The Suns have signed 50-year old Jeff Hornacek to a 3-year deal to serve as their new head coach.  Hornacek doesn’t have any head coaching experience so far in his career.  He has been an assistant coach for the last two years with the Utah Jazz.  He was also a special assistant coach in 2007-08 for the Jazz, working with them with their shooting.  Hornacek has a long career as a player to draw experiences from.  He played in 1,077 games (910 starts) in his 14 years in the NBA and he averaged 31.5 minutes, 14.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game.  He shot 49.6% from the floor, 40.3% from three point range and 87.7% from the free throw line in his NBA career.

The Suns have dealt 27-year old point guard Sebastian Telfair to the Toronto Raptors for 27-year old center Hamed Haddadi and a 2nd round pick in 2014.  Telfair played in 46 games (2 starts) for the Suns this year and he averaged 17.3 minutes, 6.0 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.  He played in 106 games (3 starts) in his two years with the Suns and he averaged 15.9 minutes, 6.1 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.  Moving Telfair will allow the Suns to play rookie point guard Kendall Marshall behind Goran Dragic the rest of the 2012-13 season.  Hamed Haddadi didn’t play for the Raptors this year.  He played in 13 games (0 starts) for the Grizzlies last year and he averaged 6.7 minutes, 1.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game.  Haddadi has now played in 134 games (0 starts) in his first five years in the NBA and he is averaging 6.1 minutes, 2.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game.  Haddadi might get a chance to show what he can do for the Suns.  I like this deal for both teams.

The Phoenix Suns have released 25-year old rookie center Luke Zeller.  Zeller played in 16 games (0 starts) for the Suns this year and he averaged 3.6 minutes, 1.2 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.  Zeller only shot 34.6% from the floor for the Suns this year and that is pretty awful for a big man.  Zeller might hook on with another team later this year, but the Suns won’t miss him at all….and that is really saying something about his skill set.

The Suns have acquired 23-year old forward Marcus Morris from the Houston Rockets for a 2nd round pick in 2013.  Morris played in 54 games (17 starts) for the Rockets this year and he averaged 21.4 minutes, 8.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  He has now played in 71 games (17 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he is averaging 18.0 minutes, 7.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game.  This was a rock solid move for the Suns as is reunites the Morris brothers, as they already had Markieff on the team.  The best thing around this deal is that the Suns didn’t give up much (a second round pick) to get a player (Marcus Morris) who will move right into their playing rotation.

The Suns have fired head coach Alvin Gentry. The Suns were only 13-28 (31.7%) under Gentry in 2012-13 at the time of his firing. Gentry was 158-144 (52.3%) during the regular season in his five years in charge. He was also 10-6 (62.5%) in the playoffs for the Suns. The Suns have hired 42-year old Lindsey Hunter to replace Gentry as the new head coach. He has a lot of playing experience in the NBA, but not much coaching experience.

The Suns have signed 27-year old shooting guard Othyus Jeffers to a non-guaranteed deal. Jeffers last played in the NBA back in 2010-11 with the Wizards and Spurs. He has played in 31 games (1 start) in his first two years in the NBA and he is averaging 12.7 minutes, 4.2 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. Jeffers is a longshot to make the Suns out of training camp.

UPDATE: (10/22/2012) - The Suns have waived Othyus Jeffers.

The Suns have signed 29-year old power forward Ike Diogu to a non-guaranteed deal. Diogu played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Spurs last year and he averaged 7.0 minutes, 1.0 point and 0.5 rebounds per game. He has now played in 225 games (18 starts) in his first six years in the NBA and he is averaging 12.4 minutes, 6.0 points, 3.1 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Diogu will have a good shot to make the Suns’ roster as long as he looks good in training camp.

UPDATE: (10/25/2012) - The Suns have released Ike Diogu.

The Suns have signed 28-year old C/PF Solomon Jones to a 1-year, non-guaranteed deal. Jones played in 21 games (1 start) for the Hornets and Clippers last year and he averaged 13.9 minutes, 3.2 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. He has now played in 268 games (11 starts) in his first six years in the NBA and he is averaging 11.1 minutes, 3.1 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. Jones is going to have to play well in training camp to secure a roster spot on the Suns for the 2012-13 season.

UPDATE: (10/25/2012) - The Suns have waived Solomon Jones.

The Phoenix Suns have signed 33-year old center Jermaine O’Neal. O’Neal played in 25 games (24 starts) for the Celtics last year and he averaged 22.8 minutes, 5.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 911 games (680 starts) in his first 16 years in the NBA and he is averaging 27.9 minutes, 13.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.9 blocked shots per game. This was a good pickup for the Suns, as O’Neal is still a very physical player who can block some shots.

The Phoenix Suns have acquired 25-year old SG/SF Wesley Johnson (from the Timberwolves), 36-year old center Brad Miller (from the Hornets), 25-year old guard Jerome Dyson and a lottery protected first round pick from the Timberwolves. The pick is protected until the 2017 season, when it turns into a 2nd round pick and cash (it originally belonged to the Memphis Grizzlies). The Suns dealt 24-year old center Robin Lopez and 30-year old forward Hakim Warrick to the Hornets and a 2nd round pick in 2014 to the Timberwolves as part of this year. The Timberwolves also get 2nd round picks in 2013 and 2016 from the Hornets as part of this deal.

Wesley Johnson will likely be one of the first players off the bench for the Suns in 2012-13. He played in 65 games (64 starts) for the Timberwolves last year and he averaged 22.6 minutes, 6.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Johnson has now played in 144 games (127 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he is averaging 24.6 minutes, 7.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. The Suns hope that a change in scenery helps spike Johnson’s production. Brad Miller played in 15 games (1 start) for the Timberwolves last year and he averaged 9.7 minutes, 2.3 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. Miller has now played in 868 games (598 starts) in his first 14 years in the NBA and he is averaging 28.3 minutes, 11.2 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. It’s assumed that Miller will retire, but if he decides against it, he could help the Suns off the bench behind Marcin Gortat. Jerome Dyson played in 9 games (1 start) for the Hornets in his first taste of the NBA last year and he averaged 20.0 minutes, 7.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He should help the Suns off the bench in 2012-13.

Robin Lopez played in 64 games (0 starts) for the Suns last year and he averaged 14.0 minutes, 5.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. He played in 242 games (94 starts) in his four years with the Suns in which he averaged 14.4 minutes, 5.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. He was a big disappointment for the Suns. Hakim Warrick played in 35 games (0 starts) for the Suns last year and he averaged 14.4 minutes, 6.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Warrick played in 115 games (6 starts) in his two years with the Suns in which he averaged 16.7 minutes, 7.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Wesley Johnson should be able to replace Hakim Warrick’s P.T. in 2012-13.

This was a good deal for the Suns as they acquired Wesley Johnson, Jerome Dyson and a first round pick for two players they didn’t want anymore.

UPDATE: (8/15/2012) - The Suns have released Brad Miller and Jerome Dyson.