Suns Extend Qualifying Offer to Brooks - Delay the Excising of Vince Cancer... er Carter

So really.. this isn't much news  - but the Suns officially started tying up some of the loose ends on their 'to do' list this off-season.

First, they tendered a $2.9 Million qualifying offer to mid-season acquisition point guard Aaron Brooks officially making him a restricted free-agent.

Seth breaks this down from Twitter.

The Suns also renegotiated the contract time-frame for Vince Carter.  Originally the team had agreed to make a decision (Either pay him his due $18 Million and keep him for next season - or waive his contract and pay him his guaranteed $4 Million) on Carter's contract by June 30th,  now the team has until the beginning of 2011-12 Free-Agency to do that... whenever that is.  Here's more again from Seth and the mothership,

While the move certainly gives the Suns more flexibility in trade discussions -- having a slashable $18 million contract is always a good bargaining chip in today's cap-conscious NBA -- it is somewhat puzzling that Carter would agree to go down this route. It would seem that he incurs no benefits for this decision, as it only muddles and delays the eight-time All-Star's future plans. Though, who knows, this may just be a case of Carter being a good Samaritan and taking one for the team.

So will Vince's contract be traded for valuable assets?  Are we just delaying the inevitable for reasons stated, to "avoid paying a big chunk of money" right now??  Does that make sense?  Maybe it just means the Suns want to explore more options...

But what do we make of the offer to Aaron Brooks, is it a sign of things to come?  Is it business as usual?  Will the draft tonight reveal more about Aaron Brooks' future here in PHX, or will it tell more about that of Zabian Dowdell? 

So many questions, but at least the Suns are starting to take care of business.   Now about that draft... and what about that one guy Grant Hill...