By most indications, former Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver is no longer connected with the team. After all, the NBA suspended him for one year and fined him for $10 million back in September. Plus, Sarver sold the team, along with the Phoenix Mercury, the city's WNBA team, to Mat Ishbia for approximately $4 billion.
But because Sarver sold the franchise so recently and Ishbia has yet to take over the owning reigns, Phoenix's ability to make deals in the here and now is negatively impacted, notably one in which they unload forward Jae Crowder, per ESPN's Brian Windhorst:
“Current owner Robert Sarver is suspended, selling the team and, even though he's barred from communicating with anyone, still in control of any trades that surpass a certain agreed-upon dollar amount.”
“Acting governor Sam Garvin is in charge of the day-to-day and said he has a sign-off on trades, but only to a certain point. And Mat Ishbia has an agreement to buy the team and is preparing for a midseason takeover, but it's not expected he will be through the vetting process before the Feb. 9 trade deadline.”
Jae Crowder, 32, has played ten seasons in the big leagues with seven different teams. He averaged 9.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game with the Suns during the 2021-22 campaign. Considering Crowder has yet to play a single game for the Suns this season, it seems only a matter of time until the Suns trade him, likely to a title-contending squad in need of a wing defender.
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