The Big Summer of 2012

[Folster]

Sorry but Eric Gordon is not unrestricted same for the other players. None of them are unrestricted.

They simply did not get a contract extension, they will still be restricted. The only way they become unrestricted is this offseason they take the qualifying offer from their teams and become unrestricted in 2013 which is what is happening to Aaron Brooks right now.

That's right. The Suns did the same thing with Lopez. We didn't extend him, but he still remains restricted and the Suns could match any offer this summer.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Brooks is still an RFA and will be again next summer if he doesn't play in the NBA this season and the Suns keep the qualifying offer on the table. The other way for players to become unrestricted is if teams withdraw or do not make qualifying offers.

So what happens if he wants to play this year? If he accepts the qualifying offer does he become a fa this summer?

 

[Griffin]

So what happens if he wants to play this year? If he accepts the qualifying offer does he become a fa this summer?

Well, according to the old CBA a qualifying offer must be accepted by March 1st (or earlier if a team imposed a specific deadline). If this rule is still in play, then Brooks will still be under contract with the Chinese team when that deadline passes. So under the old CBA Brooks would miss the deadline and remain an RFA. If he wanted to play this year, he could re-sign with the Suns or sign an offer sheet elsewhere that the Suns could match, but he would no longer be able to just accept the qualifying offer, play out the remaining games this year and then become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

I don't think any of this has changed in the new CBA. Same will apply to Wilson Chandler.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I wonder how they feel about jumping to China so quickly.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I wonder how they feel about jumping to China so quickly.

I didn't/don't blame them. Let's face it, it really wasn't all that quickly and the information coming from both camps made a season long lockout appear quite likely. They have a marketable skill but their earning power has a very short lifespan.

Steve

 

[HooverDam]

Watching the game tonight it continues to strike me how much the Suns need a #1 scorer who can get 20ppg every single night. This FA class is pretty darned weak though. If the Suns are committed to trying to keep Nash a Sun and have him retire here, I think they're #1 priority in the off season (other than reasoning Nash to a reasonable deal obviously) should be to try to pry Eric Gordon away from New Orleans.

Sure he's had major injury problems, but maybe that way you get him for a bargain. Additionally, maybe the Suns "miracle" training staff would be appealing to him. Throw in the fact that his brother plays down the street in Tempe and maybe the Suns are an appealing spot. Of course Im sure the Pacers will be trying everything they can to bring him home (and he'd be a nice fit there too).

I don't think a Nash-Gordon-Gortat core is exactly a title contending team, but they'd be real fun to watch and certainly a team that could maybe make it to the WCF. Nash would obviously have to take a big cut, maybe go down to around the $5-6M range and I have no idea if thats realistic. I'd hope Gordon could be had for around $10M. I'd love to have Grant Hill back again but obviously his salary would have to be at least cut in half.

This roster doesn't seem so bad:

PG Nash/Telfair
SG Gordon/Brown
SF Hill/Dudley/Childress
PF Frye/Morris/Warrick
C Gortat/RoLo

Again, not a title contender, but it could be fun.

Also, I'd be all for throwing the long bomb of Oden if its on a minimum deal, but I don't really expect him to ever play.

 

[elindholm]

Eric Gordon is one of the very few appealing young players on the market, and he looks like he'll be a classic case of "Holy cow, I knew he'd get a lot, but I can't believe he got that much!" I'd be surprised if $10 million is enough, even though in any sane market he'd be lucky to get even that.

 

[slinslin]

A team build around a 39 year old Nash and 40 year old Hill will never be a contender for the title again, Gordon or not.

Gordon is not just injury prone this year, he misses many games every year and is not even that good to begin with. I would much rather have had Bradley Beal than Gordon.

 

[asuhoopsnut]

I would also like to see Bradley Beal in a Sun's uniform. I think he can be a super star. He reminds me of Dwayne Wade.

 

[HooverDam]

A team build around a 39 year old Nash and 40 year old Hill will never be a contender for the title again, Gordon or not.

Gordon is not just injury prone this year, he misses many games every year and is not even that good to begin with. I would much rather have had Bradley Beal than Gordon.

Didn't I say they wouldn't be a title contender? At least going forward with Gortat and Gordon the Suns would have something to build on and they'd be a more attractive FA destination.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Eric Gordon is one of the very few appealing young players on the market, and he looks like he'll be a classic case of "Holy cow, I knew he'd get a lot, but I can't believe he got that much!" I'd be surprised if $10 million is enough, even though in any sane market he'd be lucky to get even that.

Can he stay healthy?

 

[elindholm]

Can he stay healthy?

I don't know, and I'm not suggesting that he'll be good value at whatever contract he ends up getting. I'm just predicting that the price will go higher than anyone thinks is reasonable.

 

[HooverDam]

he misses many games every year and is not even that good to begin with. .

He certainly has injury problems, which is 1. why the Suns might be able to afford him and 2. why they might be an appealing destination for him.

Saying he's "not that good to begin with" is moronic. 20 points, 3 boards, 3 assists, 38% on 3's (which I imagine would improve in the Suns system) is pretty good.

 

[slinslin]

20/3/3 is not exactly mindblowing, he is not very good defensively, undersized and injury prone.

 

[slinslin]

Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett are more realistic targets than Eric Gordon.

 

[Superbone]

Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett are more realistic targets than Eric Gordon.

That might be kind of cool if we became the Celts of the West and went for it one more time with Nash, Hill, Allen, and Garnett. Talk about the all-future-HOFers team!

 

[HooverDam]

20/3/3 is not exactly mindblowing, he is not very good defensively, undersized and injury prone.

I didn't say it was mind blowing. But please tell me A. What superstars are available and B. Which ones want to come play with aging Nash, Hill and Gortat as our only young-ish piece?

Gordon and Gortat are NOT the superstar types that lead your team to the NBA Finals. There are very few of those in the league at one time. But they are excellent 2nd and 3rd pieces that you can add a superstar too and then push towards the finals.

Look at the Suns of the late 80s and early 90s, lots of nice players, some guys who had played in All Star games, but no true superstar. KJ, TC, Majerle, Horny, etc were terrific, but the Suns realized they needed Barkley to take that next step.

Getting Gordon (or someone like him) at least starts to build the Suns towards something like those late 80s/early 90s teams without having to totally flame out for a decade. It also theoretically would make them good enough to not be a constant 7-10 seed in the West and mired in total mediocrity, they'd be above average so long as the F.O. made decent moves.

Bringing in more broken down former All Stars does nothing to build the Suns a bridge to the future which is what they ought to be looking to do.

 

[Phrazbit]

Gordon is like a injury prone homeless man's Ray Allen.

I agree that he is a prime candidate to be 2012's most absurd off season contract. Probably will get something like 4 years 55 million. He is a good player but if he is your best... or even your 2nd best player, then you aren't going anywhere.

 

[overseascardfan]

A couple of guys I hope PHX target are Chase Budinger and Jason Thompson, both should be mid level contracts which would appeal to PHX allowing the team to get more bang for their buck. Chase could be a big 2 or SF and Thompson woud allow Morris & Frye to come off the bench. I was also thinking PHX should look ay Bayless but he is really an undersized 2 plus we have a Bayless in Shannon Brown but he is only on a 1 year deal. Thompson is restricted so SAC can match any offer but he shouldn't break the bank with his next contract but SAC may match now that they jettisoned Hickson they may have decided to keep Thompson long term.

 

[slinslin]

There are just 2 ways imo

1. go REALLY old

Amnesty Warrick
Sign Nash (39) for 2 years 15M$
Sign Garnett (36) for 2 years 15M$
Sign Ray Allen (37) for 2 years 15M$
Sign Marcus Camby (38) for 2 years 4M$
Sign Aaron Brooks for 4 years 24M$
Sign #12 pick

Salary Situation
Nash 7M$
Garnett 7M$
Allen 7M$
Gortat 6.8M$
Childress 6.5M$
Frye 6M$
Brooks 4.5M$
Dudley 4.2M$
Morris 2M$
Camby 2M$
#12 pick 2M$

~55M$ -> could still match Robin Lopez, take a flyer on Oden or increase offers to Allen, Garnett and Nash.

Draft Austin Rivers
Sign Grant Hill for veteran minimum
Sign Michael Redd for veteran minimum

Gortat/Frye/Camby
Garnett/Morris
Hill/Dudley/Childress
Allen/Rivers/Redd
Nash/Brooks

Average age of the starters in the season would eventually be 29, 36, 40, 37, 39 -> 36.2 . With Camby instead of Gortat it would be over 38.

That team MAY be good enough to get to the to the 2nd round or WCF if everything falls in place in the first season. Of course if any of the old guys break down it would be a painful season to watch and we would be pretty much locked in for 2 years to follow that plan.

2. blow it up

 

[slinslin]

A couple of guys I hope PHX target are Chase Budinger and Jason Thompson, both should be mid level contracts which would appeal to PHX allowing the team to get more bang for their buck. Chase could be a big 2 or SF and Thompson woud allow Morris & Frye to come off the bench. I was also thinking PHX should look ay Bayless but he is really an undersized 2 plus we have a Bayless in Shannon Brown but he is only on a 1 year deal. Thompson is restricted so SAC can match any offer but he shouldn't break the bank with his next contract but SAC may match now that they jettisoned Hickson they may have decided to keep Thompson long term.

Buddinger is not FA, Houston has a team option.

If we can't get the old guys we probably have to target unrestricted underachievers like Flynn, Thabeet, Williams, Young etc

 

[sunsfan88]

20/3/3 is not exactly mindblowing, he is not very good defensively, undersized and injury prone.

Are you joking? He's one of the better defensive players at 2-guard position. That's why everyone is surprised by how he's so small yet he's such a good player on both sides of the court.

And he was putting up 20 pts a game on a completely dysfunctional Clippers team. Playing along side Nash is a more guard oriented offense would probably increase that average to about 25 pts a game.

 

[slinslin]

No I am not, Eric Gordon is massively overrated. Since he got traded for Chris Paul people are overrating him. He is not in the top tier shooting guards and never was.

 

[Mainstreet]

Kris Humphries is an interesting FA. The Suns should have tried to get him before he became a more known commodity.

 

[sunsfan88]

No I am not, Eric Gordon is massively overrated. Since he got traded for Chris Paul people are overrating him. He is not in the top tier shooting guards and never was.

Not yet but he's only 23 years old and is already a top 10 SG in the NBA when healthy. With more experience and playing along side a PG like Nash he can easily be a top 5 SG in the league.

He's severely underrated cause he played for a bad team and a bad organization in LAC.

There's a reason the Hornets wanted him so badly and Clippers fans were sad to see him leave.

And people say he's small, but Dwayne Wade, arguably the best SG in the league is barely taller than him yet I don't see people saying the same thing about Wade simply cause Miami is a good team.