It all started with a tweet.
Phoenix Suns star guard Eric Bledsoe is officially on the trading block after sending out this tweet Sunday night:
I Dont wanna be here
— Eric Bledsoe (@EBled2) October 22, 2017
On Tuesday morning, Bledsoe had a meeting with the Phoenix Suns’ front office management and the team decided to move in a different direction after Bledsoe tried to explain the tweet.
McDonough RE: Bledsoe's tweet: "He said he was at a hair salon… I didn't believe that to be true. He won't be with us going forward."
— ABC15 Sports (@abc15sports) October 23, 2017
Here are five teams Bledsoe can make better right now.
- Houston Rockets
This is the best solution for a temporary problem. Rockets point guard Chris Paul could miss a month due to a knee problem. Bledsoe can come in and pick Houston back up like he was never gone. Of course, Bledsoe began his career as Paul’s backup with the Los Angeles Clippers, where Bledsoe averaged 8.5 points, 3.1 assists, 3 rebounds, and 1.4 steals in 20.4 minutes per game.
- Philadelphia 76ers
“The Process” has great highlights to look at, but the team as a whole seems to still learn how to win games in the first week of the season. Although he didn’t do much winning in Phoenix, Bledsoe is now a veteran in the league and offers more experience than Markelle Fultz, who’s coming off the bench behind Jerryd Bayless until he fully heals from an injury he suffered this offseason.
- New York Knicks
If the team is going to be bad, the fans of the Knicks at least want excitement. Bledsoe is an athletic, 6-foot-1 guard that has averaged 20.8 points, 6.2 assists, and 4.4 rebounds a game for the Suns in the last two seasons. A lot of the attention he could be getting is overshadowed by playing in a market like Phoenix and being in the crowded Western Conference. Not only will playing in New York boost his brand, he’ll also have a better chance at making an All-Star team in the Eastern Conference.
- San Antonio Spurs
Tony Parker is still battling an injury that he suffered last postseason and things healing won’t get any easier for him in his 17th season. Rookie Dejounte Murray is absolutely holding it down for the team in Parker’s place so far, but similar to Fultz in Philadelphia, come playoff time, experience is preferred.
- L.A. Clippers
Clippers center DeAndre Jordan simply tweeted “come back home,” after Bledsoe went public with his apparent trade request. Although team guard Patrick Beverly absolutely embarrassed Lonzo Ball during his NBA debut last week, the Clippers still need to fill the void of a star in Chris Paul. Will Bledsoe take them further than Paul did in the postseason? No, but the Clippers are in the dreadful reality of “not bad enough to get a good draft pick, but not great enough to win a championship” and acquiring Bledsoe would make them better.
