Official Free Agent Thread: What to do with our cap space

[RaisingArizona]

I've wanted Green to stay here in the past but not anymore. When he's not making shots, he takes you out of the game with his crazy misses. The other guys just stand around and watch. This year his fg % sucks. There's a reason you haven't been playing a lot, Gerald. You can still bring it every once in awhile but that's not good enough for a team with playoff aspirations.

[Jdiddy701]

Team is F'd. Never seen it this bad for any team.


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Come on, there are many teams much more f'd every year.

For example this year Kings. Or actually any year Kings.

Kings have a great crowd and an allstar. They don't have agents and players blasting us in the media. And players being accused of assault charges and DUI. Not a good look for any free agent for this upcoming offseason. If you were a player, would you come here? I wouldn't. I do believe in the Suns FO but as an outsider, it's really messed up. Hope we can turn it around.


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[letsgosuns]

I do not think anyone likes Hornacek at this point. First it was Thomas that complained. Then it was Plumlee. Then it was Dragic. Then it was Goodwin. Now it is Green's agent. Easy to see what is going on. As it was mentioned a long time ago, Hornacek lost the team sometime earlier in the season. So much negativity on this team. I cannot stand Hornacek or these players. The team needs a complete overhaul.

When McDonough talked about who could be leaders on this team yesterday he only mentioned Knight and Len. He did not mention Bledsoe, Tucker, or the Morris brothers. I expect all of them to be traded this offseason. He also said he would like to see Goodwin become a starter. When I hear that, I believe that he might trade those guys, re-sign Knight, and then go with a lineup of Knight, Goodwin, Warren, new pf, and Len next year. Then he could try to sign a max free agent.

[tdjm]

Does every player need to be a leader? Is it honestly horrible if there are some guys who just play basketball and aren't leaders? You need followers, too.

I mean, make no mistake, Bledsoe and the Morris twins should certainly be on the block - literally every player should be, until we find the foundational star to build around. I'll be disappointed if those guys get shipped out just for the sake of shipping them out, though. By all means, find leaders, do what you gotta do to secure them, but please only move the twins & Bledsoe if there's actually good deals out there for them. Throwing away players for nothing is how bad teams stay bad.

[thamadkant]

I read that McD statement from Arizonasports.com, I was surprise that he didnt mention Bledsoe as part of the players with leadership qualities.
Goodwin coming out and criticizing the coach/lack of direction/leadership was not random... he has a point which some of us here have stated many times in the past few months. However I expected that to come out from a veteran... not a 20 year old, the youngest player on the team. But in time, I see Goodwin becoming a leader-type too... maybe in 4-5 years when he matures up, hopefully in a suns jersey.

Hornacek is too passive... just way too "nice", even Ish Smith said it and he has nothing to hide.


The "No tech" policy was one of his best moves, but when he backtracked from it, just showed that the players run the asylum.

I think McD will clean house next season... all the assets he has (minus the players he drafted) will be shopped around.

Len, Goodwin, Warren, Knight, Bogdanovic are McD type players... Bledsoe was/is, but he could be the center piece he wants to dangle.

I know George Karl is looking for a PG, he wants Ty Lawson... but how about Bledsoe?... their pick (6-8) looks fair.

[thamadkant]

Does every player need to be a leader? Is it honestly horrible if there are some guys who just play basketball and aren't leaders? You need followers, too.

I mean, make no mistake, Bledsoe and the Morris twins should certainly be on the block - literally every player should be, until we find the foundational star to build around. I'll be disappointed if those guys get shipped out just for the sake of shipping them out, though. By all means, find leaders, do what you gotta do to secure them, but please only move the twins & Bledsoe if there's actually good deals out there for them. Throwing away players for nothing is how bad teams stay bad.

No, not everyone needs to be leaders.

But when someone say they want people with "leadership responsibilities" they want people who will stand up and take responsibilities. They want people who will/can be examples for young players to look up to. Someone you know wont be caught DUI, aggravated assault... the only "good" leader in the NBA that has a criminal record or some sort of taint in his name is Jason Kidd. But it just shows that he isnt perfect, but a darn good basketball team leader.
Another "leadership" trait is someone who will talk to a team mate when he/she sees something wrong or unfair... basically "leaders" is another description for responsible, courteous, smart people.

[Damkac]

Team is F'd. Never seen it this bad for any team.


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Come on, there are many teams much more f'd every year.

For example this year Kings. Or actually any year Kings.

Kings have a great crowd and an allstar. They don't have agents and players blasting us in the media. And players being accused of assault charges and DUI. Not a good look for any free agent for this upcoming offseason. If you were a player, would you come here? I wouldn't. I do believe in the Suns FO but as an outsider, it's really messed up. Hope we can turn it around.


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Kings have franchise player but can't build around him. Suns are the oposite - have good role players on good contracts, just missing the star IIRC Cousins was pissed when they fired their HC. And he is know for his immaturity and mental issues, he's not different than Morri at this aspect. Kings are just very bad managed team. Give McD all that high picks that the Kings had and I'm sure he would get more than 1 allstar of them. You wouldn't come to Phoenix but would you come to Sacramento?
But that is just one example. Most of Eastern Conference teams have worse record that the Suns. Imagine if there are no conferences. What eastern teams are better this year than the Suns except for ATL and CLE?

But the grass is greener

[Revived]

Gerald Green's agent has some harsh words for Phoenix Suns coach Hornacek.

"It's completely unfair to misrepresent Gerald and his game like this," he said. "You're talking about a player that wants to win at any cost and is a tremendous locker guy and teammate. I don't see the benefit for the coach to go about things this way."

Bradbury said the numbers show Green is not a terrible defensive player, adding that the team won plenty of games last year with him in the lineup.

"It's unfortunate because the team isn't where some people thought it would or should be at this point in the season," he said. "I'm not sure why that falls on one guy all of a sudden, especially when they have known all along what they have with Gerald. He can score, and can score a lot quickly, when you give him the minutes. He brings it on the defensive end, consistent with what the team brings as a unit. But when you hear the coach saying he is so bad that he can't be on the floor? That's nonsense. You have to wonder where that comes from and why."

Green has seen regular minutes over the last few games, and rewarded the Suns with scoring outputs of 24, 15 and 30 points.

This is not the first time the Suns' coaching staff or front office has come under a bit of fire over a player's role, as prior to the trade deadline Goran Dragic said he had lost trust in the team's management.

He was traded away within days of those comments, and with Green set to become a free agent, it's possible he will not be back, either.

According to Bradbury, though, the Suns could have already moved on from Green if that was their goal all along.

"There were multiple teams that wanted him and were attempting to structure a deal if that was the direction in which we all wanted to go," he said. "Teams were willing to give up assets in significant offers. The Suns did not want to trade him. They wanted him last year and they wanted him at the deadline. They didn't have a problem with his defense, but now that they're .500, his defense is a problem they can't stop talking about."

http://arizonasports.com/41/1823971/Ger ... h-Hornacek

Even more agents ripping the Suns...yay! This should really help fix our image and lure FAs to Phoenix.

Seriously though, that last part is right. If the Suns had a problem with Green, why the hell didn't they trade him? Especially if they actually got offers for him in which teams were willing to part with good assets.

Did they think 3 months of Green (because its pretty damn obvious that his agent won't let Green resign here) is worth not trading him?

Seriously, does this team have a clue of what their doing?

[tdjm]

If I had to guess, I'd imagine that the offers for Green would be like a second rounder + bad, non-expiring contracts. If that were true (which I have no way of knowing, just spitballing here) then perhaps they preferred to keep the expiring contract rather than muck up their cap sheet?

For what it's worth, I have wanted Gerald gone for a long ass time. I was sad they didn't trade him at the deadline and the only way I can rationalize them not doing it is if the offers were secretly terrible with bad contracts. Nothing else makes sense.

I can't imagine it was possible for us to get anything good for Green. GMs watch the games, they would have seen how horrific Green was this year.

[letsgosuns]

I read that McD statement from Arizonasports.com, I was surprise that he didnt mention Bledsoe as part of the players with leadership qualities.
Goodwin coming out and criticizing the coach/lack of direction/leadership was not random... he has a point which some of us here have stated many times in the past few months. However I expected that to come out from a veteran... not a 20 year old, the youngest player on the team. But in time, I see Goodwin becoming a leader-type too... maybe in 4-5 years when he matures up, hopefully in a suns jersey.

Hornacek is too passive... just way too "nice", even Ish Smith said it and he has nothing to hide.


The "No tech" policy was one of his best moves, but when he backtracked from it, just showed that the players run the asylum.

I think McD will clean house next season... all the assets he has (minus the players he drafted) will be shopped around.

Len, Goodwin, Warren, Knight, Bogdanovic are McD type players... Bledsoe was/is, but he could be the center piece he wants to dangle.

I know George Karl is looking for a PG, he wants Ty Lawson... but how about Bledsoe?... their pick (6-8) looks fair.

I definitely think Bledsoe could be the centerpiece of a trade for a top draft pick. Idk if he could net a top three pick, but certainly a top pick. There are probably teams in the East that would be happy to take Bledsoe. His contract is not that bad. With the cap rising so dramatically after next season, his salary will not even be considered big anymore. Plus he could be an all star in the East. We have all seen how awesome he can be when motivated. He is a two way player as well. Orlando might be interested. Bledsoe and Oladipo could be dynamic together. New York might trade their pick. Who knows if Bledsoe plus other assets might be enticing to them.

[Saberestar]

Yes, I really don't know why Green was on the team after the deadline. At least a second round pick is better than this useless 3 months to end the season.

[Saberestar]

I read that McD statement from Arizonasports.com, I was surprise that he didnt mention Bledsoe as part of the players with leadership qualities.
Goodwin coming out and criticizing the coach/lack of direction/leadership was not random... he has a point which some of us here have stated many times in the past few months. However I expected that to come out from a veteran... not a 20 year old, the youngest player on the team. But in time, I see Goodwin becoming a leader-type too... maybe in 4-5 years when he matures up, hopefully in a suns jersey.

Hornacek is too passive... just way too "nice", even Ish Smith said it and he has nothing to hide.


The "No tech" policy was one of his best moves, but when he backtracked from it, just showed that the players run the asylum.

I think McD will clean house next season... all the assets he has (minus the players he drafted) will be shopped around.

Len, Goodwin, Warren, Knight, Bogdanovic are McD type players... Bledsoe was/is, but he could be the center piece he wants to dangle.

I know George Karl is looking for a PG, he wants Ty Lawson... but how about Bledsoe?... their pick (6-8) looks fair.

I definitely think Bledsoe could be the centerpiece of a trade for a top draft pick. Idk if he could net a top three pick, but certainly a top pick. There are probably teams in the East that would be happy to take Bledsoe. His contract is not that bad. With the cap rising so dramatically after next season, his salary will not even be considered big anymore. Plus he could be an all star in the East. We have all seen how awesome he can be when motivated. He is a two way player as well. Orlando might be interested. Bledsoe and Oladipo could be dynamic together. New York might trade their pick. Who knows if Bledsoe plus other assets might be enticing to them.

If NYK or LAL are out of the Top #2 I think they probably would trade their pick for Bledsoe.

[RunDogGun]

Man what is next, players' moms crying about the coach not playing their great sons? But I'm totally laughing at those screaming for more Archie and Warren,but agreeing with Green's agent. Those same fans don't want Green playing, and while he does try hard, his defense is bad, and his shot selection has been horrid this season. Plumlee was just as bad, according to many, but because he wanted off the team, his bad play will be overlooked because he supposedly disliked this team, which goes with the non fan mentality.

This has to be one of the worst fan bases in the league. We have a better record than half of the east teams, and don't have the luxury of playing those teams as much as we play the tougher west teams.

You go from crying for guys that create their own shot, to "dang, we have all these selfish shooters", and the flip flops over youth and vets is beyond stupid.

[RunDogGun]

Yes, I really don't know why Green was on the team after the deadline. At least a second round pick is better than this useless 3 months to end the season.

We don't know if there were any deals. What if that second round pick came with a bad contract through next season? Is it really worth it?

If the agent is going to go out and badmouthing the team, he might as well list all these teams and deals that were offered for his sought after player. Seems like just another, "my client is great, the coach and FO are the bad ones."

Every Suns fan knows Green played poorly this year. I was at the Wolves game, and Green couldn't guard KMart at all. When he is on fire, it's worth his bad defense, because he usually scores more than he gives up. But if he is off, he is a negative, which was almost every game this season. And I haven't even mentioned all the times he dribbled the ball right into the other team's hands.

[RunDogGun]

If NYK or LAL are out of the Top #2 I think they probably would trade their pick for Bledsoe.

Wouldn't they just try and steal Knight first? Or offer Dragic a huge deal?

[thamadkant]

Man what is next, players' moms crying about the coach not playing their great sons? But I'm totally laughing at those screaming for more Archie and Warren,but agreeing with Green's agent. Those same fans don't want Green playing, and while he does try hard, his defense is bad, and his shot selection has been horrid this season. Plumlee was just as bad, according to many, but because he wanted off the team, his bad play will be overlooked because he supposedly disliked this team, which goes with the non fan mentality.

This has to be one of the worst fan bases in the league. We have a better record than half of the east teams, and don't have the luxury of playing those teams as much as we play the tougher west teams.

You go from crying for guys that create their own shot, to "dang, we have all these selfish shooters", and the flip flops over youth and vets is beyond stupid.

You have to stop complaining, giving grief to other Suns fans though... its a forum, a free forum, its a place they can VENT their frustrations and joy about the Suns team.... let them be.

I know you love arguing and debating and put extra effort to nit pick on bits and pieces about fans opinions so you get to argue and debate with them... sadly 99% of fans here dont have time to argue. Unless I get paid to argue my points with another fan who simply see things differently from me, I wont do it.

Green is literally and I mean literally useless when he cant hit a shot, but when on, he is a joy to watch. The ONLY thing I agree with Green's Agent is regarding other teams inquiring for his services prior to the deadline, yet the Suns decided to keep him... but stopped playing him for several games and even limited his minutes on many more. THAT point, I agree with...

I think McD/Babby and Hornacek arent on the same page when it comes to player playing time and role. Its speculative, I dont have photos, transcripts or anything... but putting 1 and 1 together from the things we hear and see, I think both parties have mismatched agendas and its affecting(affected) the players.

[Saberestar]

If NYK or LAL are out of the Top #2 I think they probably would trade their pick for Bledsoe.

Wouldn't they just try and steal Knight first? Or offer Dragic a huge deal?

Well, everything can happen...but I would bet that Miami will resign Dragic to see how they play with Chris Bosh healthy.
McDonough and Hornacek can be tired of Bledsoe's inconsistency and turnovers and probably they want to see Knight being our only PG. In that case they would match any offer sheet and trade Bledsoe for a great pick or a good player.

[RunDogGun]

Man what is next, players' moms crying about the coach not playing their great sons? But I'm totally laughing at those screaming for more Archie and Warren,but agreeing with Green's agent. Those same fans don't want Green playing, and while he does try hard, his defense is bad, and his shot selection has been horrid this season. Plumlee was just as bad, according to many, but because he wanted off the team, his bad play will be overlooked because he supposedly disliked this team, which goes with the non fan mentality.

This has to be one of the worst fan bases in the league. We have a better record than half of the east teams, and don't have the luxury of playing those teams as much as we play the tougher west teams.

You go from crying for guys that create their own shot, to "dang, we have all these selfish shooters", and the flip flops over youth and vets is beyond stupid.

You have to stop complaining, giving grief to other Suns fans though... its a forum, a free forum, its a place they can VENT their frustrations and joy about the Suns team.... let them be.

I know you love arguing and debating and put extra effort to nit pick on bits and pieces about fans opinions so you get to argue and debate with them... sadly 99% of fans here dont have time to argue. Unless I get paid to argue my points with another fan who simply see things differently from me, I wont do it.

Green is literally and I mean literally useless when he cant hit a shot, but when on, he is a joy to watch. The ONLY thing I agree with Green's Agent is regarding other teams inquiring for his services prior to the deadline, yet the Suns decided to keep him... but stopped playing him for several games and even limited his minutes on many more. THAT point, I agree with...

I think McD/Babby and Hornacek arent on the same page when it comes to player playing time and role. Its speculative, I dont have photos, transcripts or anything... but putting 1 and 1 together from the things we hear and see, I think both parties have mismatched agendas and its affecting(affected) the players.

Holy f*ck! Did you really just tell me that I need to stop voicing my opinion, because this is a free forum where fans should be allowed to voice their own opinions?
So what deals were there for Green? What did we pass up, just to torture Green? Give me a break.

I'm not sure if people remember, but we started Green after the trade, and played him more than we should have. He played poorly this year, even though he looked like he hustled.

Are you really telling me that you'd rather us be playing Green over Goodwin and Warren?

This fan base has been the most negative group I've witnessed since I've been posting on the Internet. If you don't like my opinion on that, then cool, but don't try and pick a fight, while blaming me for the fight.

[lilfishi22]

Team is F'd. Never seen it this bad for any team.


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Come on, there are many teams much more f'd every year.

For example this year Kings. Or actually any year Kings.

Kings have a great crowd and an allstar. They don't have agents and players blasting us in the media. And players being accused of assault charges and DUI. Not a good look for any free agent for this upcoming offseason. If you were a player, would you come here? I wouldn't. I do believe in the Suns FO but as an outsider, it's really messed up. Hope we can turn it around.


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LOL if we had 2 all-stars (one who has been called the best big man in the league) and still end up 27-51, that would be a bad team. And you think WE'RE bad?

And the award for overreaction of the year goes to...

[Cutter]

I am very confident that DeMarcus Cousins will never win a championship as the main man on the team. He is very gifted, but not a winner that will get you a chip.