Unser Chat » two people with knowledge of the situation said

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns agreed to a sign-and-trade deal with the Sacramento Kings for point guard Isaiah Thomas, two people with knowledge of the situation said Friday. The people, who sought anonymity because the deal has not been officially announced, say Thomas is signing a four-year, $27 million contract. In exchange, the Kings get the draft rights to centre Alex Oriakhi, a second-round draft pick of the Suns in 2013, plus a $7 million trade exception. One of the people who confirmed the deal said the Suns see Thomas as a "perfect third guard" to play with Phoenixs double point guard starting lineup of Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe. He is not envisioned as a replacement for either of them. Thomas was a restricted free agent who was in Phoenix meeting with the Suns on Thursday and Friday. The Kings were not expected to match any offer sheet for Thomas after agreeing to a three-year, $15sign free agent Darren Collison last week. With Fridays agreement, the Kings at least get something for Thomas. Thomas was the 60th and final draft pick, out of Washington, in 2011 and became a fan favourite as he worked his way into more and more playing time in Sacramento. He averaged career highs of 20.3 points and 6.3 assists in 72 games with Sacramento last season, 54 as a starter. In three seasons with the Kings, he played in 216 games, 153 as a starter, averaging 15.3 points and 4.8 assists. "Im excited for what the future holds here in Phoenix," he said in a tweet. Thomas also thanked the city of Sacramento, saying the city "will always have a place in my heart." "To the fans of Sacramento, words cant explain what yall mean to me!," he said. "Yall made me who I am in the NBA and I cant thank you guys enough." He thanked Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, a former star point guard for the Suns, for "being by my side since Day 1." The move leaves six point guards on the Phoenix roster. Ish Smith, the third point guard last season, could well be gone. Phoenix has two young point guards in this years first-round draft pick Tyler Ennis and second-year pro Archie Goodwin. Point guard play is critical to the high-energy, fast-paced system of coach Jeff Hornacek, who in his first season on the job led Phoenix to a big turnaround. The Suns, coming off a 25-win season in 2012-13, went 48-34 and barely missed the playoffs in the tough Western Conference. Bledsoe is a restricted free agent, but the Suns are trying to sign him before he inks an offer sheet for another team. General manager Ryan McDonough has said Phoenix would match any offer sheet Bledsoe signs. Bledsoes agent is Rich Paul, who also represents LeBron James. On Thursday, the Suns reached agreement on a three-year contract with their starting small forward P.J. Tucker, who was a restricted free agent. The Kings are counting on some of their young guards to blossom in Thomas place. Last years second-round pick, point guard Ray McCallum, showed signs of improving with more minutes in the final weeks of the season. And Sacramento has drafted a shooting guard with its last two first-round picks, Ben McLemore (seventh overall) out of Kansas last year and Michigans Nik Stauskas (eighth overall) this June. Kings owner Vivek Ranadive, general manager Pete DAlessandro and coach Michael Malone have made as many moves as any team in the league since taking over the Kings last year, so Sacramento could shuffle its roster with more trades. Custom Carolina Hurricanes Jerseys . 5 Trade Deadline is drawing closer and teams will be deciding on whether to buy or sell. Carolina Hurricanes Jerseys . Casey Janssen was placed on the 15-day disabled list Sunday due to a strain in his left abdominal area and lower back. http://www.hockeyhurricanes.com/rod-brindamour-hockey-jersey/ . Some members of the U.S. Congress arent so sure. They say Russia isnt doing enough to assure that athletes will be protected at the Feb. 7-23 games, happening not far from an Islamic insurgency that Russias huge security apparatus has struggled for two decades to quell. Russia may run greater risks in towns outside the tightly controlled Olympic zone. Suicide bombs last month a few hundred kilometres (miles) away have increased concerns, and an Islamic warlord has urged his followers to attack the Sochi Olympics, Russian President Vladimir Putins pet project. Justin Faulk Jersey .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final.PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- The finish wasnt what Jimmy Walker wanted. The result is what hes come to expect. Walker led by as many as six shots Sunday in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, only for it to be decided by his final putt. He ran his birdie attempt 5 feet by the hole, and had to make that for par to close with a 2-over 74 and a one-shot win over Dustin Johnson and Jim Renner. "Its drama, man," Walker said on the 18th green. "It was too much for me." But it was a familiar outcome for Walker, a 35-year-old Texan who only four months ago was regarded as one of the best players to have never won on the PGA Tour. This was his third win of the PGA Tour season, a streak that began in October about an hour away at the Frys.com Open. Walker joined some exclusive company. He is only the fourth player in the last 20 years to win three times in his first eight starts to a season. The others are Tiger Woods (who has done it eight times), Phil Mickelson and David Duval. For a brief moment, it looked as though Walker might have a chance to join Greg Norman and Sergio Garcia as players to lose a six-shot lead in the final round. He was never seriously challenged until Johnson, and then Renner, put together a strong finish. Johnson, a two-time winner at Pebble Beach, closed with a 66 on a card that included three bogeys. Renner, who had yet to make a cut all year, made five birdies on the back nine for a 67. Walker made a 10-foot birdie on the 11th hole and was seemingly on his way. But he hit a poor chip on the par-3 12th for a bogey. He three-putted the 13th for a bogey. He settled down for three simple pars and was two shots clear with two to play. Walker three-putted the 17th, missing a 3 1/2-foot par putt. He tried to play it safe on the 18th with an iron off the tee that found the right rough. From 25 feet above the hole, he hit the birdie putt too hard and had one anxious moment. "I hate three-putting," Walker said. "I had two of them back there, and definitely didnt want another one on the last." Walker finished on 11-under 277 and earned $1.188 million, expanding his lead in the Ryder Cup standings to more than $1 million over Mickelson in second place. The Ryder Cup is based on PGA Tour earnings, though there are still four majors (which count double), three World Golf Championships and The Players Championship remaining. For now, the stars are aliggned for Walker better than anything he sees through his high-powered telescope.dddddddddddd "I just go out and play golf," Walker said. "This is what I want to do and Ive worked really hard to do it, to be here, and to be in this position and its really cool." Jordan Spieth had to return Sunday morning to complete his third round, which ended with his sixth three-putt of the round for a 78. He faced Pebble at its most vicious throughout the third round, though he bounced back with a bogey-free 67 to at least tie for fourth with Kevin Na (69). And he hasnt lost his sense of humour. "Yesterday was a day where you want to play Pebble Beach in that weather once in your life," Spieth said. "You just dont want it be Saturday when youre in the lead." Chalk it up to another learning experience for Spieth, who said his 36 putts were more a product of not having the speed than the less-than-smooth quality. "I felt like I needed birdies when I didnt," he said. Another strong finish belonged to Graeme McDowell, returning to Pebble for the first time since his U.S. Open title in 2010. He closed with a 67, happy with a week in which he would have settled for just knocking some rust off his game before heading to Riviera next week. Outside of Walker, however, the big winner was Renner. He was among the Web.com Tour graduates who played poorly in the four "finals" event that determine priority ranking, and struggled to get into tournaments. In his fifth start, he not only made his first cut, Renner earned a spot at Riviera next week and will be in better position to get into events over the next couple of months. "It was pretty big," Renner said. "I just knew I needed a good week. My back was up against the wall, and thats something Im familiar with and I dont mind it. But Im happy that I freed myself up a little bit for the rest of the year." DIVOTS: Jim Renner and John Harkey Jr., the CEO of Consolidated Restaurant Operations, Inc., won the pro-am portion of the tournament. ... Tim Wilkinson, playing in the final group with Jimmy Walker, closed with a 73 and tied for seventh. That gets him into the Northern Trust Open next week at Riviera. ... Walker was the fourth Pebble Beach winner since 1994 to shoot 74 in the final round -- Johnny Miller in 1994, Dustin Johnson in 2010, and Graeme McDowell in the 2010 U.S. Open. ' ' '