Hedo Turkoglu officially a Sun

[Griffin]

The trade that sent Leandro Barbosa and Dwayne Jones to Toronto for Hedo Turkoglu was officially completed today.

Gentry's comments on Turkoglu:

He’s such an impact player because he can do so many things. We look at him as a two, three and four. We look at him as a guy that can run screen-and-rolls, and facilitate our offense. We think it will help Steve (Nash) tremendously because we think we can take Steve off the ball and make him a shooter. One of the things we haven’t been able to utilize over the years here is Steve’s ability to be a shooter. If he’s not the best shooter in the league, he’s in the top two or three shooters. We like for him to be the guy off the ball some coming off screens and I think Hedo will allow us to do that.

I like the fact that they'll try to play Nash off the ball a bit more.

Also, Gentry said that Barbosa actually asked to be traded, which I haven't heard before. So I'm glad that this is actually going to work out very well for him and I wish him luck.

LB's had a great run here. He’s won many a game for us. If I could have one highlight that I remember the most, it's the game Raja Bell was suspended against the Lakers (2006 playoffs). It was the sixth game and we were down 3-2. It was a game that we had to win and I think he ended up with 24 or 25 points in that game, and just played great. This is just one of those situations where he just felt like he wanted to be in a different place and have an opportunity to play more minutes. With J-Rich (Jason Richardson) playing the way he is and Goran (Dragic) coming on, he thought it might be best to be moved and play somewhere else. I understand that. There’s no hard feelings and we wish Leandro nothing but the best, and I think he’ll be successful wherever he is.

More comments from Gentry on the recent moves:
http://www.nba.com/suns/news/gentry_qa_100714.html

There was also a report that Turkoglu is currently in Turkey and is not planning on coming back for a while, so there may not be any sort of a press conference. I wonder though how did he take his physical.

According to a league source, Hedo Turkoglu is in Turkey right now and won't be returning to Phoenix in the near future. Josh Childress, however, has passed his physical and is already in sunny Arizona.

Official announcements of both transactions are expected within a week and there are no indications of any issues that might derail either deal.

http://arizona.sbnation.com/2010/7/...glu-josh-childress-suns-official-announcement

 

[ReddBird]

Good news all around.

 

[cly2tw]

Despite always criticizing LB's game, I really like this guy and hugely happy that he is matured enough to ask for such a trade and not feel miserable by it.

Gentry's comments on Turkoglu:

He’s such an impact player because he can do so many things. We look at him as a two, three and four. We look at him as a guy that can run screen-and-rolls, and facilitate our offense. We think it will help Steve (Nash) tremendously because we think we can take Steve off the ball and make him a shooter. One of the things we haven’t been able to utilize over the years here is Steve’s ability to be a shooter. If he’s not the best shooter in the league, he’s in the top two or three shooters. We like for him to be the guy off the ball some coming off screens and I think Hedo will allow us to do that.

I forgot to gloat a little with "I told you guys so". I was preaching it all the time and considered Nash-hater for saying this exact thing.

 

[elindholm]

It's nice that even though the front office is in disarray and Sarver is apparently a jerk, departing Suns players speak well of the organization as they move on.

 

[ASUCHRIS]

I'm still not quite sure what to think of all of this. I think we'll definitely be entertaining, but a legitimate championship contender? Unless something changes, its unlikely.

On face value, Childress and Turk are both good players, I'm just not so sure how much they make sense from a big picture standpoint. Honestly, they seem pretty redundant with what we already have. They provide additional depth, but at what cost?

Childress - Good defender, good slasher, but doesn't bring anything much different from the Hill/Dud combo. Further, if we sign Childress at the expense of extending Dud, is that really a win? Dud is as good a defender, and a superior 3 point shooter, which is an essential part of our offense. I'd have much preferred to extend Dud for that amount than sign Childress, and I don't see Childress playing the 2.

Turk - A good jack of all trades on a contender, but a front runner who had an awful year last year, and he has a terrible contract. Sure, if we get Orlando Turk, it'll look like a good addition, but if not, albatross.

In addition, he doesn't do anything to solve our biggest problem, strength and toughness inside. We got destroyed by LA inside, and that problem has only gotten worse. We'll certainly be an entertaining team, but at this point, ultimately flawed and less flexible.

Needless to say, Hollinger isn't thrilled with the move:

"As for the other Suns, I'm puzzled. Phoenix is between GMs right now, and it seemed to show, because the deal makes only the smallest shred of sense from their end. It's true that Barbosa had about outlived his usefulness to the Suns because of the rapid development of Goran Dragic and the acquisition of Josh Childress. Turkoglu gives them another ball handler on the wing and can play as a small-ball 4, and certainly he's a better (not to mention more willing) passer on the high screen-and-roll than Barbosa.

That said, his contract is horrible and I'm a little bewildered that Phoenix was willing to take on two bad years beyond what Barbosa was owed ($11.4 million in 2012-13, $12.2 million in 2013-14) without even getting a draft pick for their troubles. This was supposed to be one of the most toxic, untradeable contracts in basketball; Phoenix gladly accepted it, in return for a better player who makes less money.

 

[cly2tw]

I'm still not quite sure what to think of all of this. I think we'll definitely be entertaining, but a legitimate championship contender? Unless something changes, its unlikely.

On face value, Childress and Turk are both good players, I'm just not so sure how much they make sense from a big picture standpoint. Honestly, they seem pretty redundant with what we already have. They provide additional depth, but at what cost?

Childress - Good defender, good slasher, but doesn't bring anything much different from the Hill/Dud combo. Further, if we sign Childress at the expense of extending Dud, is that really a win? Dud is as good a defender, and a superior 3 point shooter, which is an essential part of our offense. I'd have much preferred to extend Dud for that amount than sign Childress, and I don't see Childress playing the 2.

Turk - A good jack of all trades on a contender, but a front runner who had an awful year last year, and he has a terrible contract. Sure, if we get Orlando Turk, it'll look like a good addition, but if not, albatross.

In addition, he doesn't do anything to solve our biggest problem, strength and toughness inside. We got destroyed by LA inside, and that problem has only gotten worse. We'll certainly be an entertaining team, but at this point, ultimately flawed and less flexible.

Needless to say, Hollinger isn't thrilled with the move:

"As for the other Suns, I'm puzzled. Phoenix is between GMs right now, and it seemed to show, because the deal makes only the smallest shred of sense from their end. It's true that Barbosa had about outlived his usefulness to the Suns because of the rapid development of Goran Dragic and the acquisition of Josh Childress. Turkoglu gives them another ball handler on the wing and can play as a small-ball 4, and certainly he's a better (not to mention more willing) passer on the high screen-and-roll than Barbosa.

That said, his contract is horrible and I'm a little bewildered that Phoenix was willing to take on two bad years beyond what Barbosa was owed ($11.4 million in 2012-13, $12.2 million in 2013-14) without even getting a draft pick for their troubles. This was supposed to be one of the most toxic, untradeable contracts in basketball; Phoenix gladly accepted it, in return for a better player who makes less money.

The puzzling thing and the dilemma is, Sarver must have really feared Amare's health issue to not keep him and just do the Turkoglu for LB swap. Without a dominant PF, it's just euro ball with a bunch of shooters. There is hope that we get David West with JRich.

 

[SweetD]

Hollinger hates the Suns and takes any chance to rip the Suns

 

[Sunburn]

Didn't Turk give up half his guaranteed salary the final year of his contract to come here? At the end of the article, did Hollinger say Barbosa was a better player? Can't agree with him there.

 

[dodie53]

welcome Hedo

 

[Yuma]

I expect the Suns franchise record for three point attempts to be broken by Hedo this season!

 

[ASUCHRIS]

Hollinger hates the Suns and takes any chance to rip the Suns

Funny, he's the same guy that picked them to win the championship last year.

 

[cly2tw]

Funny, he's the same guy that picked them to win the championship last year.

And one of the only two I believe who picked Suns to win in the WCF.

 

[Sunburn]

And one of the only two I believe who picked Suns to win in the WCF.

Hello. This is the Redundancy Department of Redundancy. What can I do for you?

 

[Unsterblich856]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56GL0ayF9Fs

 

[tobiazz]

I don't know if the Suns got better this off-season, but they definitely got uglier.

 

[elindholm]

Hollinger can complain about Turkoglu's contract all he wants, but it's nonsense to call Barbosa "a better player."

 

[Irish]

Hollinger can complain about Turkoglu's contract all he wants, but it's nonsense to call Barbosa "a better player."

Both players are coming off down years, but Hedo should be a more consistent help.

 

[Folster]

Just listened to the Gambo and Ash pod cast of their Sarver interview on 7/14. According to Sarver, the Hedo trade had been discussed for a few weeks and was presented to Stoudemire during negotiations as a player they would add to the team to try to entice him into re-signing for a title run. That explains the peculiar rumors that Toronto threw their hat into the Stoudemire discussions.

Nash, Dragic
Richardson, Dudley
Hedo, Hill
Stoudemire, Clark, Lawal
Lopez

MLE to Frye? No TPE for Childress and not enough money for Lou.

 

[SunsTzu]

That team is obviously better than last years. Doing the trade before the deadline would have been great, but I doubt Kerr would have been in favor of adding Hedo's contract. Plus they had all the Amare hoopla to deal with.

 

[cly2tw]

Just listened to the Gambo and Ash pod cast of their Sarver interview on 7/14. According to Sarver, the Hedo trade had been discussed for a few weeks and was presented to Stoudemire during negotiations as a player they would add to the team to try to entice him into re-signing for a title run. That explains the peculiar rumors that Toronto threw their hat into the Stoudemire discussions.

Nash, Dragic
Richardson, Dudley
Hedo, Hill
Stoudemire, Clark, Lawal
Lopez

MLE to Frye? No TPE for Childress and not enough money for Lou.

In that case, Hedo would replace Frye as the 3pt shooting 6'10 guy. Either we sign Childress with the MLE and trade JRich for defensive center help. Or we just use MLE for a C like JOneal and get back Lou for the market price. As Gentry said in his interview, Hedo would be the perfect fit next to Nash to make Nash more of a shooter. Both Hedo and Amare require double teaming, with Nash/JRich hitting 3s all day long. Well...

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

That said, his contract is horrible and I'm a little bewildered that Phoenix was willing to take on two bad years beyond what Barbosa was owed ($11.4 million in 2012-13, $12.2 million in 2013-14) without even getting a draft pick for their troubles. This was supposed to be one of the most toxic, untradeable contracts in basketball; Phoenix gladly accepted it, in return for a better player who makes less money.

this is my only problem with the hedo signing. we "bought high" (by accepting the big contract) despite the fact that the latest evidence shows low returns (crappy numbers in toronto). and if this move fails it severely hamstrings us in the future. AND we didn't get any juice for taking a bad contract off toronto's hands. i'm going to really laugh if this blows up in our faces and we have to use draft picks to get rid of this contract.

 

[elindholm]

this is my only problem with the hedo signing. we "bought high" (by accepting the big contract) despite the fact that the latest evidence shows low returns (crappy numbers in toronto). and if this move fails it severely hamstrings us in the future. AND we didn't get any juice for taking a bad contract off toronto's hands. i'm going to really laugh if this blows up in our faces and we have to use draft picks to get rid of this contract.

He doesn't make that much more than Barbosa over the next two years, and he's almost certain to provide better value, so I don't have any problem with that. If he's a bad contract during 2012-13, that will be too bad, but remember that the Suns negotiated a buyout for 2013-14, so they have an out.

It's really not a huge financial risk, relatively speaking.

 

[TucsonDevil]

Not sure I completely support this signing. However, I don't and won't miss LB, and the Suns needed some size. However, the Suns already have a big that sits on the 3-pt line...

Still think we need some muscle down low - unless, of course, the Suns think the Robin has an offensive game to match his improved defensive prowess. Anything is possible.

If this is the roster (core) for this upcoming season, it should be a fun season. I just have doubts about a sustained playoff push.

 

[Gaddabout]

Still think we need some muscle down low - unless, of course, the Suns think the Robin has an offensive game to match his improved defensive prowess. Anything is possible.

They can't even count on Lopez for 30 minutes a game because he still collects wholesale fouls. Whatever his game is like, you can only count on an abbreviated version. Not what you're looking for in an offensive focal point.

 

[splitsecond]

Just listened to the Gambo and Ash pod cast of their Sarver interview on 7/14. According to Sarver, the Hedo trade had been discussed for a few weeks and was presented to Stoudemire during negotiations as a player they would add to the team to try to entice him into re-signing for a title run. That explains the peculiar rumors that Toronto threw their hat into the Stoudemire discussions.

Nash, Dragic
Richardson, Dudley
Hedo, Hill
Stoudemire, Clark, Lawal
Lopez

MLE to Frye? No TPE for Childress and not enough money for Lou.

well, that could have been fun. oh well.