If Amar’e Stoudemire’s contract with the New York Knicks is bought out–as every indication that it will be–his services might become very useful to a playoff contender. One such team looking to potentially add Stoudemire could be his old team, the Phoenix Suns.
Phoenix has some depth in the front court, boasting Miles Plumlee, Markieff Morris, Brandon Wright and Alex Len. However, the concerns over Len’s ankle have some in the Suns front office worried. The team would likely look to Stoudemire as an insurance plan if Len, or any other big, suffered an injury.
Stoudemire is no stranger to Phoenix. The team drafted the 13-year NBA veteran with the ninth pick of the 2002 NBA Draft. Stoudemire would go on to have a solid NBA career in Phoenix, with his best year coming during the 2004-05 season when he averaged 26 points and 8.9 rebounds.
On June 30, 2010, Stoudemire opted out of his Suns contract and signed a five-year $99.7 deal with the Knicks, a deal which has haunted New York to this day.
Injuries severely halted Stoudemire’s growth in New York, as he averaged 20 or more points for a season once, his first year with the team. A change of scenery might help Stoudemire gain some confidence in his game.
While he won’t be the player he was early on in his career, there is still some basketball left in Stoudemire, and you can bet he is out to prove that.