Suns' Dudley: 'My contract's just not for what I do on the floor'

Jared Dudley wasted little time in free agency, committing to return to the Phoenix Suns on July 1. The 31-year-old forward had spent four-and-a-half seasons with the Suns before they traded him away in 2013. He admitted Friday he never wanted to leave.

"I've been secretly wanting to come back here for years," Dudley said, according to the Arizona Republic's Paul Coro. Dudley turned down offers from the Utah Jazz - a superior team to the Suns - and Brooklyn Nets in order to return to Phoenix, where he inked a three-year, $30-million contract.

While he's respected around the NBA as a serviceable stretch-four, Dudley knows it's also up to him to provide the young team with veteran leadership.

"You could find a better basketball player at the power forward position," Dudley said. "You could even have an All-Star. You're still going to need guys to groom these young guys ... my contract's just not for what I do on the floor. It has to do with the locker room, weight room, training room, and helping these guys how to be a pro."

Dudley, known for his outspokenness, then suggested the Milwaukee Bucks' disappointing season might've had something to do with his departure.

"I've had previous success doing it with Giannis (Antetokounmpo) and Jabari (Parker). You see in Milwaukee, once they got rid of their key vets in Milwaukee, they didn't make the playoffs and there's a reason for that."

The Bucks traded Dudley to the Washington Wizards last summer. In 81 games in 2015-16, he averaged 7.9 points and 3.5 rebounds on 42 percent 3-point shooting.