For several days now, Brandon Knight of the Phoenix Suns has been the center of trade rumors. But, according to team general manager Ryan McDonough, the Suns have no intention of parting ways with the shooting guard.
The trade speculations plaguing Knight and the Suns emerged because of Devin Booker, who was drafted by the team in 2015 as its 13th overall pick. After displaying his exception performance during his rookie year with the Sun, the team previously stated that it was grooming Booker to be its new starting guard.
This, of course, clashes with Knight, who has been the Suns' starter ever since he joined the NBA in 2011, ESPN reported. According to rumors, retaining both Booker and Knight would seem redundant for the Suns.
Because of this, Knight has been viewed as an expendable member of the Phoenix franchise. And with the trade deadline coming up, the rumors began to center on Knight.
But, earlier this week, McDonough ended the speculations on the athlete by stating that the Suns are not interested in trading away Knight.
"We're certainly not looking to move Brandon, we haven't been close to trading Brandon," he said according to Real GM. "I think he'd love to be starting, we understand that. He's accepted the role very well. I think you guys will see him go on a run here."
"As you know, watching him play the last couple of years, he has the ability to get hot and put up a lot of points in a hurry and take over stretches of games - he hasn't done that yet for us consistently but I think it's coming," the general manager added.
Based on McDonough's statements, the team is aware of the dip in Knight's performance this season. However, this doesn't mean that the team is ready to part ways with the athlete just yet. Instead, Knight could see a decrease in his role on the court, giving way to other more effective guards such as Booker. As noted by the general manager, Knight seems to be okay with his new role with the team.
