NBA trade rumors: Suns could be third team in Jimmy Butler trade as they look for new point guard
In the past year, the Suns have traded away Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight
There is plenty of trade talk surrounding the Minnesota Timberwolves these days. But while most of it is focused on star forward Jimmy Butler, who recently requested out, according to reports, there is also apparently some buzz about their young backup point guard, Tyus Jones.
Writing in a recent column about Andrew Wiggins, Zach Lowe took a moment to note that the Phoenix Suns have recently called about Jones. Via ESPN:
At some point, the tools and the highlights have to translate into something better than "smaller Rudy Gay." If Minnesota moves Butler or Tyus Jones -- and Phoenix has asked about Jones, sources say -- that would at least place Wiggins into some lineups with only one other primary ball-handler.
In fact, according to a recent report from Adrian Wojnarowski, the Suns' pursuit of a new point guard -- Jones or perhaps someone else -- could lead them to jump in as a third team in a potential Butler trade. Butler now prefers to be traded to the Heat, and in a scenario where that deal involves Goran Dragic, one of the Wolves' point guards -- Jones or Jeff Teague -- would likely become expendable. That's where the Suns could pounce.
This adds another layer to the Suns' pursuit of a point guard. In the past year, the Suns have traded away Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight, leaving them with a void at the key position.
As it stands, their current point guard group heading into training camp is Isaiah Canaan and Shaquille Harrison. For a team that made some big moves in the offseason with the hopes of a big improvement, that's simply not good enough. But with free agency wrapped up, and star point guards likely to fetch too steep a price, the Suns have limited options for improving the position.
While he might not be a big name, targeting Jones could be a sneaky good move by the Suns. It would be interesting to see what the Wolves would ask for in return, but Jones was quietly pretty solid in limited minutes off the bench last season, finishing with the fourth-best net rating differential among Wolves rotation players.
Going after an under-utilized young backup who's shown some potential makes a lot of sense for the Suns considering the circumstances.
















