Suns 2022 Preseason News and Notes

[pickle]

Ish is too nice of a guy to become PJ. Probably spent his life being bigger than everyone and having to watch out for other kids and apologizing for his mass.

[Superbone]

We are less than three days away from our opening night! Let’s go!

[Vladimir_Taltos]

Interesting article about PG targets, Derrick Rose, Monte Morris...

https://valleyofthesuns.com/2022/09/26/ ... -target/2/

[Superbone]

Interesting article about PG targets, Derrick Rose, Monte Morris...

https://valleyofthesuns.com/2022/09/26/ ... -target/2/

I'd be very surprised if Rose was a target for Jones.

[INFORMER]

I would like to see Washington in more of a 2-guard role. I think he’s out of position as a pg.

The 11 turnovers were ridiculous, but he seems to better suited to have the ball in his hands, he has run the pick and roll effectively, and he had a beautiful fastbreak pass to TLC in the Denver game. I think he could certainly see some minutes as a Barbosa like 2, but I think Jarrett Jack and Patrick Mutombo should be trying to help him develop as a 1.

[INFORMER]

Interesting article about PG targets, Derrick Rose, Monte Morris...

https://valleyofthesuns.com/2022/09/26/ ... -target/2/

I'd be very surprised if Rose was a target for Jones.

Can't remember Valley of the Suns ever putting out relevant content. I could be wrong though.

[Superbone]

Isn't today the deadline to get a Cam Johnson extension deal done? I hope we don't go into his final contract year without one a la Ayton again.

[JeremyG]

Isn't today the deadline to get a Cam Johnson extension deal done? I hope we don't go into his final contract year without one a la Ayton again.

Yes. 5 more hours to be exact. It’s making me very nervous. They better not screw this up again.

[Split T]

I’m expecting we’ll get it done…too many benefits on both sides to mess this up…unless Cam is asking for 100+ million.

[ShelC]

Tough to say. He can bet on himself as a starter and the new cap numbers kicking in but as an RFA, there also has to be a team willing to overbid to get him. He could get frozen out and be forced to take a cheaper deal than what we might be offering now.

Same thing as DA...who has money, who has a need for a guy like Cam? Houston? Indy? SA? Orlando? I don't think cellar teams are looking to spend big money on FAs. And plenty of guys similar to Cam are drafted each year so teams can get cheaper talent. Ideally we get a deal done in the 70-80 mil range.

There's also the uncertainty over ownership and who's really signing off any deals.

[INFORMER]

Isn't today the deadline to get a Cam Johnson extension deal done? I hope we don't go into his final contract year without one a la Ayton again.

I don't think it will be the same as the Ayton situation. Ayton was hyper-focused on the second contract and had a sense of entitlement because the Suns (mistakenly) drafted him number one.

I'm sure Cam wants an extension, but I don't expect any drama if he doesn't get one. Free agency isn't the end of the world.

Yes. 5 more hours to be exact. It’s making me very nervous. They better not screw this up again.

Eh. I'd pump the brakes on the "get an extension done or they've screwed up" talk.

I like Cam and I would like to keep him. But the Suns need to be careful here. Jones is making decisions the last couple of offseasons that have bit the Suns and will bring more trouble down the line if he isn't careful. Cam is solid, but right now he is just a role player with a relatively low ceiling. I saw someone throw out his per-whatever numbers, but I don't think Cam can get you 17 ppg over the course of an 82-game season. He just isn't that type of player. He is a terrific shooter, and solid in other areas, but primarily he is a catch and shoot guy.

We've seen players like him get rewarded with substantial deals, and right now none of them are looked at as desirable contracts. Davis Bertans flashed ELITE 3-point shooting ability and was handsomely rewarded with sizable contract; now he is just another bad contract. Joe Harris demonstrated elite 3-point shooting, above average passing, and the ability to play in the frontcourt; he hasn't been able to sustain high level play over the last two seasons. Duncan Robinson, another elite 3-point shooter, got paid and is now basically struggling to even get on the floor.

I think Cam is better than what Bertans and Duncan Robinson were when they got paid, but not by much. I don't think he'll ever reach a point where he'll struggle to stay on the floor, but I do think he will struggle to consistently produce at a high level. And the more money you spend on low productivity guys, the further you back yourself into a corner. It's just another step on a path of ending up with an expensive roster that is either a borderline playoff team or struggles to advance farther than the first round, with little means of significantly improving.

[Split T]

Deal doesn’t kick in until the new ownership group takes over, so I see no reason for the current group to have much of an opinion. Does it change the valuation of the franchise? Doubt it…think this should make it easy.

[JeremyG]

I’m expecting we’ll get it done…too many benefits on both sides to mess this up…unless Cam is asking for 100+ million.

They've kinda boxed themselves in by getting Mikal so cheap, especially with salaries going up this year. It would look bad if they gave him as much or more than Mikal ($90.9 million).

But they have to do it. They're way over the cap--so there's no way to replace his value next summer. And waiting will only increase the price. Gambo said ownership changing is not an issue for getting an extension done. And there should be plenty of people willing to buy the team, no matter what Cam's salary is.

[JeremyG]

Just like a 5th year for Ayton would have saved the team money (or even a team you might eventually trade him to) due to the salary cap jump, so of course they did that. Oh wait. I'm not getting my hopes up here.

[INFORMER]

Unless you're not actually committed to the player...

[Split T]

Good to see Monty acknowledge what we’ve thought, Cam struggled with a diving big

[Drewsprocket]

Just like a 5th year for Ayton would have saved the team money (or even a team you might eventually trade him to) due to the salary cap jump, so of course they did that. Oh wait. I'm not getting my hopes up here.

Extending him is a slam dunk. It must be something with ownership right now. I don’t see Cam Johnson trying to demand anything insane. He’s not Jordan Poole.

[INFORMER]

I doubt ownership would interfere with this.

I remember $15 million being thrown out as a potential annual salary at one point. If Cam's camp wants the Suns to match Bridges' deal, that is a gap of $7 million a year. That is pretty sizable.

[JeremyG]

Just like a 5th year for Ayton would have saved the team money (or even a team you might eventually trade him to) due to the salary cap jump, so of course they did that. Oh wait. I'm not getting my hopes up here.

Extending him is a slam dunk. It must be something with ownership right now. I don’t see Cam Johnson trying to demand anything insane. He’s not Jordan Poole.

Gambo insisted (as of Friday at least) that the team being up for sale was not a hangup at all for making a deal on Cam's extension. I guess we'll see.

[INFORMER]

People need to understand that GMs' care about the size/length of a player's contract too. It isn't always big, bad ownership not wanting to spend.