As much as I feel Reed could be a potential bust, I still think he’s too much to give up for a 36 year old. Just his potential at age 20 makes the trade useless for us. Durant is a one year rental. No more. FVV is a major reason we’re 26-12 and stays at all costs. He has Finals experience and is greatly needed in the playoffs. Max I’d give for a one year rental is Brooks, Jeff Green, Jock, Tate, and next year’s 1st round pick (which would be a lottery pick w/out Durant). Playoff lineup: FVV, Green, Thompson, Durant, Sengun w/Jabrari, Adams, Cam, and Holiday as backups. We don’t miss a beat and have actually improved our team dramatically by getting Amen over Brooks and locking down our top nine players for the playoffs. If Eason ever comes back or Reed ever figures it out we are 11 deep! If Phoenix wavers on the compensation for Durant, offer to add newly acquired Daishaun Nix as an additional throw-in. .
No Durant. There’s no need to mess with this group this season. I’m beyond pleased with the results so far but I have no expectation that the Rockets will be contenders come playoff time. That said, a backup athletic rim running center wouldn’t hurt if the price were right..
Bobby Marks sez: https://www.espn.com/nba/insider/st...g-deals-jimmy-butler-kevin-durant-zach-lavine Suns 'Big 3' era ends -- with KD leaving Houston Rockets get: forward Kevin Durant, center Bol Bol, guard Monte Morris, guard Damion Lee Phoenix Suns get: forward Dillon Brooks, forward Cam Whitmore, forward Jae'Sean Tate, forward Jeff Green, center Jock Landale, two first-round picks (2025, 2027; both return to Phoenix) We are not going to hold these words against Rockets general manager Rafael Stone. "Of course, my job is to be open to everything, so I'm not going to not do my job," Stone told Sirius XM radio in December. "[But] we like this team. We definitely do not intend to change anything and I would be shocked if something changes this season." But what would happen if Suns owner Mat Ishbia looks at the standings in early February and does an about-face with the roster? Instead of holding on to Durant with the belief this roster can contend for a championship, the Suns could realize that the best move is to retool the roster without the former MVP. In the unlikely scenario that Durant were made available, Houston checks the boxes of expiring contracts, young players and draft picks to offer an appealing trade package. To steal a page from the Brooklyn Nets, Phoenix would receive back its own 2025 and 2027 first-round picks. Those two picks were initially traded to Brooklyn when Durant joined Phoenix two years ago, and then again traded to Houston this past summer. The 2025 pick would be projected to land in the lottery. The Rockets would certainly draw a line in the sand for which former first-round picks are available. Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun signed rookie extensions in October and have a poison pill restriction in their contract. Trading either is close to impossible. That would leave Amen Thompson, Tari Eason, Reed Sheppard and Whitmore as trade candidates. The Suns should ask for Thompson or Eason, but that would be a nonstarter for Houston. Whitmore would be the odd man out. He recently expressed his displeasure with his role in Houston. The trade would give the Rockets a starting five of Fred VanVleet, Green, Thompson, Durant and Sengun. Current starter Jabari Smith Jr. and Eason would anchor the bench. Besides Whitmore and returned draft capital, Brooks would give Phoenix an NBA All-Defense wing under contract for the next three seasons. The Suns are over the second apron and not allowed to aggregate contracts. But veteran minimum contracts included in a trade do not violate the aggregation rule. -- Bobby Marks
Just replace Cam with Aaron Holiday and one highly protected or low pick and I'd do it. Don't want to touch the core, I don't think they'll mind a pick instead.
We can probably lock in this #2 seed and aim for the #1 guys. That's big. I hope it gains traction in the media.
That would work in the offseason, but not before the deadline unless they clear a whole lot of roster spots. During the season, a team cannot take on more than 15 players. Even if they plan on waiving them. They would have to clear the spots to take on that many players. Do you think they want to dump 5 of their current players to take on those guys? Do they even have 5 expirings? Are there other teams who would take on one of their guys here and there without having to send a player back? How does this work? Because honestly, if you're going to consider Durant it has to be before the deadline. He's too old to put off and literally the only value I can see in adding him is having a go-to scorer in the playoffs this season. That said, everybody is making a big deal out of Jalen's play as of late and attributing it to their faster play style with Amen in the lineup. Well, that's gone the second you add Durant to the lineup. No 36 year old is flying up and down the court all game.
If you can drop Kevin Durant into our starting lineup--changing out Brooks--and the cost is either Jabari or Eason + depth pieces only (Tate, Landale, Green, and Holiday), Stone has to keep listening. I'd cut the call short if Phoenix attempts to rope Whitmore or Adams into that deal. If the trade centers around Durant for Brooks, one forward, and the depth pieces, we can keep bickering about how many draft picks to include. That new group could beat OKC and Boston this year and in future years. All they need to find is a bruising power forward (like Day'ron Sharpe on the Nets). I like our team as is, and I'd be reluctant to make an in-season change, but adding Durant would help our young players blossom into stars by taking off some pressure and spreading the floor even more.
I don't get the trading 2 good FRPs and a young player worth at least 1 FRP for a year and half of Durant. I get trading a lot for a star who'd Bird Rights have a ton of value. I even get trading a lot for a good starter that will be here for a while on a much smaller contract and Bird rights. I would not give up more than FRP for Durant at this point. Mostly, I don't think Durant can be counted on to play more than half the time.
I think that's pretty good! 2 late lottery picks are not that valuable. The suns are bad but they have booker and they not bad enough to finish in the bottom 5 most years, where the drafts really start to drop off. The Rockets become an instant legit Finals contender, which they are just not now. It consolidates a bit with getting some value for Whitmore.
I think in an actual trade, it's unlikely the Rockets put in Brooks given a KD trade is a win-now move. In which case, in order to make salaries match, Reed and Adams go out instead of Cam. I also think the Rockets will want Tyus Jones as a backup PG in this case. And if the Suns are making this trade they don't need him since they'll be tanking for Flagg anyways. I won't say if that's a fair deal. But I will say this does look like the type of deal that would get done in the NBA if both sides are interested.
They can aggregate with only vet minimum contracts on their side, they can take back aggregated contracts if they have roster places for them. If this trade gets done, it will have to be FVV, either Cam/Reed and two picks. We can't trade the 25 Phoenix swap so it would either have to be two of their other picks or one of theirs and one of our future picks. That is the absolute max I would consider and even that is a bit pricey. Not sure I want to give up Cam in the trade. If it's FVV/Reed and 1 phx pick and 1 Rocket pick, I would take the gamble. The other way is for a third team to get involved.
If he plays. On being a Finals contender, I get the team as currently constructed has slim odds, but I don't think it is 100% that the Rockets don't make a move. The Rockets expirings, young players, and draft capital exist. Good teams make moves to fill in their roster. If they trade for Durant and the Rockets are contenders, the Rockets were contenders before the trade. I don't think the Rockets only options are Durant or playing the current team. I don't think Durant increases the Championship odds enough this season to warrant not saving the picks for a bigger trade or making a move for a guy that will play a long time with the Rockets. Edit: If the picks were Houston picks or the Dallas picks, I'd be more open trading multiple picks. I'd guess the Suns picks end up in the No. 8 range or almost a 50% chance of one of them being a Top 4 pick.
So PHX can waive players to allow for a 5 for 1 swap and Houston can sign new players after the trade to get to the roster min threshold. PHX can also include their vet min players in the deal with vet minimum exceptions which don’t count as aggregation salary wise and avoids the 2nd apron aggregate rule. So there really isn’t any problem here, as long as Hou would be sending less salary than PHX.
