Phoenix Suns: 5 Steps To Reaching The Playoffs

4. Keef Staying Motivated

“I want to be here,” Markieff Morris said at Suns Media Day. Just a few weeks after expressing his desire to be traded following the summer departure of his twin brother Marcus Morris, Keef pulled a complete 180 and said all the right things about how he wanted to be in Phoenix.

"“I’m looking forward to the season, not really trying to look in the past,” he said. “I don’t really want to talk about what happened this summer, I just want to look forward to the upcoming season and I’m glad to be back with my teammates.”"

Maybe he was being sincere. Maybe he realized the Suns weren’t going to trade him and that he’s a valued member of a team that is playoff-worthy with him on-board. Or maybe someone filled him in that with his trade value in the crapper, the Suns would never move him unless they could get a reasonable return, which would require him to shut his mouth and play superb basketball.

Either way, Markieff Morris is now on the same page as the Suns, with both sides focusing on just playing good basketball for the time being. Whether it leads to a trade to separate two embattled sides and end a messy relationship remains to be seen, but for now, both sides are concentrating on doing whatever it takes to make the playoffs.

Last season, Keef’s improvements in his game were ultimately overlooked by his comments about the fan support following a blowout loss at home, his 15 technical fouls (second most in the league) and the felony aggravated assault charges that he and his brother are still facing.

But make no mistake about it: Keef is one of the more efficient midrange players in the league, possessing the ability to create his own shot and a penchant for making important crunch-time baskets. His defense is not as bad as his reputation would lead you to believe, and though he’s a poor rebounder for his size, the addition of Tyson Chandler should take some of that pressure off him.

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Keef may never be a superstar, but the Suns are in a bind the moment he opens his mouth again. If this relationship can’t be salvaged, the rest of the league won’t give up anything in a potential trade. Any trade without providing equal value in return would leave the Suns starting either Mirza Teletovic or Jon Leuer at the 4. No offense to Teletovic or Leuer, but the Suns are not a playoff-caliber team with either of them in the starting lineup.

Keef has been prone to emotional outbursts and bad decisions on and off the court. For the Suns to make the playoffs, he’ll have to keep his head on straight for the entire season and continue to improve his three-point shot, which showed signs of promise in the preseason when he shot a blistering 47.1 percent from downtown. Here’s hoping that motivation to win the fans back lasts.

Next: No. 3