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The Phoenix Suns are operating in an unusual world, interested in making a trade
for needed depth in an environment with three quasi-owners at the moment.

Current owner Robert Sarver is suspended, selling the team and, even though he's
barred from communicating with anyone, still in control of any trades that surp
ass a certain agreed-upon dollar amount.

Acting governor Sam Garvin is in charge of the day-to-day and said he has a sign
-off on trades, but only to a certain point. And Mat Ishbia has an agreement to
buy the team and is preparing for a midseason takeover, but it's not expected he
will be through the vetting process before the Feb. 9 trade deadline.


To understand why the Suns haven't yet been able to find a deal for disgruntled
forward Jae Crowder as injuries have ravaged the team and disrupted a 20-18 star
t, Phoenix's ownership morass is a contributing factor.

When NBA commissioner Adam Silver suspended Sarver in September, the league offi
ce laid out a series of rules regarding his involvement with the team for the ne
xt year. Some of these provisions, particularly those preventing changes to top
positions on the business side of the operation without Sarver's approval, have
been reported on extensively by ESPN's Baxter Holmes.

But one key provision has given Sarver a remaining piece of power.

Sarver still has to give personal sign-off on any deal for a player with a salar
y that is more than the current "average player salary," multiple league sources
confirmed to ESPN. This would include any luxury tax payments, which the Suns a
re currently projected to pay.

The current average player salary is $10.8 million. Crowder's salary is $10.2 mi
llion. And the Suns, according to sources, have had talks about various multipla
yer trades over the past few months that would all likely have to end up on Sarv
er's desk.

This is a rare circumstance within the NBA, having to negotiate trades without t
alking directly to the person who must approve it. There are other provisions th
at the acting leadership of the Suns cannot do without his permission, sources s
aid, such as attempting to relocate the franchise or change the lease for the ar
ena. But the trade approval aspect is perhaps the most relevant to the way the t
eam is handling basketball business in this period.

Occasionally, NBA lawyers have created such one-off arrangements to manage uniqu
e situations. A decade ago when Phil Jackson was named president of the New York
Knicks and then-fiancé e Jeanie Buss was president of the Los Angeles Lakers, t
e league had an arrangement in which the league office had oversight on any deal
ings between the franchises to prevent perceived conflicts of interest.

Garvin, for his part, acknowledged Sarver still had some say in trades in an int
erview with the Arizona Republic in December. Though, Garvin might've undersold
just to what level Sarver could still have approval power.

"If we wanted to do a massive trade that would be for three max contracts and br
ing on say $150 million in payroll beyond the $150 million we have? He's still t
he majority shareholder," Garvin told the newspaper. "He owns 30% of the shares,
and he's managing the sale.

"So for super extraordinary items like that, I have the ability to consult with
him and get his opinion on it, but day-to-day stuff