Official Trade Thread: New Year, New Thread, New Laughs

[Sunsss]

Great pick up. Only person who should be upset about it is Miles Plumlee.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

That's probably it. And it's definitely a move for the playoffs, which is a strong indication that we'll keep the core of this team together for at least the rest of this season.

[Matt1979]

Does this push TJ even further down the pecking order?

[Christine-In-AZ]

Nice get. Definitely needed another tall guy. Wish Wright were bigger.

Think he'll help some, but we just went back up to 10 in the rotation....Plumlee is going to play. I'll bet he doesn't lose that many minutes, to Wright. Brandon will get most of his minutes from the other 3s and 4s.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

Pretty obvious then that we've had this move lined up since the Rondo deal went down, what with Tolliver being traded shortly thereafter.

[Saberestar]

I love this trade!! Wright is a perfect C for us, he will play a ton of minutes here! He is a very very good player entering his prime.
YESSSSSSS!!!

[Sunsdeuce]

How long is wright under contract? And how much per year?


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM Forums

[Revived]

How long is wright under contract? And how much per year?


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM Forums

Just this season.

[letsgosuns]

I think the way that Plumlee played against the Timberwolves sealed this deal. He was so terrible and there was an enormous drop off when Len came out of the game. They scored on Plumlee like he was not even there. Wright is undersized but extremely long and should play far better defense than Plumlee. Really excited about this trade.

[Jdiddy701]

Perfect time for Carmelo to get rid of that no trade clause and come to Phoenix. I think that sets our team for a very long time. Cmon on Phoenix. So stoked about the Brandan Wright deal. We got him for nothing.

[Jdiddy701]

Also, I can see a lineup of Bledsoe, Dragic, Keef, Wright, and Len.. not starting but in a game. Suns look good now.

[JDLAW]

I'm not sure we could really use another lotto pick, but it'll be a valuable asset, which is not only more than the nothing we could end up with if Dragic walks this summer, but it's also probably just as or more valuable as Dragic on a $14M deal.

Wow. That high on Dragic.

Unreal.

Dragic would likely be reprising his '13-'14 should've been an all-star/3rd team all-NBA guard performance if this Isaiah Thomas asset holding/gimmick offense wasn't in place.

Dude is going to get 15 to 17 million dollars a year this summer, and he'll be worth it for whom ever he plays for. With his style of play, he's going to be in his prime until he's 34 or 35.

If the three headed PG thing is still in place come FA season, Goran would be a fool not to take the Knicks offer of 16 million per year. Yes JD, there's the cost of living in NYC, but Goran will earn millions in endorsements beyond his player contract, and the nation will actually get to know this guy and his talent much better.

I'll agree with some of what you have said, but will pick at you a bit on this. It is not how much you gross, it is how much you pocket. I lived in the east (Philly) for several years and the taxes and cost of living differences make a big difference. Take a careful look at the stats now and those last year. They are not much different and if you look at the last 18 or so games they are about the same. Hornacek as sorted out his line-ups and combinations (some of which we had never seen before) and Dragic and Bledsoe are both happier and clicking. Neither were comfortable at the start of the season. He now knows when he'll be on the floor and knows when he will be on the bench. Its probably too late for an all-star berth, but you never know. He actually looks happy and focused.

I do not buy the notion he'll be earning millions in endorsements and have better exposure in NY. These are old notions that have long since died out. Not everyone in NY gets millions in endorsements, in fact few actually get endorsements. The problem in NY for any other players is that Mello dominates that team and market and the other players, including Dragic if he were to go there, lives in his shadow. The same thing has happened in LA with Kobe.

Thing is, I do not consider Dragic or Bledsoe as "point guards" - to me they are merely guards who can both handle playmaking and scoring duties. Sometimes placing labels on these positions leads to confusion. Hornacek was a point guard until KJ arrived and they both just played basketball. Dumars and Thomas is another example as is Ainge and DJ, DJ and Gus Williams, Monroe and Frazier, Goodrich and West, Magic and Nixon, etc... This is not a new concept. I agree the Suns need to cull the backcourt a bit and that means Thomas likely needs to go. I suspect that will happen as teams who need his skills come calling. I leave that into McD's capable hands.

Two last points. First, trading Dragic for a draft choice will devastate this team and send the signal to the remaining players that the front office does not value winning or their efforts. He is extremely popular among his teammates who look at him as their floor leader - more than Bledsoe. When he was out there was a definite loss. Second, Dragic playing off the ball instead of chasing the little speedster point guards around on defense is beneficial to his longevity as is the fact that he does not have to constantly create for his teammates. He was very beat up two years ago and pretty beat up at the end of last year. I fully expect he will be much fresher at the end of the season.

Finally, I fully expect he will opt out because he wants to be paid. He has persistently expressed his love for PHX and the organization and his head coach, under whom he has had his greatest success. If the Suns are willing to pay him (I believe they said they will), he will be back.

[Fo-Real]

Jeff is Dr Evil... Scott is Wright..... Plum is Mini Me........... SKIP TO 40 SECONDS!!

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nh5Lh-tTSZQ[/youtube]

MOVE DOWN THE BENCH!!!

[bwgood77]

Is it your goal to line Sarver's pocket? If it doesn't strap us, and we wouldn't be able to use that free agency to sign someone better, why would you let him walk or trade him for ANOTHER draft pick that isn't all that great? We already have enough young talent and draft picks we can't even find minutes for them.

I also don't think at this point with the impending tv deal and signicant rise in the salary cap that you can compare deals now to other existing deals as a fair comparison. This is likely the last year a starting max for a 9 year player is that low.

Cap space is what he's after, not $$$. It's a finite resource.

I'm not sure Wes Matthews wouldn't be an upgrade over Dragic for our purposes. I think we can all agree he's not being optimally used with our current system. And I'm not at all convinced that there's demand out there for IT, so trading him may not be an option. Also, it's so unlikely we keep both Gerald and Dragic, so if you want to keep Gerald, maybe you let Dragic go.

Also, "We already have enough young talent" is never the right answer, as far as I can tell.

I love having a lot of young talent. I'd love to have some of them turn into 3rd team all nba guys as far fetched as that may be, but wouldn't trade a 3rd team all nba guy for a 1 in 100 chance we end up with a player in 5 years that turns out to be as good as him.

I'd love Wes Matthews too, but Portland isn't going to let him get away, and I'm sure he's probably pretty happy where he is. Everyone always seems to assume we can go out and sign or trade for X superstar or star or a pick that will turn into one of those things but that simply isn't likely the case.

[Revived]

I think the way that Plumlee played against the Timberwolves sealed this deal. He was so terrible and there was an enormous drop off when Len came out of the game. They scored on Plumlee like he was not even there. Wright is undersized but extremely long and should play far better defense than Plumlee. Really excited about this trade.

I've been saying it all year that Plumlee has been really bad.

That Sunsfan69 tried to claim I was hating on Plumlee for no good reason....I haven't even seen that guy around here lately.

[bwgood77]

Does this push TJ even further down the pecking order?

No, it more likely pushes Plumlee down the pecking order. He will play in the frontcourt with Kieff probably quite a bit when Len isn't in there.

[Christine-In-AZ]

I'll agree with some of what you have said, but will pick at you a bit on this. It is not how much you gross, it is how much you pocket. I lived in the east (Philly) for several years and the taxes and cost of living differences make a big difference. Take a careful look at the stats now and those last year. They are not much different and if you look at the last 18 or so games they are about the same. Hornacek as sorted out his line-ups and combinations (some of which we had never seen before) and Dragic and Bledsoe are both happier and clicking. Neither were comfortable at the start of the season. He now knows when he'll be on the floor and knows when he will be on the bench. Its probably too late for an all-star berth, but you never know. He actually looks happy and focused.

I do not buy the notion he'll be earning millions in endorsements and have better exposure in NY. These are old notions that have long since died out. Not everyone in NY gets millions in endorsements, in fact few actually get endorsements. The problem in NY for any other players is that Mello dominates that team and market and the other players, including Dragic if he were to go there, lives in his shadow. The same thing has happened in LA with Kobe.

Thing is, I do not consider Dragic or Bledsoe as "point guards" - to me they are merely guards who can both handle playmaking and scoring duties. Sometimes placing labels on these positions leads to confusion. Hornacek was a point guard until KJ arrived and they both just played basketball. Dumars and Thomas is another example as is Ainge and DJ, DJ and Gus Williams, Monroe and Frazier, Goodrich and West, Magic and Nixon, etc... This is not a new concept. I agree the Suns need to cull the backcourt a bit and that means Thomas likely needs to go. I suspect that will happen as teams who need his skills come calling. I leave that into McD's capable hands.

Two last points. First, trading Dragic for a draft choice will devastate this team and send the signal to the remaining players that the front office does not value winning or their efforts. He is extremely popular among his teammates who look at him as their floor leader - more than Bledsoe. When he was out there was a definite loss. Second, Dragic playing off the ball instead of chasing the little speedster point guards around on defense is beneficial to his longevity as is the fact that he does not have to constantly create for his teammates. He was very beat up two years ago and pretty beat up at the end of last year. I fully expect he will be much fresher at the end of the season.

Finally, I fully expect he will opt out because he wants to be paid. He has persistently expressed his love for PHX and the organization and his head coach, under whom he has had his greatest success. If the Suns are willing to pay him (I believe they sad they will), he will be back.

I too think the Suns will step up and Dragic will resign with Phoenix. Guessing 15m per year.

I appreciate your caveats regarding the Knicks, but they are the #1 "threat" suitor for Goran services for me...how ever remote.

And I don't know how it would work money-wise, but the Spurs are the other....YIkes! Can you imagine? Duncan and Ginobili retire and then the Spurs ink Marc Gasol & Goran Dragic to deals...then resign Leonard. Yikes again!

[Jdiddy701]

I think the way that Plumlee played against the Timberwolves sealed this deal. He was so terrible and there was an enormous drop off when Len came out of the game. They scored on Plumlee like he was not even there. Wright is undersized but extremely long and should play far better defense than Plumlee. Really excited about this trade.

I've been saying it all year that Plumlee has been really bad.

That Sunsfan69 tried to claim I was hating on Plumlee for no good reason....I haven't even seen that guy around here lately.

I was on the Plumlee bandwagon, too. Not gonna lie..
I believed in him. Stupid of me.

[bwgood77]

Also, I can see a lineup of Bledsoe, Dragic, Keef, Wright, and Len.. not starting but in a game. Suns look good now.

I don't think Kieff or Wright will be able to guard many 3s out there. Wright will probably primarily take Plumlee's minutes, and maybe some of Marcus' minutes (where the twins would play our two bigs with three guards).

You may see the twins with Wright and the two guards though.

[Revived]

I think the way that Plumlee played against the Timberwolves sealed this deal. He was so terrible and there was an enormous drop off when Len came out of the game. They scored on Plumlee like he was not even there. Wright is undersized but extremely long and should play far better defense than Plumlee. Really excited about this trade.

I've been saying it all year that Plumlee has been really bad.

That Sunsfan69 tried to claim I was hating on Plumlee for no good reason....I haven't even seen that guy around here lately.

I was on the Plumlee bandwagon, too. Not gonna lie..
I believed in him. Stupid of me.

I believed in him in the beginning of last year but then I saw through him for what he is and for what the greatest basketball coach ever Mike Krzyzewski saw in him at Duke.