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NBA player who was mad the Suns traded his twin brother may be entering the first big standoff of the season
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Markieff Morris doesn't intend to hold out of training camp.
Phoenix Suns power forward Markieff Morris was not happy with the mid-summer trade of his twin brother Marcus Morris.
After the Suns dumped Marcus to the Detroit Pistons for salary cap space, Markieff went off on the Suns to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer, saying, "One thing for sure, I am not going to be there... If you want to put that out there, you can put that out. I don't give a [freak]. I am not going to be there at all."
Markieff was upset that he was never told about the trade beforehand, saying:
"I've been there the longest, and I don't get the respect to be like, 'Yo Keef, we are going to trade your brother. You are our future power forward.' I'm the future power forward. I'm the premier player of the team. … That's just how business is done I guess."
Markieff said he would show up to training camp because he has to be professional, but he added, "But it won't get that far. … I'm going to be out before then, should be."
However, according to a report from Arizona Republic's Paul Coro, the Suns don't have plans to trade Markieff, as his trade request "fell on deaf ears." Coro continues:
The Suns need and want Morris. They would not stand much of a chance to replace him by trade. They would have no chance to replace him by free agency. They do not have an adequate existing roster option.
Reasonably, hard feelings should subside by the time he must report to Phoenix on Sept. 28. However, he was steaming six weeks after the trade when he went public to the Philadelphia Inquirer this month. Another six weeks might not help but being around his teammate friends again and meeting a respected frontcourt partner such as Chandler should help him recommit, even if Morris returns to being the quieter person he was before Marcus joined Phoenix.
The Suns don't feel the pressure to trade Morris. He plays an important role as a stretch four who can defend, and he's on a great contract worth only $8 million per year over the next two seasons. Furthermore, teams likely won't give the Suns any great trade offers, knowing the relationship is on the rocks and that if Morris becomes enough of a distraction, Phoenix will want him out.
The Suns are also in a position of power here, because if Morris decides he wants to hold out of training camp, they don't have to pay him, as Pro Basketball Talk's Dan Feldman notes.
If Morris really wants to get out of Phoenix, his best bet is to hold out or become a distraction in camp. Though Morris said he would show up to training camp, he also said he thought he'd be traded before camp started. That was in early August, and training camp begins in less than a month. The Suns may not have to pay Morris if he holds out, but they won't just forget about him, and they may just want to move on if he's insisting on not playing.
There's no indication Morris will hold out, and by the time training camp rolls around and he gets back into basketball activities, his anger could subside. However, it's a situation worth monitoring, as it has the potential to be a volatile situation as the NBA season rolls around.
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