Marcus Morris: Suns ‘backstabbed’ brother Markieff
Get breaking news and SI¹s biggest stories instantly. Download the new Sports Illustrated app (iOS or Android) and personalize your experience by following your favorite teams and SI writers.
Pistons forward Marcus Morris says he feels like the Suns “backstabbed” his brother Markieff.
In separate interviews with Michael Lee of The Vertical, the Morris twins discussed their respective exits from Phoenix. The two players accepted discounted contracts in 2014 to stay with the team, splitting $52 million between them. The brothers are notoriously close and lived together in college in Kansas and as NBA teammates with the Suns.
• NBA Mock Draft: See who the Suns pick | SI’s Big Board 1.0
Marcus was traded to Detroit in July, and Markieff says he would never have taken $32 million over four years had he known his brother would be dealt. The relationship between player and team took a downturn after the trade, and Marcus voiced his opinion on the matter.
“Personally, I think he did a lot for Phoenix. He took a lot of sacrifices for Phoenix. For them to do such a thing, I feel like they backstabbed him,” Marcus Morris told The Vertical. “I think if they had just reached out to him, reached out to both of us and said, ‘Listen, this is our direction. We don’t think this is going to work.’ We would understand, that’s what has to happen but by the fact that they didn’t do that, it made it worse. … He just didn’t want to be there. He didn’t feel the vibe.”
The SI Extra Newsletter Get the best of Sports Illustrated delivered right to your inbox
Subscribe
Markieff was traded to the Wizards at the trade deadline after a tumultuous final run with the struggling Suns. “I had a couple of great years in Phoenix and I really loved it,” Markieff Morris said. But “we done with Phoenix. Completely.”
