Phoenix Suns
Sending out: Elie Okobo (TOR)
Bringing in: Gary Trent Jr. (POR), New York’s 2020 second-round pick
The Phoenix Suns have fallen off dramatically from their hot start but are still mostly in the position of needing to let the promising core of Kelly Oubre Jr., Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges and Deandre Ayton gel together. They’ll be looking for a long-term solution at point guard in a year or two — Ricky Rubio has been fantastic but they would probably ultimately prefer someone whose career arc will line up better with their young core. Elie Okobo is probably not that guy.
He was an exciting sleeper pick, he’s finally making 3-pointers this year and he’s just 22. But he’s never really looked like a player with overwhelming potential in his limited NBA minutes, or even in his G League experience — he’s averaged 18.1 points and 7.4 assists per game in the G League this season, but shooting 38.9 percent from the field, under 30 percent on 3s and with 3.1 turnovers per game. Trent Jr. probably has a lower ceiling but he’s shot nearly 40 percent on 3s for Portland this season and his higher floor could be useful. In addition, the Suns can pick up the Knicks second-round pick which has a good chance of being the 31st selection in this year’s draft.