Morris Trade Options?

[Bert]

I'm starting to get the feeling that the Suns are just going to keep him all season...

 

[Mainstreet]

I'm starting to get the feeling that the Suns are just going to keep him all season...

This is a legitimate option as you say. Also the Suns can use this as a bargaining chip in a trade with a team who has interest. If the Suns do not like the trade offers they can wait until the draft in the off season.

 

[BC867]

I think buying out Markieff is the worst case scenario. He would likely finish the season with a contender and then perhaps get a better contract next season with another team, all the while keeping the Suns money.

As a Suns fan, my concern is what will benefit the team and fans rather than what could benefit Morris.

If this is primarily about the money he'll get from another team . . . well, I would call it SarverThink. The small towner banker who is almost as much an embarrassment to the Suns as Markieff Morris.

If only they could be packaged together and disappear from the Valley of the Sun. Baseball teams have traded players for Managers. Wouldn't it be great if . . .

 

[Hoop Head]

It would be a mistake to hang onto him all season. Of course we're not in the locker room and can't know what is going on behind closed doors but he's doing more harm than good by staying with the team. The Suns have overvalued Markieff throughout this whole process and it's only hurting them in the eyes of fans and I'm sure it hasn't helped their image with other players or other teams management.

According to his brother he wants out and that hasn't changed and nothing that the Suns do will change that. Marcus has taken every chance he's had to publicly bash the team. Given how close the Morris' twins are, what Marcus says about how his brother feels is probably as close to accurate as possible without coming directly from Markieff's own mouth. They should have shipped him out with his brother, either in the same deal or a different one. It wasn't hard to predict they would react negatively to being separated.

Markieff started wearing down his welcome last year with the technicals, trash talking the Suns fans, all followed by his offseason assault arrest. This is the same organization and regime who came in cut Beasley loose, because of his off the court behavior and attitude. They said they weren't going to tolerate players attitudes and antics like that yet they've let Markieff get away with more than Beasley did in his tenure here. They've let Tucker get away with more than Beasley did, with Tuckers DUI and various missed busses and flights. I'm sure other players around the league have noticed the contradiction in how management handled those situations. Add in Markieff's disinterested play this season to kick things off and they couldn't ship him out fast enough, in most fans eyes, yet they did nothing but try and position themselves to trade him for more. Add Markieff throwing the towel at Hornacek and that should have been the final entry in the Morris brothers time with the Suns organization but let him come back to the team after his suspension. They could have told him to stay at home, collect his checks, and wait to be traded but they didn't. Now they're starting him again even though his play hasn't been better than Leuer's, the guy he took the starting spot from.

A team that is trying to develop young players for the future can't have around a guy like Markieff because it only shows that management isn't to be taken seriously. The team has Len, Warren, Booker, and Goodwin, even Leuer possibly, to think about in regards to the future. Letting one player, who wouldn't be starting with most teams in the league based on performance alone, get away with disrespecting the coach, management, and fans surely doesn't help build a positive view of the franchise.

 

[sunsfan88]

This is a legitimate option as you say. Also the Suns can use this as a bargaining chip in a trade with a team who has interest. If the Suns do not like the trade offers they can wait until the draft in the off season.

If they wait til the off season to trade him, we will have to trade one or two of our own 1st round picks to get rid of him, his value will be that low.

 

[JCSunsfan]

If they wait til the off season to trade him, we will have to trade one or two of our own 1st round picks to get rid of him, his value will be that low.

We will never trade assets to get rid of Kieff. His contract is not bad enough to warrant it. The absolute worst case scenario is to waive him.

 

[leclerc]

I don't understand why he's with the team. Order him to stay away.

 

[devilalum]

The more I think about this it seems like Morris is getting exactly what he wants. He hates the Suns and he's locked into a long term contract. So what's the best way to get back at them for trading his brother?

Play like crap and keep your mouth shut.

Eventually the Suns will trade him away for pennies on the dollar. He's got plenty of time to resurrect his image before he negotiates his next contract. He has nothing to lose.

The Suns on the other hand lose a player who we all thought was on the verge of stardom about a year ago for nothing. And when he starts playing well for his new team all will once again talk about what a bunch of idiots the Suns are.

 

[hcsilla]

Verge of stardom? Who, Markieff Morris?

He was what he was: a mediocre power forward, an average starter. He got a fair deal but I don't know who thought that some day he will become a star.

 

[chickenhead]

There tends to be a lot of over-thinking in these scenarios. The Suns want to get rid of him. Other teams know that. The Suns know that other teams know that. Rarely do players actually get shipped for pennies on the dollar. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised that teams in the Suns' position get calls both from a few vultures and from other GMs or owners advising them to hold the line.

 

[devilalum]

Verge of stardom? Who, Markieff Morris?

He was what he was: a mediocre power forward, an average starter. He got a fair deal but I don't know who thought that some day he will become a star.

All you have to do is go back and read the threads. "Second best player" "ready to break out" "incredible value"

sent from a fone

 

[Hoop Head]

Markieff was the teams second best player by default after the reshuffling last year. That wasn't so much a praise of his talents as it was a flaw of the team as a whole.

 

[Catlover]

I had more faith in Markieff's future prior to last season than I did once he became our supposed second best player. When he backed up Frye and played both power positions I thought he was on his way to being a very good player. Not quite a star but on a level with someone like AC Green. Too good to be called a journeyman or role player but not quite good enough to be called a star. I was very disappointed by the end of the year when it became clear we were still trying to turn him into a Frye replacement.

 

[Catlover]

How about Markieff and Tucker to the Clippers for Griffin. We aren't going to be competing for a championship for many years and we've got time to rehab Blake's recent screwup. The Clippers need help now, we might even be able to demand a pick from them. Even if Griffin gets a lengthy suspension it's not going to hurt us in the long run and in a couple of years he should be a huge trade chip. And for those that are worried about further outbursts, we can just hide our equipment manager while Blake's with us.

 

[Chaplin]

How about Markieff and Tucker to the Clippers for Griffin. We aren't going to be competing for a championship for many years and we've got time to rehab Blake's recent screwup. The Clippers need help now, we might even be able to demand a pick from them. Even if Griffin gets a lengthy suspension it's not going to hurt us in the long run and in a couple of years he should be a huge trade chip. And for those that are worried about further outbursts, we can just hide our equipment manager while Blake's with us.

Even if this were possible, just Kieff and Tucker wouldn't get it done salary-wise. Throw in Weems and it would work.

 

[Catlover]

Even if this were possible, just Kieff and Tucker wouldn't get it done salary-wise. Throw in Weems and it would work.

I'm willing to part with Weems if that's what it takes. Obviously the talent goes greatly in our favor with this trade but that team played pretty well without Blake and this incident will be a huge black eye for them. My post was a little tongue-in-cheek but I wouldn't be surprised to see Blake immediately available and at a far more reasonable price than once would have been expected.

 

[Cheesebeef]

All you have to do is go back and read the threads. "Second best player" "ready to break out" "incredible value"

sent from a fone

dude... you go back and find threads pumping up Jackson "Abe" Vroman as a major sleeper pick... or people touting DJ Strawberry as the key to shutting down Ginobli back in the day. objectivity about Suns players ain't the board's strongest suit.

 

[95pro]

It was known that Stephenson and Smith were available. I wanted to do Kieff for them. It wouldn't be a popular decision on these boards but I feel he was worth the gamble.

 

[Mainstreet]

It was known that Stephenson and Smith were available. I wanted to do Kieff for them. It wouldn't be a popular decision on these boards but I feel he was worth the gamble.

I wouldn't have been thrilled by this trade but with Blake Griffin having problems, it shows how some trade opportunities may arise for Markieff as playoff teams want to bulk up their roster and seek insurance for injuries.

 

[Cheesebeef]

man... I wish we had that Lakers pick instead of Knight. there are big, big problems in Clipper land and Blake might have just been that superstar who somehow unexpectedly gets on the block and moved, but we don't have jack squat as far as assets to get him.

 

[SirStefan32]

man... I wish we had that Lakers pick instead of Knight. there are big, big problems in Clipper land and Blake might have just been that superstar who somehow unexpectedly gets on the block and moved, but we don't have jack squat as far as assets to get him.

We do have a lot of picks. (I still think Clippers can find better offers than what Phoenix has.)

 

[Mainstreet]

I don't see the Clippers trading Griffin in the foreseeable future. The Lakers pick is top 3 protected in 2016 and 2017.

 

[sunsfan88]

We do have a lot of picks. (I still think Clippers can find better offers than what Phoenix has.)

We have Heat picks that are years down the road and probably will have very little by that time comes because Pat Riley isn't stupid and will likely have Miami has at least a playoff team in the East.

Meanwhile the Lakers will be giving up a top 5 pick to Philly either this year or the next.

 

[slinslin]

No.

The Knight trade will look brilliant in hindsight if the Lakers pick is not turned over this year and the Lakers are tanking hard for this to not be the case.

I think the Lakers are firmly locked in as the worst or second worst team this season.

But there is no way the Lakers will be so bad again. Even if they do not get Durant they will throw max at Whiteside and other good FAs this offseason. There is no way they will allow themselves to be this bad without a draft pick.

There are two scenarios

Scenario A - Lakers give up a #4 or #5 pick this year to Philly, chances are less than 50/50

Scenario B - Lakers give up a maybe #8-16 pick next year to Philly.

In scenario B you are likely happy to have Brandon Knight.

 

[slinslin]

Markieff was the teams second best player by default after the reshuffling last year. That wasn't so much a praise of his talents as it was a flaw of the team as a whole.

Bs,

he was a legitimate top candidate for 6th man of the year and most improved