The Phoenix Suns traded one of their best player's twin brother, and now things are getting ugly
Christian Petersen/Getty
One of the players included in the trade was Marcus Morris, whose twin brother Markieff Morris is also on the Suns.
The Suns missed out on Aldridge, and in the process, infuriated both brothers, particularly Markieff.
While speaking with Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer, Markieff went off, saying the Suns disrespected him and Marcus for not previously informing them of the trade. Additionally, he said he won't be in Phoenix this season, suggesting he would demand a trade. While he back-pedaled a bit, and said he wouldn't hold out of training camp, he noted, "It won't get that far... I'll be out by then, should be," meaning he thought he'd be traded before camp.
Now, with training camp less than four weeks away, things are getting uglier between the two sides.
Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic reported that as Suns players show up for pre-camp workouts, Markieff is unlikely to attend. Furthermore, Coro reported that Markieff's trade demands "fell on deaf ears," as the Suns are unlikely to move him.
Markieff is digging in. On Thursday he tweeted that he doesn't want to be in Phoenix:
My future will not be in Phoenix.... #thatisall #backtothegrind #FOE
- Keef Morris (@Keefmorris) September 4, 2015
This could get uglier. The Suns don't have a strong incentive to trade Morris - yet. Teams around the NBA know the relationship is on the rocks and won't give the Suns a quality trade offer for Morris, who's a skilled, versatile power forward. Morris is also on a very affordable contract worth $8 million per year for the next two seasons, so if the Suns believe they can repair the relationship, they have even more incentive to keep a young, talented, relatively cheap player.
But if Morris really wants out of Phoenix, he can only do so much before holding out and making a scene of it. The Suns figure to compete for a playoff spot this season, and the last thing the team wants would be one of their best players becoming a distraction by holding out or harboring a grudge.
- Saudi Arabia wants China to help fund its struggling $500 billion Neom megaproject. Investors may not be too excited.
- I spent $2,000 for 7 nights in a 179-square-foot room on one of the world's largest cruise ships. Take a look inside my cabin.
- One of the world's only 5-star airlines seems to be considering asking business-class passengers to bring their own cutlery
- India's pharma exports rise 10% to $27.9 bn in FY24
- Indian IT sector staring at 2nd straight year of muted revenue growth: Crisil
- Shubman Gill to play 100th IPL game as Gujarat locks horns with Delhi today
- Realme Narzo 70, Narzo 70X 5G smartphones launched in India starting at ₹11,999
- Indian housing sentiment index soars, Ahmedabad emerges as frontrunner