Suns News: Playoffs Edition

[JeremyG]

Good stuff! We've had two of the top three high performing PGs late into their 30s/early 40s.

What about Jason Kidd? He won a championship as a starting point guard at the age of 38.

[Cap]

Good stuff! We've had two of the top three high performing PGs late into their 30s/early 40s.

What about Jason Kidd? He won a championship as a starting point guard at the age of 38.

Statistically it wasn’t much of a season. He averaged 7.9 points on .361 FG%.

[Split T]

[ShelC]

For some reason I feel better about facing the Nugs than I did the Lakers. We can't afford DA getting into foul trouble, but it's going to be like that the rest of the way unless Dario magically rediscovers his game. We got some good minutes from Frank, but it's going to be DA for 35+ minutes each night.

[Split T]

[Split T]

Ugh, I like Jokic. If we don’t win, I could get behind Denver winning the title

[Split T]

[Superbone]

Uh, oh. Most are in our corner now. Makes me more worried than when everybody was against us versus the Lakers.

[Superbone]

I’d really like to avoid the split this time in the first two games in Phoenix. It would be so nice to go into Denver up 2-0.

[Superbone]

BTW, WW. Good call on the “bubble energy” of mixing up the game day posters. We haven’t lost since.

Speaking of which, let’s go! Somebody start the round 2, game 1 thread.

[Superbone]

[Mori Chu]

Is Big Sauce a free agent this summer? We need a backup center. Let's get his ass back in a Suns uniform.

[INFORMER]

I could see Ayton wanting to be the man somewhere else, thinking he's been sacrificing for the greater good in Phoenix playing off CP and Book and settling for their scraps.

That would be a complete 180 from his current mentality.

[INFORMER]

I don't see any reason to extend him this summer. Let him play out his final year of his rookie deal and match any offer he receives in 2022 offseason, or proactively sign him to a deal first.

The risk is if he earns a max and a team gives him a 2+1 offer sheet and we lose him after 2 years instead of 4/5.

Ayton wants to get paid. His second contract is very important to him; he wants security. He won't take that kind of deal if the Suns put a 5-year deal on the table.

[INFORMER]

Nobody outside our team believed in us before the season started

Eh. People love them some Chris Paul, and they were gushing over his acquisition.

[INFORMER]

Joe was a unique situation. He wanted to be the man and asked for us to not match the contract. We made the choice to let him leave, and were in the conference finals the following season.

So I don't think that is some cautionary tale for how to handle Ayton.

I feel like this is a bit of rewriting history. Joe was pissed that he wasn't extended and took that grudge into the next season, while adding on to it some manufactured slight about being the 3rd or 4th wheel. Joe said as much at the time. This is what happens all the time and should be a cautionary tale for how to handle Ayton.

I'm not denying JJ was offended by the way contract talks were handled; I'm just saying, at the end of the day, it was the Suns decision:

Restricted free agent Joe Johnson, who next week plans to sign a lucrative offer sheet from the Atlanta Hawks, told ESPN.com on Friday night that he has asked the Phoenix Suns not to match the offer.

In town for Steve Nash's charity game at Air Canada Centre, Johnson revealed that he directly informed Phoenix managing partner Robert Sarver earlier this week that he would prefer to continue his career as a Hawk.

"We had a discussion," Johnson said in his first extended interview about his future since free agency began July 1.

"I did tell them that."

Asked why he wants to leave the Suns after a breakthrough season, for himself and the team, Johnson said: "It's a lot of things. How things were handled [with Johnson's contract] last summer, how things have been handled this summer. There's been some things going on that aren't great."

According to sources close to the situation, Johnson is also unhappy with what he perceives as his standing as a "fourth wheel" behind the All-Star trio of Nash, Amare Stoudemire and Marion. Besides the opportunity to be the star man on its youthful roster, Atlanta is offering as much as the rules allow without holding Johnson's Larry Bird rights -- a frontloaded five-year deal worth an estimated $70 million, with an up-front payment as high as $20 million in Year 1.

Johnson, though, insists that his play and commitment to the Suns wouldn't be affected if a signed Hawks offer sheet results in a return to the desert.

"I would come back and work as hard as I ever have," Johnson said. "If they match, all this stuff is behind me from that minute on. I hope everybody [in Phoenix] puts everything behind them, too."

https://www.espn.com/nba/columns/story? ... id=2120105

[INFORMER]

There is no way he gets the max right? 140/3?

No...the article says 3/100, I can’t imagine him getting more than that...now if we win the title and he’s finals mvp? Just give him everything, haha

I would prefer 3 years/$90 million.

[INFORMER]

Mikal at near-max will be tough. Bridges is a great player but he isn't a star or an anchor of a team. I feel like we're going to get stuck in a rut with some of these big contacts.

We will, unless Ayton and Bridges become significantly different players.

[INFORMER]

There is no way he gets the max right? 140/3?

No...the article says 3/100, I can’t imagine him getting more than that...now if we win the title and he’s finals mvp? Just give him everything, haha

It said the lowest would be 100/3, and that he wants to play 4 more years. If he is finals mvp I think he gets the 140/3.

The real question is, how much will Payne get paid next year, and who will be paying him?

Along with that is the ‘how do we improve’ question. We know there are still spots we need to improve upon and if you are standing still you are going backwards in this league.
Excited to be where we are. Paul will be a year older if he stays and although his production is still world class that’s a lot of money on wearing shoulders.
Leaves little room to improve at the 4 or back up 5 & 4 spots.

All great points, ES.

[INFORMER]

SLEEPY FLOYD!!!