Amare talks heating up (UPDATE)

CLEVELAND -- The Phoenix Suns have engaged in trade talks with at least five or six teams, including the Pistons, Bulls, Nets, and Warriors, in their efforts to find the best offer for Amare Stoudemire, multiple league sources told CBSSports.com.

In the past 48 hours, the Suns' posture on Stoudemire has advanced from accepting calls to placing them, an indication that they've accelerated efforts to pull off sweeping changes before the Feb. 19 trade deadline.

The Pistons view Stoudemire as a good fit, according to a person with knowledge of the dialogue between the teams, and have the kind of assets Phoenix would be interested in -- large expiring contracts (Allen Iverson and Rasheed Wallace), young players with reasonable contracts (Jason Maxiell, Amir Johnson), and draft picks (three extra second-rounders and an extra first-rounder acquired in other trades).

Chicago also is a desirable destination, and the Bulls could offer Larry Hughes' $13.7 million deal expiring after next season. Plus, Chicago has the largest expiring trade exception ($5.2 million) in the league. The Nets have three first-rounders in upcoming drafts, but don't seem convinced that Stoudemire is the right fit, which would be a key component of any deal. Since Stoudemire has an early termination clause after the 2009-10 season, any team that acquires him would have to view him as its max free-agent signing in the summer of 2010.

UPDATE: Golden State also has had discussions with the Suns about Stoudemire, a person familiar with the talks said Sunday night -- although the Bay Area doesn't seem to be a likely destination.

"You'd have to have a deal in place to re-sign him," one rival executive said. "You'd have to have great interest and think he’s the guy for you."

Other teams believed to be in the mix for Stoudemire are Miami, Dallas, and possibly the Raptors, who are looking for other avenues to unload Jermaine O'Neal's $22 million contract for next season after talks with Miami about an O'Neal-for-Shawn Marion swap fizzled.

UPDATE: Several curious teams have called Toronto about Chris Bosh, two people with knowledge of the discussions said Friday night. But it's not clear whether the Bosh talks have involved Stoudemire, and to this point, Toronto's response has been that Bosh is not available.

As CBSSports.com first reported Friday, Phoenix also is seeking offers for Shaquille O'Neal, whose resurgence has not stemmed the Suns' inconsistency under first-year coach Terry Porter.

Amare talks heating up

i cansee that hapen especially with the iverson contract of the books at the end of the year. i could also see a fit with the knicks. but the hard thing to swallow would be the fact that the knicks would have to give up either lee or robinson or both and not even be asured that he would sighn an extention with them. the other issue is that amare is really a defensive force which the knicks need in the middle. they need some one who can scare you away form coming in the middle.

CT Sports Picks Reputation: 0 Level: Amateur Since: Oct 6, 2008	Posted on: February 8, 2009 1:33 pm Score: 106 This comment has been removed. Post Deleted by Administrator
sptsfanatc Reputation: 9 Level: Amateur Since: Feb 8, 2009	Posted on: February 8, 2009 1:41 pm Score: 134 Amare talks heating up The Suns should try to look towards Portland for a trade. There are a few players that would fit into our system and mold them into a defensive player/players. [ Reply to Comment ]
abbeast Reputation: 57 Level: Pro Since: Mar 29, 2008	Posted on: February 8, 2009 1:53 pm Score: 155 Amare talks heating up Amare seems like he would be a natural fit in Dallas... another big-name player with a ton of offensive talent who puts in little-to-no effort on the defensive end. [ Reply to Comment ]
cirknick Reputation: 98 Level: Superstar Since: Nov 30, 2007	Posted on: February 8, 2009 2:21 pm Score: 93 Amare talks heating up he's going to end up in detroit. its so frustrating to hear about teams who actually are trying to make trades and get better while my pacers are sitting on their hands going "oh, our roster is fine" even though our record is terrible. very frustrating. [ Reply to Comment ]
Big blue champs Reputation: 86 Level: All-Star Since: Apr 15, 2008	Posted on: February 8, 2009 2:39 pm Score: 89 Amare talks heating up i cansee that hapen especially with the iverson contract of the books at the end of the year. i could also see a fit with the knicks. but the hard thing to swallow would be the fact that the knicks would have to give up either lee or robinson or both and not even be asured that he would sighn an extention with them. the other issue is that amare is really a defensive force which the knicks need in the middle. they need some one who can scare you away form coming in the middle. [ Reply to Comment ]
YANKS76 Reputation: 71 Level: Pro Since: Nov 18, 2006	Posted on: February 8, 2009 3:13 pm Score: 112 Amare talks heating up The Lakers beat Boston in OT [ Reply to Comment ]
mlbfan3 Reputation: 89 Level: All-Star Since: Jan 30, 2009	Posted on: February 8, 2009 3:25 pm Score: 66 Amare talks heating up it seems that tyrus thomas and joakim noah have been playing well enough the past few weeks for the suns to pull the trigger. an expiring larry hughes contract also helps. [ Reply to Comment ]
jbh-33 Reputation: 96 Level: Superstar Since: Mar 19, 2008	Posted on: February 8, 2009 3:32 pm Score: 108 Amare talks heating up thats what he said it was just a poor choice of words, maybe he's french [ Reply to Comment ]
jsmiddleton4 Reputation: 89 Level: All-Star Since: Oct 23, 2006	Posted on: February 8, 2009 5:37 pm Score: 141 Amare talks heating up I'm not so sure Phoenix is a Iverson/Wallace kinda town. [ Reply to Comment ]
SATW Reputation: 0 Level: Amateur Since: Aug 26, 2008	Posted on: February 8, 2009 7:22 pm Score: 91 Pistons Don't Have an Extra First Rounder Says it all in the title.... [ Reply to Comment ]

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