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| After playing on different teams for the first time in their careers, Marcus and Markieff Morris are again teammates in Phoenix. (sbnation.com) |
NBA Draft day two years ago was a difficult one for Marcus and Markieff Morris.
This is not because their stock dropped them further than expected, they went back-to-back with the No. 13 and 14 picks, but because for the first time in their lives, they would not be playing basketball on the same team. Throughout high school in Philadelphia and college at the University of Kansas, the Morris twins have always been teammates.
Part of me thought a team should find a way to draft and trade for both players, keeping them together. It just didn't feel right to separate the two brothers who had never had to play on different teams. The twins played so well as teammates at KU, the thought was why couldn't that continue in the NBA?
After one-and-a-half seasons apart with Marcus in Houston and Markieff in Phoenix, the twins will be back together as the Rockets traded Marcus to Phoenix for a second-round draft pick this year, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
"If I was to be traded, that's where I would want to go," Marcus told the Associated Press in a story published in the Topeka Capital-Journal. "I think Houston knew that. I'm excited. That's all I can say."
Marcus Morris is averaging 8.6 points and 4.1 rebounds this season for the Rockets while starting 17 games. Markieff is averaging similar numbers with 7.3 ppg, and 4.3 rebounds. Those are respectable numbers for second-year players, but the biggest aspect of this trade is the possibilities of what these two could now accomplish together.
At Kansas, the Morris twins dominated the post position as Marcus averaged more than 17 points in his final season as a second-team All-American and Big 12 Player of the Year. While Markieff scored less than his brother, he was the better rebounder of the two and was more efficient from the field, leading the Big 12 in field goal percentage.
The two have played basketball together for more than a decade, and make each other better on the court. Plus, attitude will not be in question, as the twins must be ecstatic to be on the same team once again. If both continue to develop as players, this makes for a great story for the Suns. And with no real "superstar" players on the Suns roster, this is an ideal team for the twins to build stats and minutes and excel.
The twins weren't the only former KU players involved in trades Wednesday. The Sacramento Kings traded rookie Thomas Robinson to Houston for Patrick Patterson, Toney Douglas and fellow Jayhawk Cole Aldrich. The trade deadline is 3 p.m. eastern today.
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