Sun’s in Crisis Mode! Three Urgent Fixes Needed to Save Phenix Sinking Season
It seems like an entirety ago that the Phoenix Suns started 8-1 on the season, putting last season’s disaster in the rearview mirror. However, that was not the case as Kevin Durant would be sidelined with a calf injury, thus beginning the next 45-game stretch filled with players in and out of the lineup, defensive struggles, and an 18-27 record. Entering the All-Star break, Phoenix is 11th in the Western Conference and 1.5 games out of a Play-In spot in a tough race.
The All-Star break needs to be a hard reset for the franchise, which the front office dug themselves deeper by making it apparent they were trying to trade everyone on the roster. If the Suns want to make a serious push for a spot in the postseason, they need to fix these three things.
1. Find a defensive identity
Phoenix is 25th in defensive rating in the NBA with 115.6. No serious playoff contender is in the bottom 10. Jusuf Nurkic received a burden of the blame for the Suns’ weak interior defense. However, since Nurkic’s last game in a Suns uniform on January 7th, the Suns still have a defensive rating of 119.7 in the last 19 games. The front office traded its best on-ball defender, Josh Okogie, to fix the center issue by getting Nick Richards.
Post All-Star Break, Phoenix needs Richards and centers like Mason Plumlee to step up and help fix the team’s interior defense. The Suns allow 49.7 paint points a game, 22nd in the league. They’re 10th in opponent 3-point percentage, and players like Royce O’Neale and Devin Booker do a great job on the perimeter, not allowing those open shots beyond the perimeter. Adding in new Sun Cody Martin will aid the perimeter defense. With all the injuries, Head coach Mike Budenholzer has tried using Bol Bol as a roamer to help with the team’s rim protection and has seen mild success. But the injuries are another problem.
2. Get healthy
Availability is the most underrated aspect of basketball. If a player isn’t on the court, they can’t help. The Suns Big 3 of Durant, Booker, and Bradley Beal have missed a combined 35 games this season. Injuries have plagued Beal’s time in Phoenix and have made it hard to build consistency with the roster around him.
In the final 28 games of the season, the Suns need to do something that they haven’t done in the past few years, and that’s stay healthy. The obvious talent is there, and offensively, they are one of the best teams in the league in efficiency. It’s just about stacking games one after another that has been the problem with the team.
3. Rebound the basketball
The Suns are dead last in the NBA in opponent offensive rebounding, allowing 12.4 a game. Rebounding is a team stat, and while blame is thrown at Richards or Plumlee, it’s an effort issue at the end of the day. Phoenix has let up too many offensive rebounds in the late-game clutch situations that cost them the game. Rebounding and turnovers are silly mistakes that need to be kicked post-All-Star break if the team wants to make a serious push for a top-8 seed.
