The Phoenix Suns traded forward Markieff Morris to the Washington Wizards for a future first-round pick along with reserve forwards Kris Humphries and DeJuan Blair on Thursday.
The Suns received the Wizards’ first-round pick (protected to nine) in the 2016 NBA Draft, giving Phoenix three picks in the first round.
“Today we added another first-round pick to our collection of picks while keeping our young core intact,” Suns general manager Ryan McDonough. “We are excited to watch this group of players continue to develop and grow together.”
Morris has been rumored to be on the move for most of this season, with the speculation intensifying once the Suns began struggling in December. He has been reportedly unhappy since last summer when the Suns dealt his twin brother, Marcus, to the Detroit Pistons.
In the last game before the All-Star break against the Golden State Warriors, Morris and teammate Archie Goodwin engaged in a shouting match and shoved each other during a timeout. Earlier this season, Morris was suspended for throwing a towel at former coach Jeff Hornacek in an incident widely played nationally.
He and his brother are also facing felony aggravated assault charges from an incident at a Phoenix recreation center last spring.
“Markieff is a versatile, young power forward who brings athleticism and physicality along with a good shooting touch,” Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld said. “He will be a very good addition to our team as we make our playoff push and gives us a proven starter at that position for the next several years.”
Morris was Phoenix’s first-round pick in 2011 and averaged 11.4 points in 345 games. Last year he started every game and averaged a career-best 15.3 points and 6.2 rebounds on 46.5 percent shooting but this those numbers dipped to 11.6, 5.2 and a career-worst 39.7 percent from the field.
The Suns, who have dropped 24 of their last 26 games, will shed the remaining 2 1/2 years of the four-year contract extension that Morris signed before last season.
Humphries is on the second-year of a three-year deal he agreed to with Washington following a sign-and-trade with the Boston Celtics in 2014. He has averaged 6.4 points and 4.1 rebounds in 28 games this season for Washington and has averages of 6.9 points and 5.6 assists in 719 games while also playing for the Brooklyn Nets, Toronto Raptors, Utah Jazz and Dallas Mavericks.
Blair appeared in 29 games for Washington and has a team option of $2 million for next season. He also played for the San Antonio Spurs and Dallas Mavericks and has averaged 6.8 points and 5.1 rebounds in 424 career games.