1. The Hatchet Is Not Exactly Buried
The overall message from Markieff Morris and general manager Ryan McDonough at Media Day was focusing on putting the events of the summer behind them. Keef deflected follow-up questions about his desire to be traded or his conversation with the front office and McDonough’s biggest talking point revolved around shifting the focus back to basketball.
But based on the answers they were giving, it was entirely obvious that there’s still some bad blood between the two.
For starters, Keef may have been saying all the right things, but he certainly didn’t seem enthusiastic about what he was saying. Keef has never been a particularly enthusiastic guy, but his body language at Media Day was downright unhappy as he declined one-on-one interviews and sped through the photoshoots.
Photographer asked Markieff to do a prop photo (insta cutout or cape). He shook his head "no" before agreeing on this pic.twitter.com/ifkOkmSTJ7
— Andrew Joseph (@AndyJ0seph) September 28, 2015
As for McDonough, he was absolutely adamant about not apologizing or regretting the aftermath of the Marcus Morris trade — a move that was designed to free up cap space for LaMarcus Aldridge. When Aldridge joined the San Antonio Spurs, the Suns were left with one pissed off starting power forward, but McD stood by his approach.
Sir Charles In Charge
“Are we going to stop chasing elite players and trying to win a championship? No,” he said. “We’re not going to stop that and I don’t apologize for that.”
If Keef wanted an apology, he certainly wasn’t getting one. But McDonough certainly wasn’t holding his breath waiting for an apology either, based on Keef’s attitude whenever McD’s name came up.
One reporter asked Morris if he trusted Hornacek, and Keef responded with enthusiasm and support for his head coach. But when the reporter followed up with, “And what about Ryan?,” Keef responded with, “You can ask him that, man.”
McDonough was a little more straightforward about their relationship.
“He’s certainly not the first and probably won’t be the last player to be upset with a front office; it happens,” he said. “I do my job first and foremost to put the most talent on the floor that we can, to give coach and his staff players that work hard and play hard and have a chance to win a lot of games. If that ruffles some feathers along the way, so be it.”
McDonough when asked if the Suns discussed trading Markieff: "I'm not gonna talk about what we discussed internally."
— Valley of the Suns (@ValleyoftheSuns) September 28, 2015
To be fair, McDonough was entirely complimentary of Morris as a player and even acknowledged the way Keef handled the media session with poise. The Suns GM also said he was frustrated the discussion was all about Keef’s public statements from the offseason and not on his improvement as a player.
But then McDonough also admitted that he and Keef hadn’t interacted very much, saying, “I’ve spoken to coach and his teammates more than he’s spoken to me, and if that’s the way it is, that’s fine.”
It’s not necessary for McDonough and Morris to be chums for the Suns to make the playoffs. At this point, it’d be a miracle for them to even be on good terms for the rest of Keef’s tenure in Phoenix, which would be anywhere from a few months to the full four years remaining on his contract.
However, there should be no secrets about the tension between Phoenix’s general manager and his starting power forward. Both recognize they need the other to survive right now, and for the time being, that’s good enough for both of them AND for the Suns’ playoff hopes. But make no mistake: this is not the last we’ve heard of this uncomfortable relationship.
Next: Suns GM, Teammates Speak About Markieff Morris Situation