Will the Celtics make a move for Markieff Morris?

Phoenix power forward Markieff Morris has demanded a trade. He’s pissed off with the organization’s decision to trade his twin brother Marcus.

Because of the Celtics overwhelming supply of assets, they are referenced when just about any player hits the trade market. ESPN Insider’s Kevin Pelton throws out this scenario:

Offer: F Perry Jones, F/C Jared Sullinger, F/G James Young, possible draft considerations
Net value: $8.4 million

Why it works: In many respects, the Celtics are the ideal suitor for Morris. They can offer Phoenix a replacement big man on a rookie contract — most likely Sullinger, who’s fallen out of favor in Boston, though Kelly Olynyk or even Tyler Zeller would work, too — and sweeten the deal with their war chest of draft picks if necessary. The Celtics get the certainty of Morris’ extension as opposed to the unknown of what Sullinger’s next deal might look like.

Why it doesn’t: The biggest obstacle to a trade with Boston is salary. Sullinger is making just $2.6 million in the final season of his rookie deal, meaning the Celtics would have to aggregate three players to make a deal work. It’s unclear whether Boston is willing to give up on Young — a first-round pick just 14 months ago — so soon. If the Celtics were really planning to make a deal for Morris, they almost certainly would have held on to Zoran Dragic, who could have been the third player needed to make the salaries work.

That offer seems a bit steep for a guy who averaged 15.3 ppg and 6.2 rpg. I don’t know much about Markieff’s game but the guys at Bright Side of the Sun offer this:

How good is Markieff Morris anyway? He played 30 minutes per game for the Suns last year, and had a lot of good performances. In fact, he was often the best player on the floor for a winning team in the first half of last season.

• Has rare ability to create and make a lot of clutch shots in close games
• His mid-range game is very smooth, allowing him the ability to get a shot off against almost any defender in a one-on-one situation.
• He had the best plus/minus on the Suns last year (+7.3 points per 100 possessions). The Suns fell apart when he was off the court.
• He is always healthy, missing only a handful of games in his career.

That’s a glowing review for a guy who is statistically average in just about all major categories. Plus, Markieff (and his brother) are dealing with a felony assault charge from an incident in January.

Dave King of the above referenced Suns blog suggests a deal involving Morris for Sullinger/protected 1st round pick. That’s a much more palatable offer but I’m not sold Markieff Morris needs to be in Boston.

In other news, the Celtics will reportedly open the season Oct. 28th against Philly in Boston (hello, 1-0). And they’ve signed Levi Randolph to a non-guaranteed rookie minimum contract.