Phoenix Suns’ forward Trevor Ariza is seen by other teams as a player who could be made available after December 15th, Marc Stein of the New York Time reports.
The Suns’ Trevor Ariza is seen by rival teams at the top of the list of players who will be made available via trade after Dec. 15, league sources say
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) December 4, 2018
December 15th is the first day players who were signed in the offseason this past summer can be traded. The Suns are expected to field interest from teams contending for a title, according to Stein.
Dec. 15 is the first day players who signed free agent contracts last summer are eligible to be traded and the Suns — mired at the bottom of the West — are expected to field interest from contenders in need of wing depth for Ariza
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) December 4, 2018
Teams interested in Ariza hoped the Suns would buyout the forward as Phoenix did with Tyson Chandler, but Stein reports that the Suns are pursuing trades to get at least one asset in return.
Ariza is on a one-year, $15 million deal with Phoenix. Interested teams have been hoping the Suns would just buy Ariza out like they did with Tyson Chandler, but they are expected to pursue trades to try to get at least one asset in return
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) December 4, 2018
Back in July, Ariza signed a one-year $15 million contract with the Suns. This season the forward is averaging 9.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game on 37.2 percent shooting from the field.
Although Ariza is averaging 1.3 steals per game this year, Phoenix seems to get better on the defensive side with Ariza on the bench. That’s not too particularly good for a player who has made a name on his defense his whole career. When on the court this year, Ariza provides Phoenix with a 114.3 defensive rating. When off-court, the Suns’ defensive rating is 103.5, not exactly the sharp defense the Suns were expecting when signing the 3-and-D wing.
Hopefully, the two sides can figure out the best situation for both involved. Maybe the Suns can leverage Ariza to pull in a starting point guard for the team and give the aging veteran a chance to compete for a title.
