Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley turned down Suns owner Robert Sarver twice. Heisley's counteroffer was a deal that would have guaranteed Phoenix less talent and more salary-cap relief. But the Suns insisted on a top-dollar talent like Gay.

Like Heisley, Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins thought Memphis would be giving up too much to get Stoudemire.

"I like Amare Stoudemire," Hollins said, "but with what the Grizzlies had to give up, there wouldn't have been anything left for Amare to play with. My questions were, would he be happy and would he stay? It wouldn't have been pleasant trying to coach a guy who didn't want to be here.

"Overall, I just didn't think it was a good deal for us. We have a core of young players we're building with."

Gay said, "I was hoping it wouldn't happen but it made me understand that this is really just business. You start thinking about your future. You start thinking about how you're going to adjust. Everything happens for a reason. I guess I'm supposed to be here. I know I can be a big part of rebuilding this thing."

Warrick said it's a relief that the trade didn't go through.

"You look at a team like Portland, and it's a young team that's been together for a while," Warrick said. "They've shown what patience can do. I definitely feel like this organization is going in the right direction. It would be nice to keep this core group together."

GRIZZLIES 106, SUNS 89: In the Suns' first game since being eliminated from the playoffs earlier in the week, they looked as if they mailed it in and the hungry Griz took advantage. Phoenix committed 22 turnovers, and by the fourth quarter the Suns' starters were on the bench. Memphis did a great job of sharing the ball and continually attacking the basket. Different players stepped up for the Griz at different junctures of the game. Guard O.J. Mayo scored 13 of his game-total 20 in the first half.