Latest on Jae Crowder trade scenarios

of Phoenix Suns While we’re still interested in finding a new home for holdout forward Jae Crowder, it’s painfully clear that general manager James Jones isn’t interested in letting Crowder go somewhere without a good return. He would rather stay home than have Jae join another team at the Suns’ expense.

Crowder is under contract with the Phoenix Suns for the current 2022-23 season. His 10-year veteran and his 2-year starter with the Suns is the fifth highest-paid player this year, at $10.18 million. However, this offseason, he reportedly told the Suns that he would not honor the contract unless he gave them more job security by extending it beyond the 2022-23 season with similar compensation. didn’t want to give him an extension, so he stayed home.

Crowder was much loved in Miami after helping them reach the 2020 Finals, but recalled openly admitting he bolted to the non-playoff Suns because of a three-year guaranteed deal. please. Rumors at the time were that Miami was willing to offer him the same amount or more if he only had a year or two years, but Jay said he was happy even though the Suns missed the playoffs for his 10th straight season. He wanted a three-year commitment.

Jones doesn’t just free Crowder once and for all. No matter what, the Suns have to guarantee Crowder $10.18 million this season, so pay him big to allow him to walk away to join the team of his choice. Never mind. This is no longer the rebuilding Sans. Jae Crowder isn’t out the door like Tyson Chandler.

Jae is not just freed.

Jones will wait until he finds a trade partner willing to return a quality rotation player to help him this year. When futuristic. Not just rotation players. They should fit easily into Suns’ proven scheme and fit into Suns’ culture.

Failed Utah Trade as a Case Study: Today and Tomorrow

Jones proved it by trying and failing to make a deal with him. utah jazz before the season started. The Jazz had Bojan Bogdanovic hanging all over the league. Bojan is a player who could easily replace Jae Crowder in the Suns’ rotation, but he’s making $19 million this year, which would have hurt the Suns’ tier. 2 Rotation players to get) and would have wanted big bucks in free agency next summer.

As such, the Suns insisted on acquiring the Jazz, including 24-year-old Jared Vanderbilt. Not only will Vanderbilt help this year, but he’s another year out of restricted free agency before the Suns have to pay big to keep him.

As I mentioned money, don’t do “servers are cheap”. The Suns have promised his seventh-highest salary in the league this year, with Booker, Ayton and Bridges all at market rates. I would rather keep Cam Johnson than a sexual person. in crowder trading.

please think about it. Who would you rather pay 26-year-old Cam Johnson or his 34-year-old Bojan Bogdanovic over $18 million a year? That would have been the Suns’ dilemma next summer.

That’s why the Suns also wanted Vanderbilt.

When we hear about the possibility of the Suns trading Crowder, we can only assume that the Suns will do it if the returns already include assets in contract beyond 2023.

Forget the ‘bad pay and draft pick je’ idea

First of all, the Suns are looking for a good rotation player in return for Jae. Playoff quality rotation player. There’s no way Jones could trade Jay to another team in exchange for a guy who won’t be in his rotation in the playoffs.

And it can be reasonably assumed that Jones isn’t interested in a “second-half first-round pick” of candidates as a carrot. Even Rookie doesn’t like it that much. Why add more?

Look at his track record. Veterans Dario Surik (2019), Tory Craig (2020), Landry Shamet (2021) and Chris Paul (2022) were all acquired for Jones’ first round picks. He hasn’t kept one of them since taking over in 2019.

The only Suns player currently under contract with a rookie-sized first-round pick is 26-year-old Cameron Johnson, who was drafted by Minnesota in 2019 as part of the Dalio deal, finishing 11th overall. Compare that to the team he took over as interim GM in October 2018. The team acquired his five players (Booker, Bender, Jackson, Ayton and Bridges) on his first-round pick deal on the rookie scale and lost 63 of 82 games.

No, Jones doesn’t want your shitty future first, Milwaukee. Or Miami. Or any candidate who wants to add Jae to their playoff run.

however, lakers Asked by Jay to offer him an unsuspecting 2027 pick, Jones may have a change of heart. Must be…perhaps he can trade it to someone else.

Eh, Miami?

According to the latest rumors by Ian Begley, the Suns are seeking Max Strass as part of a deal with the club. miami heat.

Heat Love Crowder. The Heat want Kyle Lowry to fight before he gets old, but they need Crowder after a slow 5-7 start. He’ll give the Heat the size and toughness they’re currently lacking, and Strath will provide another sharp shooter while the Suns await the return of Kam Johnson.

Strus graduated from college undrafted, found his way in the G League, and now has a very promising NBA career. The 26-year-old’s 6’5-inch guard is in his fourth season with the Heat and has skyrocketed from nothing to a reliable playoff starter. His minutes per game over his four years exploded, going 3-13-23-32, basically making him a 6’5-inch version of Cam Johnson. Strath is averaging 15.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists this year. Like Cam, Strus is a very good shooter and enough defender to stay on the floor in the playoffs.

Presumably, the Heat want the Suns to acquire Duncan Robinson, the man Strath replaced in the rotation. This deal is very similar to the Utah deal I outlined above. Robinson’s annual salary alone would require the Suns to get his two rotation his players (Crowder and Dario?), but Robinson isn’t even a starter. three A few more years after this… it could cost the Suns any chance of keeping Cam Johnson next summer.

So you can understand why the Suns want minimum salary Strath as part of the deal. If you’re likely to lose a cam due to Robinson’s contract, you’d better have an alternative in place, and the Strus is potentially that replacement.

Still, this doesn’t sound like a good deal for the Suns if Robinson has to join.

There really aren’t any great deals to be had in Miami. Their salary structure is quirky. The only players who can trade by December 15th are $16 million or more or less than $5 million. So unless you wait until the deal closes, nothing can match Jae’s $10 million figure. Still want Victor Oladipo for Jay? Vick has not played this season and has not played for most of the last three seasons with a knee problem.

Dear Suns fans, please wait a little longer.

Jones will look to Jae for value. He wants a veteran rotation player or two that will help him not just in this year’s playoffs, but years after that. And he’s not the one to break the Suns pay scale next year and force Cam Johnson to leave free agency.

Teams are more likely to trade in January before the trade deadline. Until then, we won’t see any movement of Crowder. And for good reason.