Suns’ Strategic Shift: Experts Urge Lineup Change, Signaling a Potential Roster Revolution and a Desperate Push to Unlock Their Championship Potential
Tides could be turning for the Phoenix Suns.
The Suns now sit at 33-37 – a mark that is still majorly disappointing after entering the season with sky-high expectations, but the last two-plus weeks have been a bit eye opening in terms of the output the squad is producing.
The Suns have been one of the most efficient offenses, have become much more efficient in terms of capitalizing off of mistakes by opponents, and have also honed in on some true weaknesses – turning them into strengths as of late.
Part of that equation is Cody Martin, who was acquired by the Suns in the trade that sent Jusuf Nurkic to the Charlotte Hornets last month.
Martin has only played in three games for the franchise thus far, but his impact has been felt very conspicuously.
Widely believed to be an obvious candidate to be waived over the summer, Martin has brought an undeniable jolt of energy to the roster – particularly defensively.
The Nevada product has been active in all levels of the Phoenix defense in his 44 minutes of action with the franchise thus far – utilizing his sneaky athleticism and high IQ to cause disruption and in turn create offense for the Suns.
Martin’s offense has certainly been up-and-down so far, but he could very well find his footing in what is truly the first semi-decent offensive situation he’s been in throughout his career – much like his twin brother Caleb after joining the Miami Heat.
The delimma here is ultimately that Grayson Allen could realistically imminently return from a foot injury that has sidelined him since March 10.
Allen has enjoyed some high-level performances in his second season in Phoenix – and his spectacular ability as a stationary shooter should be lauded, along with becoming more than a typical specialist on the floor.
However, Allen’s stature and lateral quickness relative to some of the NBA’s great athletes such as Ja Morant render him less valuable in certain settings.
Both players bring unique positives to the table and head coach Mike Budenholzer doesn’t have enough minutes to gift every player on the roster – a question that seems so simple at the surface could truly dictate how many victories Phoenix is able to rattle off in the closing weeks of the season against what is the toughest schedule across the NBA.
The ceiling Allen provides offensively is a trade-off that Martin brings to the table defensively – the presence and high-level of play from Ryan Dunn (Royce O’Neale for that matter) further complicates this conundrum as well.
Whether Allen or Martin ultimately receive more minutes moving forward is anyone’s guess – but it truly feels as if all of the momentum is on the side of the latter with the last three weeks of the regular season now here.
The Suns return to action tomorrow night against the Cleveland Cavaliers – the Suns will look to avenge the 26-point loss they took on January 20.
