Durant to Suns

[Mainstreet]

From what I've read, I think had Mat not intervened JJ would have made the Collins deal instead.

I heard James Jones was only going to make minor move(s) otherwise if the Durant trade didn't happen, per a tweet from John Gambadoro.

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[Cheesebeef]

Looks like Johnson and Bridges are putting on a show for there new fans. Well Bridges anyways. Still love the trade.

Looks like Bridges did what he always does at the end of games… blow an easy shot to win it. He just doesn’t have late game poise.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I heard James Jones was only going to make minor move(s) otherwise if the Durant trade didn't happen, per a tweet from John Gambadoro.

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I hadn't seen that. So, maybe yes, maybe no. I forget who but someone brought a report to the board that said it would have been Collins if Ishbia hadn't overrode JJ.

 

[Cheesebeef]

The Nets fans are loving solid D excellent shooting and ball movement. That kind of basketball is fun to watch for people who know basketball.

This trade is going to make Mikal a star. He is the lead player on that team and is going to be scoring in the mid 20's every night.

They will be comparing him to Kahwi soon. You watch. East coast exposure.

And at the end of the game, Bridges showed exactly why we needed to make that trade. Just totally blows an easy layup to win the game because dude has zero late game poise.

You guys have been throwing Kawhi comparisons up for three years now. He’s a good player, no doubt but that comparison to one of the best players of all time when healthy is pretty absurd, IMO.

 

[Lorenzo]

My biggest hope for this trade is it’s the rich man’s version of the Drexler to Houston trade.

except Durant is just so much better than Drexler ever was and was at the time… if healthy.

Also, Durant can so easily fit into our system that relies on the mid-range and pick and roll.

But it all comes down to health. If they have 20 games together to tell and are healthy going into the playoffs, I think we are gonna be scary good.

That’s an interesting comp. of corse Houston were the champs. if I recall they were struggling mid season. Drexler gave them a legit option aside from Hakeem and it ended up propelling them to another title. Where I think it is similar is age. Durant is older and probably only has a few years left at most to play at a high level. So it’s definitely risk for reward to win now. And I agree that Durant is much better than drexler. After that 95 season Houston were really old and had trouble vs the top teams in the west. Suns at least will have Booker and maybe ayton to build around.

 

[BirdGangThing]

Brooklyn fans are loving them some Mikal Bridges

 

[Carolinacacti]

And at the end of the game, Bridges showed exactly why we needed to make that trade. Just totally blows an easy layup to win the game because dude has zero late game poise.

You guys have been throwing Kawhi comparisons up for three years now. Ain’t happening. He’s a good player. No doubt but that comparison to one of the best players of all time when healthy is pretty absurd, IMO.

Your right he never made it to Kawhi but here in phoenix he never really got to play iso with the ball. I think he'll get better, alot better.

 

[Mainstreet]

I hadn't seen that. So, maybe yes, maybe no. I forget who but someone brought a report to the board that said it would have been Collins if Ishbia hadn't overrode JJ.

I think the Suns gave up way too much for Kevin Durant, but as a fan, I hope the Suns made the right move. There really is no other choice.

I'm not sure how "minor moves" as noted by Gambadoro should be interpreted, but the Suns needed a rotation power forward and rotation shooter/distributor to win it all with their previous roster.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Sure, that's possible, I just don't believe it's a given. I'm an optimist that's why I'm so surprised to see almost everyone else here just assuming the best will happen. I don't expect my car to break down but I have AAA for a reason.

And not to play word games but it's not "worry about mortgaging the future" as much as it is about being disappointed that we failed to protect our future. Worrying about mortgaging the future would be focused on giving up young players and a bunch of picks, I'm talking solely about protecting those picks if worst comes to worst. And if there was no chance those picks would become lottery picks then it should have been easy to get Brooklyn to agree with it.

Durant had an injury that tends to shorten the career and increase the games missed along the way and he's already 34. Booker now has an established pattern of groin and hamstring problems, what if this is just the beginning of a KJ-like career path? CP3 looks to have little left, what if it's not just "looks to have little left" but the actual last gasps of a HOFer career? Are we really so lottery resistant if Ayton has to be our main star every night?

What you just spelled oput is definitely worst comes to worst. Has anyone confirmed that AzStevenCal isn’t Cheese and my father? Because that’s his default. Doomsday.

there was no shot jersey was doing the deal with protection. They’re betting on the low chance of lotto. When you make a big swing, there’s going to be some risk with it. Nothing is ever risk-free.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I think the Suns gave up way too much for Kevin Durant, but as a fan, I hope the Suns made the right move. There really is no other choice.

I'm not sure how "minor moves" as noted by Gambadoro should be interpreted, but the Suns needed a rotation power forward and rotation shooter/distributor to win it all with their previous roster.

my tendency is to look at a trade in a vacuum, as it is the entire picture.

We got Durant AND TJ. I would put TJ and Cam Johnson at a similar level of contribution. Certainly similar to Jae. But then there is the ability to fill out the roster with free agents both now and in the off-season. There is now going to be an opportunity for some other players to develop as well.

It's about the picks, I am sure.

 

[Phrazbit]

my tendency is to look at a trade in a vacuum, as it is the entire picture.

We got Durant AND TJ. I would put TJ and Cam Johnson at a similar level of contribution. Certainly similar to Jae. But then there is the ability to fill out the roster with free agents both now and in the off-season. There is now going to be an opportunity for some other players to develop as well.

It's about the picks, I am sure.

I think you guys are really over estimating TJ Warren. Cam Johnson is waaaay better. Cam Johnson is good enough to win a 6th man award, the current version of TJ Warren is a fringe rotation player.

 

[Mainstreet]

my tendency is to look at a trade in a vacuum, as it is the entire picture.

We got Durant AND TJ. I would put TJ and Cam Johnson at a similar level of contribution. Certainly similar to Jae. But then there is the ability to fill out the roster with free agents both now and in the off-season. There is now going to be an opportunity for some other players to develop as well.

It's about the picks, I am sure.

I could have lived with giving up multiple draft picks and even a swap but giving up Mikal Bridges was a bridge too far.

 

[AzStevenCal]

What you just spelled oput is definitely worst comes to worst. Has anyone confirmed that AzStevenCal isn’t Cheese and my father? Because that’s his default. Doomsday.

there was no shot jersey was doing the deal with protection. They’re betting on the low chance of lotto. When you make a big swing, there’s going to be some risk with it. Nothing is ever risk-free.

Actually I think we should have tried something with the pick portion of the trade that as far as I know has never been done. Make the top 3 protection removable at Brooklyn's choice but they have to swap a pick that season in order to do it. So they still have a chance at getting top 3 picks from us, they'd just have to give us one back that same year as compensation. I think they might have gone for that if the rest of the deal stayed as is. Just a guess anyway given that it's still quite a haul. And if things worked out for us, it wouldn't change the nature of the deal in any way.

And I'm not predicting the bad things will happen, I'm just against ignoring the possibility. Especially since none of the three things I mentioned are such longshots.

 

[sdscard4]

We gave up what we gave up. Durant is on a different level than what we gave up. I'm doing the trade every damn day of the week

 

[sdscard4]

2 weeks ago I'm trading Ayton for some hot dogs. When the trade was announced all I could think of ...who does this benefit most...Ayton. you can't double him. He destroys man on man..he really really struggled when doubled

 

[Hoop Head]

Actually I think we should have tried something with the pick portion of the trade that as far as I know has never been done. Make the top 3 protection removable at Brooklyn's choice but they have to swap a pick that season in order to do it. So they still have a chance at getting top 3 picks from us, they'd just have to give us one back that same year as compensation. I think they might have gone for that if the rest of the deal stayed as is. Just a guess anyway given that it's still quite a haul. And if things worked out for us, it wouldn't change the nature of the deal in any way.

And I'm not predicting the bad things will happen, I'm just against ignoring the possibility. Especially since none of the three things I mentioned are such longshots.

I like the idea and creative thinking. I believe the hold up then is it limits Brooklyn's ability to trade their own pick in a deal if they wanted and so far down the line that hinders a rebuilding team like Brooklyn who is usually active in pursuing players by sign and trade since they're Brooklyn and don't worry about luxury tax issues.

They'd need to keep their picks because of the Stepian rule and the possibility we'd need to swap. So they'd be very limited, basically not allowed to deal picks within that window.

 

[AzStevenCal]

We gave up what we gave up. Durant is on a different level than what we gave up. I'm doing the trade every damn day of the week

This response really isn't a counterpoint to the anti-trade position here. These are the concerns: KD misses a lot of games, the injury he had statistically suggests his career will end sooner than normal as a result of that injury, and studies suggest he will continue to suffer through additional lower body injuries due to his achilles rupture. He plays great, that's indisputable. But he misses a LOT of games and that is equally indisputable.

27, 72, 62, 68, 78, 0, 35, 55 and 39. That's the number of games Durant has played in the past 9 seasons. 68, 61, 75, 75, 56, 62, 36, 40, 30. That's the number of games Anthony Davis has played over the past 9 seasons which is 67 more games than Durant has played during that same stretch. And many of us mock AD and the Lakers for still thinking he'll ever be healthy.

Going after KD makes sense, he's a tremendous player when he takes the court. But paying full price for a player that's 34 and oft-injured is beyond risky. Doing it without at least demanding protection for the picks is scary.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Your right he never made it to Kawhi but here in phoenix he never really got to play iso with the ball. I think he'll get better, alot better.

I think he’ll get better too. If he ever REALLY drilled down on his handles, he could be an All-Star.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I think you guys are really over estimating TJ Warren. Cam Johnson is waaaay better. Cam Johnson is good enough to win a 6th man award, the current version of TJ Warren is a fringe rotation player.

Yeah. I think people have memories of 2017 TJ Warren in their heads. That was six years and seventeen mysterious injuries ago. He ain’t that guy. He definitely ain’t a Cam Johnson level player.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I like the idea and creative thinking. I believe the hold up then is it limits Brooklyn's ability to trade their own pick in a deal if they wanted and so far down the line that hinders a rebuilding team like Brooklyn who is usually active in pursuing players by sign and trade since they're Brooklyn and don't worry about luxury tax issues.

They'd need to keep their picks because of the Stepian rule and the possibility we'd need to swap. So they'd be very limited, basically not allowed to deal picks within that window.

Not really, it wouldn't be as simple but it wouldn't really limit them much. There's so many ways around the Stepien rule. First off, they don't have to pick swap as they'd be in control. They'd only need a first round pick that season if they wanted to swap for our top 3 pick. And they'd have plenty of time to acquire a low value first rounder if necessary if it ever even reached that point.

 

[Carolinacacti]

Yeah. I think people have memories of 2017 TJ Warren in their heads. That was six years and seventeen mysterious injuries ago. He ain’t that guy. He definitely ain’t a Cam Johnson level player.

Traded to the Pacers in 2000 played 67 games 40 percent from 3 and averaged 20 a game. He is more then capable

 

[Krangodnzr]

Actually, the Kevin Durant trade is the worst in Arizona sports history

Given the hype about Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns, Arizona needs a devil’s advocate. I volunteer.

www.azcentral.com

This is crap. I don’t normally read AZ Central but it came up on a feed from FB

What a dick.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Your right he never made it to Kawhi but here in phoenix he never really got to play iso with the ball. I think he'll get better, alot better.

He was also never the one-on-one defender that kawhi was.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Actually I think we should have tried something with the pick portion of the trade that as far as I know has never been done. Make the top 3 protection removable at Brooklyn's choice but they have to swap a pick that season in order to do it. So they still have a chance at getting top 3 picks from us, they'd just have to give us one back that same year as compensation. I think they might have gone for that if the rest of the deal stayed as is. Just a guess anyway given that it's still quite a haul. And if things worked out for us, it wouldn't change the nature of the deal in any way.

And I'm not predicting the bad things will happen, I'm just against ignoring the possibility. Especially since none of the three things I mentioned are such longshots.

You think this based on what? Certainly not the first comment I bolded which indicates no one has ever considered it.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I like the idea and creative thinking. I believe the hold up then is it limits Brooklyn's ability to trade their own pick in a deal if they wanted and so far down the line that hinders a rebuilding team like Brooklyn who is usually active in pursuing players by sign and trade since they're Brooklyn and don't worry about luxury tax issues.

They'd need to keep their picks because of the Stepian rule and the possibility we'd need to swap. So they'd be very limited, basically not allowed to deal picks within that window.

It wouldn’t interfere with the rule because even with the swap they’d still a first rounder in that year.