kyrie. Celtics also made it so that he doesn’t showcase himself for a good contract how oubre was given that chance. I agree with him and take that more as a sign of a team player than someone who will be destructive.
Kyrie is overrated. I put him, rozier and Bledsoe in the same tier.

Kyrie is on another basketball world. The problem for the Celtics is not him, is that Hayward is the 5th best paid player in the NBA and he could not produce because of his injury.

They expected a BIG improvement from Jaylen Brown and Tatum too, and if they have improved at all it was just slightly.

At the end of the day it is all about competiton...last year the Celtics did not play against a team as good as this year's Bucks. That is why they went to the Conference Finals even without Kyrie and Hayward.

Bledsoe is the same player that we saw during four seasons on the Suns, good player for sure but he can not be a leader or an star player on his team.

With Anteto and Middleton next to him he is more free and he can make his work on both sides of the court.

[alamin330]

Ehhh he was incredibly overrated last year and now this...

He’s a starting caliber pg playing backup minutes. He’s right. He sacrificed more for real for the Celtics who refused to trade him due to them valuing kyrie. Celtics also made it so that he doesn’t showcase himself for a good contract how oubre was given that chance. I agree with him and take that more as a sign of a team player than someone who will be destructive.
Kyrie is overrated. I put him, rozier and Bledsoe in the same tier.

Kyrie is on another basketball world. The problem for the Celtics is not him, is that Hayward is the 5th best paid player in the NBA and he could not produce because of his injury.

They expected a BIG improvement from Jaylen Brown and Tatum too, and if they have improved at all it was just slightly.

At the end of the day it is all about competiton...last year the Celtics did not play against a team as good as this year's Bucks. That is why they went to the Conference Finals even without Kyrie and Hayward.

Bledsoe is the same player that we saw during four seasons on the Suns, good player for sure but he can not be a leader or an star player on his team.

With Anteto and Middleton next to him he is more free and he can make his work on both sides of the court.

DID you see Kyrie play at all? Did you see how he bricked everything and made bad decisions? He’s also the reason Hayward had that injury due to the terrible pass he threw him last season. I know Kyrie is flashy and has the best handles in the league but besides the flash and handles he doesn’t elevate his team. They played worse with him and better without him. Cavs also made it just as far last year without him. He’s not a leader. He’s not a 1 or 2. He’s better suited as your 3rd option just like Bledsoe.

[lilfishi22]

Kyrie didn't play well. Certainly not up to the standards that's expected from an elite offensive player. He has to take some blame for their "early" exit. Credit to the Bucks for playing the right way defensively to make it difficult for Kyrie at the perimeter and also with the help. But while Kyrie isn't a superstar like Lebron, KD and Harden who can carry the team by himself, he's by no means a Bledsoe or Rozier level player.

Also wow, I can't believe you just blamed Kyrie for Hayward's injury.

[Saberestar]

He’s a starting caliber pg playing backup minutes. He’s right. He sacrificed more for real for the Celtics who refused to trade him due to them valuing kyrie. Celtics also made it so that he doesn’t showcase himself for a good contract how oubre was given that chance. I agree with him and take that more as a sign of a team player than someone who will be destructive.
Kyrie is overrated. I put him, rozier and Bledsoe in the same tier.

Kyrie is on another basketball world. The problem for the Celtics is not him, is that Hayward is the 5th best paid player in the NBA and he could not produce because of his injury.

They expected a BIG improvement from Jaylen Brown and Tatum too, and if they have improved at all it was just slightly.

At the end of the day it is all about competiton...last year the Celtics did not play against a team as good as this year's Bucks. That is why they went to the Conference Finals even without Kyrie and Hayward.

Bledsoe is the same player that we saw during four seasons on the Suns, good player for sure but he can not be a leader or an star player on his team.

With Anteto and Middleton next to him he is more free and he can make his work on both sides of the court.

DID you see Kyrie play at all? Did you see how he bricked everything and made bad decisions? He’s also the reason Hayward had that injury due to the terrible pass he threw him last season. I know Kyrie is flashy and has the best handles in the league but besides the flash and handles he doesn’t elevate his team. They played worse with him and better without him. Cavs also made it just as far last year without him. He’s not a leader. He’s not a 1 or 2. He’s better suited as your 3rd option just like Bledsoe.

I have watched Kyrie play, of course.

Amazing player, he has won a championship as a 2nd option already and has shown plenty of times that he is one of the best players in the league.

He played pretty bad last night, but that does not change the big picture. Every player has a bad game here or there.

Rozier is a backup player for now, he needs to show that he is a good player day in and day out yet. The guy does not have a good basketball IQ and that can be a big problem playing PG.

Bledsoe is in the middle IMO. Obviously he has shown that he is an starter in the league and he can be considered a close-to-an-All Star player...but he is not a game changer as Kyrie at all.

[alamin330]

Kyrie didn't play well. Certainly not up to the standards that's expected from an elite offensive player. He has to take some blame for their "early" exit. Credit to the Bucks for playing the right way defensively to make it difficult for Kyrie at the perimeter and also with the help. But while Kyrie isn't a superstar like Lebron, KD and Harden who can carry the team by himself, he's by no means a Bledsoe or Rozier level player.

Also wow, I can't believe you just blamed Kyrie for Hayward's injury.

Well we don’t know what rozier is. He’s hidden on the bench in Boston and limited to what he can do compared to Kyrie who has the green light. Now why is Kyrie better than Bledsoe? When he was alone in Cleveland before Lebron game they were always the worst team in the league I believe. When lebron didn’t play his record is terrible with the same Cavs team lebron took to the finals. When he was hurt last year the Celtics played more as a team and went further in the playoffs. This year they were blown out in every game basically in the second round except game one and he shot less than 40% from games 2-5. He’s a champion and self proclaimed basketball genius but he couldn’t keep his team close in games? Geniuses don’t lose that badly.

[alamin330]

Kyrie didn't play well. Certainly not up to the standards that's expected from an elite offensive player. He has to take some blame for their "early" exit. Credit to the Bucks for playing the right way defensively to make it difficult for Kyrie at the perimeter and also with the help. But while Kyrie isn't a superstar like Lebron, KD and Harden who can carry the team by himself, he's by no means a Bledsoe or Rozier level player.

Also wow, I can't believe you just blamed Kyrie for Hayward's injury.

If you watch the replay of Hayward’s injury he threw a lob in traffic that he had no business throwing. Hayward was hit in the air by big body lebron and lost balance and the rest is history. Yes it’s his fault. Kyrie makes bad decisions on the court. It’s ok to hold nba players accountable even if they are popular

[King4Day]

BIG YIKES!

Read on Twitter

Ive said it before (About a million times) and will say it again, stay the F away from this kid!

Ehhh he was incredibly overrated last year and now this...

While true, I actually think Rozier is telling the truth. He went from a starter (due to injuries) back to being a bench player. He lost a LOT of money this season because of it. Maybe he still stinks if he starts consistently or gets more playing time, but we can all agree he didn't have a real chance to have the same opportunities as last year.

[King4Day]

Kyrie didn't play well. Certainly not up to the standards that's expected from an elite offensive player. He has to take some blame for their "early" exit. Credit to the Bucks for playing the right way defensively to make it difficult for Kyrie at the perimeter and also with the help. But while Kyrie isn't a superstar like Lebron, KD and Harden who can carry the team by himself, he's by no means a Bledsoe or Rozier level player.

Also wow, I can't believe you just blamed Kyrie for Hayward's injury.

If you watch the replay of Hayward’s injury he threw a lob in traffic that he had no business throwing. Hayward was hit in the air by big body lebron and lost balance and the rest is history. Yes it’s his fault. Kyrie makes bad decisions on the court. It’s ok to hold nba players accountable even if they are popular

The pass led to the play that caused it but that's freak accident stuff. You could put blame on just about everyone for everyone's injury if you go by that.

[BobbieL]

BIG YIKES!

Read on Twitter

Ive said it before (About a million times) and will say it again, stay the F away from this kid!

Ehhh he was incredibly overrated last year and now this...

While true, I actually think Rozier is telling the truth. He went from a starter (due to injuries) back to being a bench player. He lost a LOT of money this season because of it. Maybe he still stinks if he starts consistently or gets more playing time, but we can all agree he didn't have a real chance to have the same opportunities as last year.

I don't want Rozier and I really don't want LeBron as I am not sure a 35 year old LeBron at that money is right for the Suns

I would rather spend 35m on a younger player who will be hitting his peak or at least in his prime. Let the Lakers deal with LeBron

[alamin330]

Kyrie didn't play well. Certainly not up to the standards that's expected from an elite offensive player. He has to take some blame for their "early" exit. Credit to the Bucks for playing the right way defensively to make it difficult for Kyrie at the perimeter and also with the help. But while Kyrie isn't a superstar like Lebron, KD and Harden who can carry the team by himself, he's by no means a Bledsoe or Rozier level player.

Also wow, I can't believe you just blamed Kyrie for Hayward's injury.

If you watch the replay of Hayward’s injury he threw a lob in traffic that he had no business throwing. Hayward was hit in the air by big body lebron and lost balance and the rest is history. Yes it’s his fault. Kyrie makes bad decisions on the court. It’s ok to hold nba players accountable even if they are popular

The pass led to the play that caused it but that's freak accident stuff. You could put blame on just about everyone for everyone's injury if you go by that.

No. You can’t. That pass is the equivalent of a quarterback throwing a pass to a receiver in a position to get hit from behind without being able to brace for the hit. If your teammate is going to take a big hit from his blindside you don’t make the pass. Kyrie threw a lob thinking Hayward would catch it and finish over lebron. That’s a terrible decision and it may have cost him his career

[Fo-Real]

While I DO NOT (NOTICE I SAID I.....DO....NOT!!!) want Rozier, I do think Boston did things to tank his value knowing that Kyrie was leaving and to make it easier to match the now lower anticipated offers he would recieve. His run and role changed from the last couple years. On the flip side, he further hurt his image and value because he seemed to try to do too much to showcase himself knowing his minutes and role were diminished. He tried to be kyrie ( step back 3's and highlight plays) rather then just role player play hard bulldog energy like he was in the past.