2020 Offseason Speculation, free agency, summer trades (keep draft prospect talk in draft thread)

[timetoshinebaby]

I think Denver will match 13-14 mill for Grant. We'll have to over pay him to get him to leave that squad. I mean... where would you rather be? And I just cant grasp why Chi would give away Markky ? Hes kind of like a guy everyone needs. If hes on the table, we wont be the only ones eating.

Why will they trade him? Its the typical warning shot before demanding a trade. Yes, they have his rights blah blah but at the end of the day if he doesn't want to be there, it puts them in a position where they need to consider trading him or get thirty cents in the dollar in a year or two.

I think he will definitely be on the table. Do I think he could be interested in Phoenix? Yes. If you can pair a player of his ability with Ayton and Booker, I think its a potentially very nice threesome. Chuck in some possible Bridges, Johnson etc as role players and I think we have the potential to be a very scary team in the future.

The biggest question is what does he cost and thats the part where I get scared. I'd personally be happy to ship a lot of draft picks and take a swing.

[timetoshinebaby]

Nice game. Granted its just one game against the Warriors but he might be worth signing for the rest of the year.

Having a guy making the minimum for next year as a back up 4 would be a nice option with the way the cap will be for the Suns - meaning, pretty tight to make the moves needed.

Bolden, Jerome and Cam Johnson getting plenty of minutes the rest of the year - would consolidate 8 of the rotation heading into the offseason. Kaminsky might be 9.

Good sign for Bolden that Monty trusted him enough to play him 26 mins even though he's never even had a practice with the team.

He was setting some good screens and playing hard. Definitely want to see him get some run down the stretch.

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In a post I talked of trying to win 14 of the 27 games just to finish above .500 for the final third of the season, get to 35 wins going into the offseason on a positive note.

But Ty Jerome and Cam Johnson need plenty of minutes these games too. It looks like Bolden will get playing time because lack of bigs - but good for Jerome and Cam to get a lot of play. Try to build something for next season.

Totally happy with minutes being given to those type of guys. We aren't quiet there but giving serious competitive minutes to those guys and even someone like Bridges should be a priority for next year.

[KLEON]

I can't seem to find it anymore, but I believe there was a tweet that mentioned before the trade deadline the Magic and Suns were discussing a trade involving Aaron Gordon. The Magic wanted Kelly Oubre, and the Suns were only offering Ty Johnson, Cam Johnson, and the Suns 2020 1st.

First off I want to say glad we didn't downgrade by trading Oubre for AG. The Suns counter offer seems a bit rich too and I'm surprised the Magic didn't accept that. Likely because Isaacs is out the rest of the season, I believe if he was healthy that offer would have been accepted. Also want to mention, glad we didn't sell 80 cents on the dollar. I believe this summer a lot of teams may want to retool or rebuild where they could potentially have a fire sale. The Suns front office was smart not to be so short-sighted (giving them too much credit here). Markkanen might be a lot cheaper as he enters the 2020-21 season with looming RFA in 2021, AG might be even cheaper (unless he plays well in the PO's).

*edit* found the tweet.

Read on Twitter

Would JJ be dumb enough to trade Cam? I'm keeping him not matter what, I really think this guy will be a special player in a couple of years

[DirtyDez]

I would’ve done that non-Kelly deal if I knew Gordon would commit to the Marion role but you just don’t know with him.

[Revived]

Read on Twitter

About 2 years too late on that Spain scouting trip...

[cedric76]

I would’ve done that non-Kelly deal if I knew Gordon would commit to the Marion role but you just don’t know with him.

Orlando would keep him if he would commit to that but unfortunately he thinks that he is kobe.

This is why we want to move him

[cedric76]

Rookie shooter (that we need)
Expiring (don't need)
2020 1st (protected right?)

FOR

Gordon (MEH)

I think it was a fair deal but bad timing as orlando r fighting for playoff

The 2020 draft is so weak

[sunsbum]

yall saw the link i put up a few days ago matching aaron gordon and frank the tank right? There were like the exact same stat line across the board. I guess maybe Gordon is capable of being a better defender.

[Mr Puddles]

If the opportunity arises, would you trade Ricky Rubio for Lonzo Ball?

Ball has some glaring weaknesses but his 3 point percentage is actually the same as Booker this year (36%), on higher volume (6 attempts). He's also only 22 years old and his shooting has gotten better over the years.

I actually think he'd be a really nice fit.

[Ghost of Kleine]

I think Denver will match 13-14 mill for Grant. We'll have to over pay him to get him to leave that squad. I mean... where would you rather be? And I just cant grasp why Chi would give away Markky ? Hes kind of like a guy everyone needs. If hes on the table, we wont be the only ones eating.

You're very likely right Frank. I obviously would love Grant as many others would too. But with Milsapps' 30 million coming off the books and Plumlees' 15 million as well, They're really positioned well to easily retain their core. Now Grant does have a player option for 2020, And even though they have his bird rights:

Featured snippet from the web

Prior to an arbitrator ruling in June 2012, all players that were waived and changed teams lost their Bird rights.Using this exception, a team can re-sign its own free agent for either 175% of his salary the previous season, or the NBA's average salary, whichever is greater

So, They should be able to match up to around 15.7 million or whatever the league average salary is for his position really ( 8 million)? Per :

https://www.samford.edu/sports-analytics/fans/2019/An-Analysis-of-NBA-Teams-Spending-by-Position-for-the-Upcoming-Season



I really think that our best bet for Grant is to go after him through a trade at the next deadline, Or to wait for him to hit free agency in 2021 as an Unrestricted free agent, meaning we don't sign any players for the 3/4 position to big, long term contracts. Maybe a really nice 1 yr deal perhaps? Then when Oubre possibly becomes an unrestricted free agent, We'll at least have a few options.

Now for Markannen, Chicago would of course prefer to keep him. But as we all know well, When a player is unhappy and wants out, It might simply be better to cut your losses and get the best possible return on his value per trade before he eventually leaves anyways. I don't like how players are doing this so easily now, But it seems like it's the new model for the players having the power to determine where they go, etc.

So with respect to that, I'd definitely enquire about his price, and see if a reasonable negotiation can be had with considerations to both his current declining value due to his slump AND public comments, And also with respect to his still immense potential at his current age. Regardless of their perspective on his projected value, It's difficult for most any team to entertain holding onto a potential " malcontent " young player. Again, I'd make them a generous offer to really make them strongly consider just moving on clear and fresh with more potential assets for their pursuit of hometown hero Anthony Davis!

Ideally, If I had my preference, I'd try to secure Bjelica for around ( 8 million) to be our starting 4. Then try to sign Van Fleet for around 12-14. And then resign resign Baynes ( using bird rights) IF possible. Lastly maybe draft Toppin/ Reed/ or Smith as a backup defensive Big for us? Really some sort of young aggressive hardworking defensive big in a minimal ( rookie contract). Then run it out and reevaluate at the trade deadline.

[sunsbum]

If the opportunity arises, would you trade Ricky Rubio for Lonzo Ball?

Ball has some glaring weaknesses but his 3 point percentage is actually the same as Booker this year (36%), on higher volume (6 attempts). He's also only 22 years old and his shooting has gotten better over the years.

I actually think he'd be a really nice fit.

I like his defense and I think hes a great all around PG but if this year has taught me anything it's that we need to put a long rang threat along side Booker and also someone that can take the offensive load as well. With the way Aytons game is right now I just think having a meh shooting PG is the wrong way to go. Big would I love that Kelly, Bridges, Ball, Ayton Defensive lineup tho

[WeekapaugGroove]

With Lauri it will probably depend on what the bulls do with their FO and coaching staff. If the current group stays in place I think it raises the chances he gets dealt because he seems to have issues with boylan and crew. If they clean house then who knows, new regime might try to salvage that relationship.

I do think Grant ops out of his deal. Denver can pay him whatever because they'll have bird rights but he'll be a UFA so it's not like they will have matching rights. If the suns or some other team comes strong early in FA he might bolt.

Mirotic could be an option if he has an out on his deal in Spain and wants to come back to the NBA. I wouldn't go crazy with a deal for him but he could work.

I want see Oubre Bridges Ayton start and stay healthy these last 30 games. I'm not so sure that shouldn't be the starting F/C combo going into next year, it's been a successful group so far and might be a 'not broke don't fix it' type situation. I'd still add another bigger PF off the bench for depth and certain matchups.

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[Mr Puddles]

If the opportunity arises, would you trade Ricky Rubio for Lonzo Ball?

Ball has some glaring weaknesses but his 3 point percentage is actually the same as Booker this year (36%), on higher volume (6 attempts). He's also only 22 years old and his shooting has gotten better over the years.

I actually think he'd be a really nice fit.

I like his defense and I think hes a great all around PG but if this year has taught me anything it's that we need to put a long rang threat along side Booker and also someone that can take the offensive load as well. With the way Aytons game is right now I just think having a meh shooting PG is the wrong way to go. Big would I love that Kelly, Bridges, Ball, Ayton Defensive lineup tho

It seems like lonzos three point shooting is improving though. I agree that I'd love to have sniper at the PG position though.

[Mr Puddles]

With the talk of adding a starting PF, who in our starting lineup would we move to the bench at this point?

Oubre has been playing great, but Bridges is improving and really starting to come into his own as the player we were hoping he'd be - he also seems to be a better fit with the starters than off the bench.

I would prefer to have a PF over starting two small forwards, but I can't really think of a PF who we can realistically attain and is good enough to push one of these guys out of the starting line up.

[WeekapaugGroove]

Read on Twitter

Some current and former suns nuggets in here from Lowe.

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[chaplin1]

With the talk of adding a starting PF, who in our starting lineup would we move to the bench at this point?

Oubre has been playing great, but Bridges is improving and really starting to come into his own as the player we were hoping he'd be - he also seems to be a better fit with the starters than off the bench.

I would prefer to have a PF over starting two small forwards, but I can't really think of a PF who we can realistically attain and is good enough to push one of these guys out of the starting line up.

I look at it this way: If Dario replaced Bridges in the starting lineup and had the exact same statline, would we all be satisfied? I would say emphatically, "NO". So I think Bridges is the obvious guy we would replace in the starting lineup. He has improved, but if his statline isn't impressive enough to apply to our other PF players, then he's expendable as a starter.

Conversely, if you replace Oubre with Dario and apply Oubre's statline to him, I think we'd all be a lot happier.

[WeekapaugGroove]

With the talk of adding a starting PF, who in our starting lineup would we move to the bench at this point?

Oubre has been playing great, but Bridges is improving and really starting to come into his own as the player we were hoping he'd be - he also seems to be a better fit with the starters than off the bench.

I would prefer to have a PF over starting two small forwards, but I can't really think of a PF who we can realistically attain and is good enough to push one of these guys out of the starting line up.

I look at it this way: If Dario replaced Bridges in the starting lineup and had the exact same statline, would we all be satisfied? I would say emphatically, "NO". So I think Bridges is the obvious guy we would replace in the starting lineup. He has improved, but if his statline isn't impressive enough to apply to our other PF players, then he's expendable as a starter.

Conversely, if you replace Oubre with Dario and apply Oubre's statline to him, I think we'd all be a lot happier.

Bridges has been outstanding the past month or so.

I think we just need to let this 5 man starting lineup play out these next 30 games. In limited sample size so far they are killing teams. Now it's not a big enough sample yet to draw any sweeping conclusions but if this lineup continues on the pace they are right now it would be incredibly foolish to ignore the data and mess with it just because it seems like they need a more traditional PF.

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[BobbieL]

With the talk of adding a starting PF, who in our starting lineup would we move to the bench at this point?

Oubre has been playing great, but Bridges is improving and really starting to come into his own as the player we were hoping he'd be - he also seems to be a better fit with the starters than off the bench.

I would prefer to have a PF over starting two small forwards, but I can't really think of a PF who we can realistically attain and is good enough to push one of these guys out of the starting line up.

I look at it this way: If Dario replaced Bridges in the starting lineup and had the exact same statline, would we all be satisfied? I would say emphatically, "NO". So I think Bridges is the obvious guy we would replace in the starting lineup. He has improved, but if his statline isn't impressive enough to apply to our other PF players, then he's expendable as a starter.

Conversely, if you replace Oubre with Dario and apply Oubre's statline to him, I think we'd all be a lot happier.

Bridges has been outstanding the past month or so.

I think we just need to let this 5 man starting lineup play out these next 30 games. In limited sample size so far they are killing teams. Now it's not a big enough sample yet to draw any sweeping conclusions but if this lineup continues on the pace they are right now it would be incredibly foolish to ignore the data and mess with it just because it seems like they need a more traditional PF.

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Lowe pointed out the effectiveness of the starting 5 in his article and others have pointed the same - if its not broke, don't fix it.

For me, goals for rest of season
1) maybe some bigs come back just to help get some wins
2) run Cam, Jerome and even Bolden for heavy minutes. Okobo too. We have to see these guys play to see how they get better

Offseason can than focus on trying to upgrade the bench. If the starting 5 is producing the rest of the year like they have - that is your starting 5 next year. Granted, they could always trade Oubre to get better not sure why you would want too unless you are trying to fit a "true 4" because of narrative.

Lowes article mentioned Bjelica - like that guy but they are probably not moving him.

But even with the starting five playing well, Cam shooting the three pretty well for a rookie, still need a back up shooting guard and a 4 off the bench.

[bwgood77]

I think Denver will match 13-14 mill for Grant. We'll have to over pay him to get him to leave that squad. I mean... where would you rather be? And I just cant grasp why Chi would give away Markky ? Hes kind of like a guy everyone needs. If hes on the table, we wont be the only ones eating.

Why will they trade him? Its the typical warning shot before demanding a trade. Yes, they have his rights blah blah but at the end of the day if he doesn't want to be there, it puts them in a position where they need to consider trading him or get thirty cents in the dollar in a year or two.

I think he will definitely be on the table. Do I think he could be interested in Phoenix? Yes. If you can pair a player of his ability with Ayton and Booker, I think its a potentially very nice threesome. Chuck in some possible Bridges, Johnson etc as role players and I think we have the potential to be a very scary team in the future.

The biggest question is what does he cost and thats the part where I get scared. I'd personally be happy to ship a lot of draft picks and take a swing.

He doesn't want to be in Denver? I haven't heard that. A very nice threesome? We are talking about Jerami Grant right? They PF who grabs 5 boards per 36? He is a nice 3 pt shooting, pretty good defensive big, but he's just a role player.

[WeekapaugGroove]

I think Denver will match 13-14 mill for Grant. We'll have to over pay him to get him to leave that squad. I mean... where would you rather be? And I just cant grasp why Chi would give away Markky ? Hes kind of like a guy everyone needs. If hes on the table, we wont be the only ones eating.

Why will they trade him? Its the typical warning shot before demanding a trade. Yes, they have his rights blah blah but at the end of the day if he doesn't want to be there, it puts them in a position where they need to consider trading him or get thirty cents in the dollar in a year or two.

I think he will definitely be on the table. Do I think he could be interested in Phoenix? Yes. If you can pair a player of his ability with Ayton and Booker, I think its a potentially very nice threesome. Chuck in some possible Bridges, Johnson etc as role players and I think we have the potential to be a very scary team in the future.

The biggest question is what does he cost and thats the part where I get scared. I'd personally be happy to ship a lot of draft picks and take a swing.

He doesn't want to be in Denver? I haven't heard that. A very nice threesome? We are talking about Jerami Grant right? They PF who grabs 5 boards per 36? He is a nice 3 pt shooting, pretty good defensive big, but he's just a role player.

He's talking about Lauri.

You're not wrong on Grant. I like him but as you said he's a role player and there's absolutely a breaking point with him where it would be a bad contract.

But with Lauri he probably wants something like a max for an extension and if he doesn't take a leap that would be a bad deal too.

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