Deandre Ayton will continue to be a member of the Phoenix Suns, producing some spillover effects after this offseason, even after the team has matched the Indiana Pacers’ four-year maximum offer sheet of $ 133 million.
An important detail that will be revealed after Eighton’s news is that the offer sheets did not include player options or trade kickers. According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks.. These are some Shenanigans that can be twisted into contracts to reduce the chances of a team matching, and are also one of the drawbacks of restricted free agents.
You’ll remember talking last October about losing Gordon Hayward just three years later as Utah Jazz signed a 3 + 1 offer sheet with player options in the fourth year. He turned it down and joined the Boston Celtics.
Sands doesn’t have to deal with either of these two things, or the payroll system ahead of schedule is huge. Indiana’s weird chicken game trying to force sign-and-trade didn’t pay off (yes, get it?).
With the arrival of Eighton, Sands became a rostered player of 14 people, surpassing the tax amount by nearly $ 17 million with a luxury tax bill of about $ 35 million per Spotrac.
Instead of a five-year $ 177 million extension that could have been received in the fall, Ayton’s signing of the offer sheet eased some of the bills Suns should use.
There are several different ways to think about it.
fine, First, let’s talk about Kevin Durant.
Brooklyn didn’t want Eighton, according to reports. But the problem is that as part of a larger deal with sign-and-trade, Sands was able to offer Brooklyn more assets by sending Eighton to a third or fourth team.
It felt like extra juice to make a good deal. Currently, the fictitious package revolves around at least one of Jae Crowder, Landry Shamet, or Dario Salic for Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Draft Topic, and mid-level team-friendly contracts. With Ayton’s return in these scenarios, Phoenix was restricted to abandoning only two players, and in some cases only three players, at least Now three.
The problem of having a direct one-on-one Durant transaction greatly impairs Sands’ rotation and the ability to fix it later. Arizona Sports’ John Gambardoro has reported in the past two weeks that Phoenix does not want to eradicate its roster with potential Durant deals, which is almost impossible to do without the involvement of more teams.
If it’s a bridge, Johnson, Clouder, four unprotected first round picks and some swaps, how does Sands replace the bridge? Would you like to add another ball handler? They are almost lacking in resources for their layout.
Therefore, Sands relies on finding a third and perhaps fourth team to help get a salary that matches Durant’s guaranteed return, or to meet some of those needs in the same deal. is needed.
I have my own reservation as to whether Phoenix is sufficient to submit an offer that Brooklyn accepts. Then again, if Durant wants to be the sun only, that will be accomplished.
The added ease to this, and what I haven’t even talked about since Durant’s trade demands, was that Eighton and Durant were playing together. This mitigates the drop-off of Bridge’s departure in Durant trade, especially in defense.
Part of the reason I didn’t think about it was the height of the tax bill.
Theoretically, if Suns redeems for Kevin Durant using the minimum salary allowed ($ 35.3m) and fills the roster with VetMins …
Payroll – Approximately $ 178 Million
Tax Bill – Approximately $ 76.5 Million— David (@theIVpointplay) July 15, 2022
According to Gambadoro, the sun is so cold.
Sands promises to do whatever it takes to win the championship. This includes paying a high luxury tax of $ 600-700- $ 80-100,000 if you feel it is necessary.
— John Gambadoro (@ Gambo987) July 14, 2022
And remember, this doesn’t have to be just about Durant. If that sweepstakes go south for Phoenix, it can still pursue other upgrades in the trading market.
Finally, gladly in a hurry on the front line, if he’s still a member of Sands, what about that Johnson extension?
To return to the moving figure, the center rotations of the Sands are now Eighton, Salic, Bismack Biyombo, and Jock Landale. Phoenix will want to retain the dynamics of Salic and the occasional playmaking. Stretch 5 was a big miss last season.
Also, trade chips are limited, and at the end of the day, we’ll talk about how Biyombo proved to be possible last year for the remaining 14-18 minutes that Ayton wasn’t playing.
Sands still has a mid-level exception for taxpayers of about $ 6.5 million that can also be used by free agents. The options are very limited. Only Dennis Schröder jumps out at me. Anyway, the only downside is the increased tax bill, and it’s worth putting it at risk to a player who could be the gear on the bench. When the lights are brightest, we’ve seen how lack of depth can hurt the sun.
All of this certainly remains in the Sands front office planning several different scenarios.
For now, we’re back in the same wait game as Durant. Patience, everyone! stay strong!
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