The Houston Rockets and Phoenix Suns are reportedly close to inking a deal to swap Terrence Jones and Markieff Morris, who are both power forwards for their respective teams. The only factors that are said to hinder the agreement is the league's luxury tax rules and salary cap.
Morris has a current four-year, $32-million contract with the Suns, well deserved for a talented young player renowned for his athleticism. However, he made it clear that he no longer wants to feature for the Suns in the upcoming season and requests an immediate trade to a different team. He is apparently aware of the fact that several teams have shown interest on him.
Morris previously told The Philadelphia Inquirer that he is upset with the team for trading his twin brother Marcus Morris to the Detroit Pistons. In 2014, Morris and his brother negotiated new contracts and claimed that they gave Phoenix a discount on their extensions hoping that they would be able to keep playing together on the same team for the next stretch of their careers.
He has made a handful of public comments about the issue, saying that he will show up to the training camp at the end of September. "I've got to show up. No question. I will be a professional. Don't get me wrong. But it won't get that far... I'm going to be out before then, should be," Morris said.
A few weeks following his trade demand, he reiterated his stance by sharing a Twitter post on Thursday which reads, "My future will not be in Phoenix.... #thatisall #backtothegrind #FOE."
According to an SB Nation report, Markieff Morris has indeed wanted to leave the team after the Suns traded his twin brother to the Detroit Pistons. However, the star player did not specify what team he wanted to go and mentioned that it would be interesting to join the Houston Rockets because of James Harden.
The publication noted that the Phoenix Suns trading Markieff Morris for Terrence Jones will be an appropriate deal for both NBA teams.
"The Rockets offensive system of shoot threes and attack the basket isn't one that Jones has been able to fit into; mainly because he is an isolation driver to the basket that can and will occasionally shoot mid range and three point shots," SB Nation further explained.
Another Twitter post that adds fuel to the Markieff Morris-Terrence Jones swap is a photo tweet recently shared by a hip hop artist named Common. The image, which can be seen above, shows (from left to right) Clint Capela, Patrick Beverley, Terrence Jones (at the back), Common (in front), Sam Dekker, K.J. McDaniels and Markieff Morris.
