Phoenix, a surprise contender in the LaMarcus Aldridge sweepstakes, continues to ramp up its pursuit, clearing an estimated $8 million in cap space by dumping Marcus Morris, Danny Granger and Reggie Bullock to Detroit for a second-round pick in 2020.
The deal was originally reported by Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Wajnarowski was one of several league observers who had Aldridge’s decision coming down to joining the Spurs or remaining in Portland before free agency opened late Tuesday.
But Phoenix, one of seven teams to have met with Aldridge since then, grabbed his attention by reaching an agreement with veteran center Tyson Chandler to anchor the paint around a backcourt of Brandon Knight, who agreed to a lucrative extension with the Suns, and Eric Bledsoe.