Eric Bledsoe is a restricted free agent and has a qualifying offer on the table from the Phoenix Suns, but not the long-term contract offer he is seeking.
Bledsoe wants max money from Phoenix and reportedly wants a five-year, $80 million deal. The Suns supposedly offered him a four-year, $48 million deal. But Phoenix has said they will match any contract offer for Bledsoe, which he believes has limited his options and resulted in no teams signing him to an offer sheet. That has him upset.
Here’s what CSN Northwest’s Chris Haynes reported Tuesday:
According to league sources, an “ominous development” has arisen with sides still “very far apart” in contract negotiations. It has even escalated to the point where the “relationship is on the express lane to being ruined,” a source with knowledge of the situation informed CSNNW.com.
This sounds like a threat coming from Bledsoe’s camp. If they get the 5-year, $80 million max money deal they want, I’m sure all feelings will be fine.
But you have to wonder what Phoenix is dragging their feet for. Bledsoe had a great season and was a huge reason for the team’s surprising success. The Suns are planning to have him team with Goran Dragic as part of a great backcourt, but they also acquired Isaiah Thomas and drafted Tyler Ennis, leaving many to wonder why they were going so point guard-heavy. Did they stack up on guards because they thought they might lose Bledsoe? I’m not sure this makes sense.
