re: Pelicans Interested in Trading for Markieff Morris

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they will be able to get some value for Kieff.

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Ehhh. He's on a potentially very good contract, but dude has been a COMPLETE a-hole this offseason, has not been good on the court this year (I think his PER is like 60th among PFs or something), and has a potential FELONY hanging over his head.

I'm not sure they'll get as good of value as people think.

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If be OK with that

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Why would Houston make that trade?

I don't see the angle from their end. Doesnt seem like a Morey play.

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That Morris deal is actually way below market value

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Meh, below market value doesn't mean valuable to us entering free agency with cap space. When you add in opportunity cost, it isn't attractive.

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Markieff is a different type of player than ryno

It's better than resigning ryno to a 12+ mil deal as kieff makes much less.

8 mil in a 90-100 mil cap environment

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This isn't either/or. We need a legit SF more than we need a stretch 4.

Also I read that there is like 100 players that will be eligible to be traded mid month that can't be traded until then so a deal probably wouldn't happen until then.

this is not new info, 12/15 is the date newly signed players can be traded

Correct:


Who SAYS no?


Rockets out: Jones, Brewer, KJ
Rockets in: Ryan Anderson, PJ Tucker

Suns out: Morris, PJ Tucker
Suns in: Jones, Brewer


Pels out: Ryan Anderson
Pels in: Morris, KJ

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Personally, I don't want to see HOU make any trades. Any increase in talent that they would get would be offset by the lack of chemistry and continuity that would come with it.

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To make the money work the Rockets would have to send out Jones, KJ McDaniel, and 2 minimum contracts, also the article makes it sound like we're the ones interested in Morris, although that could be about getting Houston to the table.

What a Markieff Morris deal would mean for Anthony Davis, Pelicans


What a Markieff Morris deal would mean for Anthony Davis, Pelicans
By Matt Moore | NBA writer
December 8, 2015 3:18 pm ET

You can add the New Orleans Pelicans to the list of teams interested in trading for long-disgruntled Phoenix Suns forward Markieff Morris, according to Yahoo Sports.

The New Orleans Pelicans have emerged as a suitor with interest in acquiring disgruntled Phoenix Suns forward Markieff Morris, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

The Suns and Pelicans have had preliminary contact about a potential trade, but Morris' pending felony aggravated assault charges remain a possible obstacle for virtually every team interested in making a deal, sources told Yahoo. Nevertheless, the Pelicans have significant interest in pairing Morris on a frontline with Anthony Davis.

Source: Sources: Pelicans interested in acquiring disgruntled Suns forward Markieff Morris - Yahoo Sports.

After Morris publicly said in the offseason that he would not play for the Suns this year, he showed up for training camp and has played largely without incident, though the bad blood following the trade of his brother to Detroit is apparent. It makes sense that trade rumors for the combo-forward are starting to pick up, as now the Suns have re-established leverage in the absence of any drama over the situation, outside of the assault charge, which remains very serious.

Teams don't like to deal from a position of weakness, and the Morris twins had rendered their leverage decimated by the public messiness of the situation. With Morris not playing well enough to keep but not making a huge issue out of the situation, it opens the door for a trade. That's why you're seeing reports of the Rockets also interested in Morris.

Maybe the more interesting element in play here, however, comes on the Pelicans' end. Yahoo reports that Ryan Anderson is a key player being talked about in discussions, which makes sense from the Suns' end. For the Pelicans, they are talking of pairing Morris and Anthony Davis, and that most likely means a move for Davis to the center position.

Morris has played 52 percent of his minutes this season at the power forward spot, and it's where he makes the most sense. He's a prototypical stretch four that defends and plays inside a bit more effectively than Anderson. Meanwhile, Davis and Anderson have been outscored by three points per 100 possessions when on the floor together, which is actually a positive mark for the Pelicans, with as bad as they have been. Meanwhile, Omer Asik and Anthony Davis have a minus-15.0 points per 100 possession mark together, which is the kind of number that brings to mind a trashcan, tipped over, on fire.

Maybe the Pelicans would move Morris to the three and play big with his range, but the more likely scenario would be using Davis at the five more, which is highly productive ... and very dangerous. Davis' PER and effective field goal percentage (factoring 3-pointers) are both higher at center, as is his net rating, via 82games.com. The Pelicans haven't been healthy enough at all to get a consistent measure or sample size on their lineups, but one of their best five-man groups features Jrue Holiday, Eric Gordon, Dante Cunningham, Anderson and Davis at the five. There have always been signs this will work.

The Pelicans know this. They are not oblivious to the results of Davis at the five. However, it comes with a price. It's fine against smallball units, where Davis is matched up with wings and power forwards he can handle. It's less effective vs. big lineups. It's true that smallball has swamped the league, but many groups running smallball still use a traditional center, who wear and tear on Davis. He is injury prone anyway, and adding that kind of pounding on the glass and on inside plays only exacerbates those concerns.

Such a trade would still afford the Pelicans options, able to deploy Davis and Asik (or the much more productive Alexis Ajinca) against bigger groups, and use Morris as the power forward against smallball lineups. That flexibility is key, because Anderson can't play the small forward position, or handle center duties in smallball groups with Davis off the floor like Morris can. (Morris has played 11 percent of his minutes at center for the Suns this year, via 82games.com.) They just have to be careful of not going too far down the rabbit hole. They need Davis on the floor, first and foremost, and they need Davis healthy to be productive. Still, a trade overall likely makes sense for both teams. We'll keep you updated on if there's any progress in talks.


per Matt Moore