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Can Suns build off regular season success to win 2025 NBA Finals?

© Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Ever since going 8-0 in the Orlando bubble in 2020, the Phoenix Suns have had the most wins in the NBA over the last four seasons.

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Sitting at 209 regular-season wins since the onset of the 2020-21 season, the Suns top the list ahead of three of the past four NBA champions in terms of total wins:

  1. Phoenix Suns: 209 wins
  2. Boston Celtics (2024 NBA champion): 208 wins
  3. Denver Nuggets (2023 NBA champion): 205 wins
  4. Milwaukee Bucks (2021 NBA champion): 204 wins

(via StatMuse)

The Suns had to endure a lot of tough seasons to reach this point, winning the fewest games in the NBA between 2015-16 (Devin Booker’s rookie season) and 2019-20 seasons, going 121-280 overall in those five years. Now with the team finally being able to build around Booker, they have reached new regular-season heights and made it as far as the NBA Finals in 2021 (their first winning season since 2013-14) after adding Chris Paul in the offseason following the bubble.

In 2022, Phoenix finished with a franchise record in wins and the best record in the NBA at 64-18, but was upset in the second round by the Dallas Mavericks. The next season, the Suns got a new owner in Mat Ishbia and made a blockbuster trade ahead of the trade deadline in 2023, acquiring Kevin Durant for Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnsson, Jae Crowder and four unprotected future first-round picks. After an injury-riddled season overall, Suns won all eight regular season games Durant played in 2023 and finished with a 45-37 record, but once again lost in the second round to the eventual-champion Nuggets, leading to the dismissal of coach Monty Williams.

Entering the 2023-24 season, the Suns only had Booker left on the roster from the team that went to the Finals, notably trading away Paul and Deandre Ayton and adding Bradley Beal, Grayson Allen and Jusuf Nurkić, as well as a new coach in Frank Vogel in the offseason. With a brand new team and injuries once again stacking up, the Suns were still able to finish with a 49-33 record, but were dishearteningly swept in the first round by the Minnesota Timberwolves, despite being completely healthy outside Allen (ankle sprain) in the playoffs.

Phoenix made a big move early this offseason, firing Vogel and hiring Mike Budenholzer, who coached the Bucks to the Finals win over Phoenix in 2021. The Suns were expected to bring over relatively the same core to next season until the team added Tyus Jones to be its next starting point guard late last month.

In ESPN’s projections for the 2024-25 standings, the Suns are projected to be the fifth seed and have the exact same record as last season at 49-33.

With increased continuity, a true point guard in Jones and Budenholzer’s regular-season track record as head coach (484-317, .604 win percentage), on paper it would appear the Suns would finish with a better record next year, especially given that they have the highest payroll in NBA history by far.

However, the rest of the league, specifically the Western Conference, has only gotten better, and the Suns have faced their fare share of injuries over the years. Health once again figures to be the biggest question mark after the Big 3 only played in 41 games together last season.

With the Suns poor playoff finishes over the last three years and their stars continuing to get older, another valid question is if they can find playoff success on top of their regular-season wins.

Do you think the Suns can get over the hump and win the 2025 NBA Finals?

Devin Booker ranked No.12 in 2K25 player ratings

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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau

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