Paul Coro

The Arizona Republic

The phones warmed up Monday in NBA trade talks with potential Suns deals becoming a hot topic in anticipation of Thursday’s deadline.

It would be difficult for the Suns to approach the activity level of last year’s trade deadline, the franchise’s most active trade day ever, but Suns General Manager Ryan McDonough pledged to be aggressive in considering deals up until the 1 p.m. (Phoenix time) cut-off Thursday.

After pulling five players off a team bus last year at the deadline, the Suns’ mostly likely trade topic figures to be Markieff Morris with their most likely trade assets being P.J. Tucker and Mirza Teletovic.

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The Suns have considered trading Morris since the relationship went sideways last summer once they traded his twin, Marcus, to Detroit and Markieff asked to be traded. It has not helped Morris' stock that he took the first regressive step of his career in performance, had health issues for the first time in his career and took behavioral missteps, including bench arguments that resulted in tossing a towel at former coach Jeff Hornacek and shoving teammate Archie Goodwin.

Morris renewed some of his former form once interim head coach Earl Watson took over on Feb. 2 and put him in the starting lineup. It showcased Morris' value as he averaged 20.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists with 44.8 percent shooting in five games, for which he also averaged 4.0 fouls and 3.4 turnovers. For the season, Morris has the fifth-worst effective field goal percentage (42.2), adjusted for 3-pointers' worth, among all qualified NBA players.

Unlike a year ago when Goran Dragic asked for a trade and said he would not re-sign with the Suns in the offseason as a free agent, Morris is under contract for three more seasons. The Suns have public pressure to move Morris but do not feel an ultimatum to trade him by the deadline because his remaining three contract years at $24 million are considered a good value with the league’s rising salary cap. He could have better market value this summer, when the salary cap is expected to rise by about $7 million to $70 million.

Tied for the NBA’s third-worst record at 14-40, the Suns are headed nowhere this season and only have about one-third of the slate (28 games) remaining. League executives have told azcentral sports that the Suns’ previous asking price for Morris has been deemed too high. Yahoo reported that the Suns want a young player and a first-round pick for Morris, who is 26.

The Suns already have accumulated five first-round picks for the next three years – their own first-rounders, Cleveland’s first-round pick this year and Miami’s first-round pick in 2017. Those could come into play in packages for major stars but the likes of Blake Griffin and Kevin Love do no appear to be going anywhere this week.

The Suns also are the only team in the NBA with two open roster spots, leaving them more flexibility than most teams to do a multi-player deal.

The Suns could tinker on a smaller level with Tucker and Teletovic, 30-year-old role players who would fit well into most contending teams and have friendly contracts earning $5.5 million each this season.

Tucker is not on an expiring contract but only $3.8 million of his $5.3 million salary for next season is guaranteed. His defense, physical nature and perpetual hustle make him an ideal reserve on a playoff contender, especially after he has languished out of the playoffs since arriving in Phoenix in 2012.

Teletovic is on an expiring contract and has re-established his shooting ability to be a stretch power forward. He is shooting a career-best 40.5 percent from 3-point range for 10.0 points per game in only 18.3 minutes per game. Teletovic is tied with Gordon Hayward for 36th in the NBA for points per 48 minutes (26.4), just ahead of Paul Millsap and just behind John Wall.

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The Suns could also consider early exits from their summer’s biggest two signings, Brandon Knight and Tyson Chandler. With shooting guard Devin Booker’s emergence, the future of a backcourt featuring Eric Bledsoe and Knight looks more in question. Knight, who already has been traded twice before age 24, has four contract years worth $56.4 million combined. Chandler could be more difficult to move because of his age (33), contract (three remaining years worth $39 million combined) and production (worst shooting percentage in 11 years and lowest blocked shot rate of his career but still the second-best rebound rate of his career in low playing time).

Because the Suns’ backcourt is overloaded, Goodwin’s recent starting performances while playing out of position could bring him a suitor while he remains on a rookie contract paying $2.1 million next season with a team option for $3.1 million in 2017-18. Goodwin, an off-guard for 2 ½ seasons, started the past 11 games at point guard, averaging 16.8 points, 4.5 assists and 3.8 turnovers.

Reach Paul Coro at paul.coro@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-2470. Follow him at twitter.com/paulcoro.