Suns updates and discussion for the 2019-20 season

[Cheesebeef]

They got playoff type game experience and still get to be in the draft lottery. That is something to be interested in as well.

yup.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

They got playoff type game experience and still get to be in the draft lottery. That is something to be interested in as well.

Need to get some luck in the lottery. Another really solid player would do the club wonders.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I am warming to the idea of Ibaka. I thought he was older than 30 and he picked up his 3 point shooting again this year. Obi Toppin sorta looks like a younger version of him. Obi has those shoulders like Amare and some of that quick spin to the hoop action, but he also shoots the 3. Maybe we sign Serge and draft Obi or Haliburton and call it an off-season.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I am warming to the idea of Ibaka. I thought he was older than 30 and he picked up his 3 point shooting again this year. Obi Toppin sorta looks like a younger version of him. Obi has those shoulders like Amare and some of that quick spin to the hoop action, but he also shoots the 3. Maybe we sign Serge and draft Obi or Haliburton and call it an off-season.

I think that would be a fantastic off-season. Only catch is this... we probably can’t afford to sign Ibaka and keep Saric. But I’d be okay with that.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I think that would be a fantastic off-season. Only catch is this... we probably can’t afford to sign Ibaka and keep Saric. But I’d be okay with that.

Can’t we sign Ibaka and go over the cap to resign saric?

 

[Mainstreet]

Can’t we sign Ibaka and go over the cap to resign saric?

As I understand it, the Suns can go over the cap if they delay signing Saric to last.

However, the bigger question for me is how much money are the Suns willing to spend.

They potentially have over $20 million to spend in free agency.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Can’t we sign Ibaka and go over the cap to resign saric?

sure. will they sign Ibaka and go over the cap to resign saric? I doubt it.

 

[Hoop Head]

Saric's cap hold is $10.2 million and if we have roughly $20 million available then we'd need to sign Ibaka for $10 million or less before making a deal with Saric. I think Saric should cost less than that so they might resign him first and then work a deal with Ibaka.

I would guess Ibaka will cost somewhere between $12-15 million annually on a 1 or 2 year. Going over the cap wouldn't be much of an issue then and I could see the Suns being ok with that, provided they don't go over by anymore than $5 million or so.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Saric's cap hold is $10.2 million and if we have roughly $20 million available then we'd need to sign Ibaka for $10 million or less before making a deal with Saric. I think Saric should cost less than that so they might resign him first and then work a deal with Ibaka.

I would guess Ibaka will cost somewhere between $12-15 million annually on a 1 or 2 year. Going over the cap wouldn't be much of an issue then and I could see the Suns being ok with that, provided they don't go over by anymore than $5 million or so.

if they were able to bring back Saric, Payne and Jevon, while adding Ibaka, if Ayton takes a step forward, next year’s team could jump from 34 to 50 wins.

 

[BC867]

Can’t we sign Ibaka and go over the cap to resign saric?

I consider Saric to be a band-aid at backup Power Forward at best.

But not essential to making a move at the power position alongside
Ayton to allow Deandre to do what he does best within his limitations.

Assuming, of course, that he doesn't miss 25 games or get into foul
trouble regularly. Ayton's most outstanding traits so far seem to be
lack of 'availability' as well as playing like a candy bar -- a soft center.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I consider Saric to be a band-aid at backup Power Forward at best.

But not essential to making a move at the power position alongside
Ayton to allow Deandre to do what he does best within his limitations.

Assuming, of course, that he doesn't miss 25 games or get into foul
trouble regularly. Ayton's most outstanding traits so far seem to be
lack of 'availability' as well as playing like a candy bar -- a soft center.

I don’t get the band-aid comment. If he can play as he did in the bubble saric is a terrific backup 4. And he’s still relatively young. As long as he’s affordable I’d keep him around for awhile.

 

[BC867]

I don’t get the band-aid comment. If he can play as he did in the bubble saric is a terrific backup 4. And he’s still relatively young. As long as he’s affordable I’d keep him around for awhile.

As long as he has a power Center to play alongside of.

Saric started at Center when Ayton missed the first
half of the recent game, for not showing up for his
COVID-19 test. That is not a plan for the future.

 

[BC867]

'Sorry for the responses to five threads in a row.

I was watching, and posting to, the Mercury and
D-backs earlier this evening.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I like Saric, but at the 4 you would have Ibaka, camj, and Saric. Seems a little crowded. I assume Baynes is gone.

 

[Phrazbit]

We ripped off SEVEN straight wins against teams with winning records. When we were at six I believe I heard that such a feat had never been done before. I suspect that stat is skewed by a 14+ straight win team playing sub .500 teams during it... but it's still pretty cool, we had no room for failure or reprieve.

This is a team that you used to be able to see how much a small swing effected them... a bad call, a run by the opposition... marginal swings in momentum would effect us in really bad ways. Not at all in the bubble. They kept a level head and plowed through whatever they encountered.

Hats off to Monty. THAT was a culture problem, an expectation of failure or getting screwed (Suns fans are very familiar), over these 8 games these Suns flipped that culture on its head.

 

[Hoop Head]

As long as he has a power Center to play alongside of.

Saric started at Center when Ayton missed the first
half of the recent game, for not showing up for his
COVID-19 test. That is not a plan for the future.

Your idea that he's a bandaid because he can only play next to a power Center isn't based in reality since we never saw that in the bubble. Saric played really good without a power C next to him the entire time he was in the bubble, including when he started for Ayton against OKC. He was the only player other than Booker who played well before Ayton entered that game. I don't think he should be playing Center much, if at all, but he didn't.

It appears that you're faulting him for not playing the style of play of you'd prefer to watch rather than the actual results of his play. That's fine, you have the right to your preference but at least say that's the reason rather than talking in circles and making claims not based in reality, like how he needs a strong power C to play well.

 

[Mainstreet]

We ripped off SEVEN straight wins against teams with winning records. When we were at six I believe I heard that such a feat had never been done before. I suspect that stat is skewed by a 14+ straight win team playing sub .500 teams during it... but it's still pretty cool, we had no room for failure or reprieve.

This is a team that you used to be able to see how much a small swing effected them... a bad call, a run by the opposition... marginal swings in momentum would effect us in really bad ways. Not at all in the bubble. They kept a level head and plowed through whatever they encountered.

Hats off to Monty. THAT was a culture problem, an expectation of failure or getting screwed (Suns fans are very familiar), over these 8 games these Suns flipped that culture on its head.

The bench of Carter, Payne and Saric wouldn't say no. That was a huge difference maker.

 

[Mainstreet]

I'm so glad the Suns qualified for the Orlando restart. It has to be so much better than this.

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[AzStevenCal]

I have no interest in Ibaka. He still has some good games but I just don't like what he brings to the table especially since he no longer blocks shots. He missed 10 games this season and Indiana won 8 of them. In the games he did play, he failed to be a net positive in slightly more than half of them. And he won't come cheap. Saric is a much better choice IMO especially when you take more than a one season approach.

 

[mjb21aztd]

Man i can't even watch that stupid ass play in gm I'm just stilll upset suns not having a shot over a last second miss shot ugh lol i let out a few f bombs on that.

Hope the nba makes it up for suns in lottery ja also should have been on suns!!!

 

[Mainstreet]

Some final thoughts on the season by Monty Williams and Devin Booker.

From Gina Mizell of Valley Tales Newsletter:


“There was some sentiment before this that we didn’t belong,” Williams said, “and I think we changed that sentiment.”

Added Booker: “Here we changed the narrative. We changed how people think of us — from the NBA, from the refs, to different teams, to everybody. Every time somebody plays the Phoenix Suns, they know it’s gonna be a tough matchup.”


https://valleytales.substack.com/p/were-not-the-suns-of-old-phoenix

 

[Hoop Head]

I'm so glad the Suns qualified for the Orlando restart. It has to be so much better than this.

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I'm glad the Suns took part in the Orlando bubble already as well but I think they should make that bubble worthwhile. Let them play for extra ping pong balls or draft position. The teams that didn't play in the Orlando bubble are teams 1-8 in the bottom of the standings.

Of course the Suns playing in that would have been nice but I'd rather have the 8 game win streak than improving their draft pick by playing some scrubs. Other than the Warriors there are a lot bad teams who didn't take part in the first bubble.

 

[Mainstreet]

I'm glad the Suns took part in the Orlando bubble already as well but I think they should make that bubble worthwhile. Let them play for extra ping pong balls or draft position. The teams that didn't play in the Orlando bubble are teams 1-8 in the bottom of the standings.

Of course the Suns playing in that would have been nice but I'd rather have the 8 game win streak than improving their draft pick by playing some scrubs. Other than the Warriors there are a lot bad teams who didn't take part in the first bubble.

I'd like to have seen a tournament for the 9th play-in slot.

 

[Mainstreet]

Some people did some nice signs for Suns return.

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[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Some people did some nice signs for Suns return.

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The gorilla must’ve been dying