Around the League
Still trying to get a good read on the Grizzlies-Suns trade that sent Bo Outlaw and Jake Tsakalidis to Memphis for Brevin Knight, Cezary Trybanski and Robert Archibald?
Executives around the league feel that the Grizzlies got the better end of the deal. After spending time last week in Memphis and Phoenix talking to Jerry West and Bryan Colangelo about the deal, I think the thing was more even than people think.
Clearly the Grizzlies got the better end from a talent standpoint. Outlaw's the type of energy guy Hubie Brown loves. After West failed in his attempt to get Michael Olowokandi and Erick Dampier, Tsakalidis was the best 7-footer left on the trading block. The Grizzlies gave up three players they didn't need and trimmed their roster in the process. Not too bad.
But the Suns claim they knew what they were doing. The team wasn't seeing the progress from Tsakalidis that it hoped. With the Suns' new, run-and-gun offense, Tsakalidis' lumbering style just wasn't a good fit. Jake Voskuhl, on the other hand, runs the floor well and plays with the type of energy the team feels that it needs.
And as much as everyone in Phoenix loves Outlaw, the team was so impressed with Zarko Carbarkapa in the summer league it felt it could afford to lose Outlaw. Outlaw gave the team 4.7 ppg and 4.8 rpg in 22.5 minutes last season. The Suns feel that Carbarkapa is capable of giving them 10 ppg and 5 rpg if they were to give him similar minutes.
The move also saved them roughly $2 million this season and another $13 million in salary and luxury-tax payments next year. It may save them more down the road. The Suns are hoping to move Knight to clear another $10 million in salary and luxury-tax payments this year. The team has talked with the Jazz about a deal that would send Knight and a first-round pick that the Suns are owed from the Cavs (it's lottery protected). The Jazz may be interested, but not right now. They'd prefer to have the Suns pay the salary until the trade deadline approaches. A player doesn't count against the cap or the luxury tax as long as he's off the roster by the end of the regular season. Look for the two teams to start talking again in February.
For now, however, the Suns are hurting a bit in the depth department. With Voskuhl and Scott Williams out with injuries, the team is trying to turn Tom Gugliotta into a center.
Speaking of rookies, Stephon Marbury is raving about the Suns' second first-round pick, Brazilian point guard Leandro Barbosa. Barbosa's energy has stood out in an otherwise lifeless Suns team early.
"He's going to be special man," Marbury told Insider. "He's so long and quick and he really knows how to play."
It's no surprise that Barbosa has been on the floor in the fourth quarter the past couple of games. His defense and versatility have made him a regular early on in Frank Johnson's rotation. Says Johnson: "The language thing is the biggest barrier. But if he keeps up the learning curve, it's going to be hard for me to keep him off the floor."
