Aloha
It seems that KD has slowed the league down to a near stand still. But it appears that the Pacers are ready to rock the boat. From another little blurb I read this morning with the Brogdon trade now officially complete giving the Pacer more cap space, they are preparing to extend a near max offer sheet to Deandre Ayton. This really will mess with the Suns attempt to trade for KD. He is a major piece of their offer but apparently the Nets are not that impressed. The Suns can’t let him walk for sure. So do they restart the talks they were having for Miles Turner before the KD bombshell? And how do the Nets feel about Miles Turner? As for Ayton, the Pacers are about the only team that has the cap space to offer him a large contract.
So many moving parts here. The earlier reports that the Nets will wait on Kyrie until the KD situation is resolved appears to be true. But one wonders when that will be. I honestly don’t see the Nets trading him at this point simply because of their asking price. KD is under contract for 4 years so they really don’t need to do anything. But they do have to decide something soon or not. After summer league, it’s usually the slowest time of the year in the NBA. With the KD road block in place it maybe even slower than usual.
Appearing on Friday’s episode of Get Up, Windhorst discussed the possibility of the Pacers giving restricted free agent Deandre Ayton an offer sheet, or potentially adding him in a sign-and-trade that could send center Myles Turner to the Suns. Unfortunately for Indiana, however, Phoenix currently remains at the forefront of the KD sweepstakes after the 12-time All-Star listed the club as one of his preferred landing spots.
“The Indiana Pacers are seriously considering giving him an offer sheet. They’re also interested in a sign-and-trade with the Phoenix Suns, potentially involving Myles Turner,” Windhorst said. “But holding everything up is the Suns’ negotiations for Kevin Durant, which are probably not going to end soon and Ayton may have to move on and do his own deal.”
Just another reason I can see the Nets holding the line and not moving Durant for chopped liver and spare parts. A sign and trade for both Phoenix and Indy makes sense. Indy could care less about hard-capping themselves and Phoenix can bring in Turner who is arguably as good, if not a better fit, for what they want to do. Ayton is going to be a great center in this league, tons of upside, but he’s not what Phoenix needs in this exact moment. Frankly, neither is Durant at the current asking price. He isn’t an elite defender and they have scorers at all positions. Elite scorers? No, but ones who know the role they need to play.
If I’m Indy I make a courtesy call to the Suns and say that they are going to give DA an offer sheet and would you like to do a S&T instead, otherwise drop the offer and let the Suns scramble. Phoenix will probably choose the S&T route since it could then feasibly come back to a Durant deal on down the line just without a S&T for Ayton as the centerpiece.
We’re entering a phase in the NBA where teams are bumping up against taxes and the cap when trying to assemble a winner. Having three dudes on max deals isn’t an intelligent way to win. Honestly, it’s rare that it works at all. It’s why I never feared the Nets one iota, all flash and no substance doesn’t get you far in the playoffs. Fun for the regular season, admittedly, but that’s just the appetizer.