The Phoenix Suns begin their 2024-25 season in just one day on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers, while the NBA season officially tips off tonight.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Phoenix once again has championship expectations with the star power on its roster, so how do outlets view the Suns entering the year?
Here is where Phoenix ranks in various power rankings:
NBA.com: No. 6
John Schuhmann writes:
“The Suns were a disappointment last season, losing in the first round of the playoffs with a pricey and talented trio of stars. But Mike Budenholzer and Tyus Jones are here to address some of their issues.
“Preseason takeaways
- “The Suns saw the league’s third biggest jump in 3-point rate (3PA/FGA), from 37.8% (21st) last season to 47.5% (sixth) in the preseason. Bradley Beal, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant had a ratio of 1.6 3-point attempts (56) for every mid-range attempt (35), up from 1.1 last season.
- “The Suns were also one of only two teams — the Knicks were the other — that committed fewer turnovers per 100 possessions (14.8, seventh lowest) than they did last season (15.0, 25th). And that was with Jones having a much lower assist/turnover ratio (21/5, 4.20) than he’s had in any of the last six seasons.
“Something to watch in Week 1: The results. Beal, Booker and Durant are healthy to start the season, a much different scenario than a year ago, when they didn’t play together until Dec. 13. The Suns were 18-10 (in the regular season) against the other 17 teams that had winning records when all three were available.
“The Suns will play 19 of their first 23 games against those teams that finished above .500 last season, starting with two games in L.A. and a big home opener on Saturday, when they’ll be at a rest-disadvantage against the Western Conference champs.”
ESPN: No. 8
BPI’s overall ranking:Â 10
Chances to make playoffs:Â 55.5%
Projected wins:Â 42.7
From ESPN’s Dave McMenamin:
“When we last saw them: The Suns were swept out of the first round by the Timberwolves , losing the four games by a combined 60 points. The team’s big three of Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, and Kevin Durant fell flat after entering the season with the third-best championship odds. But the team started off 4-6 and failed to find consistency thanks in large part to Beal missing 29 games and a lack of depth to mask his absence. Frank Vogel paid the cost for failing to reach expectations, fired after one season as coach. Mike Budenholzer, a championship coach thanks to his Milwaukee Bucks beating the Suns in 2021, is now tasked with making the pieces fit.
“Biggest strength and weakness: The Suns were fifth in the league in team 3-point percentage (38.2%) and scored 11.3% of their points on midrange shots, the second most in the league. With Durant, Booker and Beal, the Suns are an elite jump shooting team. However, their offensive diet also exposed a weakness last season. Only 40.4% of their team points came in the paint, which ranked 27th in the NBA. ”
From ESPN’s Eric Moody:
“Number to watch: Scoring with a healthy Booker, Beal and Durant
The Suns had their big three for exactly half of the regular season in 2023-24. However, when they were on the floor together, the Suns scored 120.5 points per 100 possessions — a mark equivalent to the Pacer’s No. 2 offense.
“Best bet: Western Conference No. 2 seed (+1600)
The Suns addressed nearly all of their offseason issues. They needed a point guard so Booker and Beal could play off the ball, so they added Tyus Jones. Monte Morris adds backcourt depth, and Mason Plumlee solves the backup center problem. I also like what rookie Ryan Dunn brings defensively. The main concern? Keeping Booker, Durant and Beal healthy for the playoffs. But Budenholzer will do everything to ensure they’re ready when it matters most, which could lead to some DNPs.”
From ESPN’s Andre Snellings:
“Fantasy make-or-break pick: Kevin Durant
Durant, like LeBron, is another aging legend who had missed a lot of games in recent seasons before a renaissance in the past year. After playing only 137 of a possible 308 games between the end of the 2019 playoffs and the start of the 2023-24 season, Durant bounced back in a huge way and played 75 of 82 games last season. Another season like that, likely from a second- or third-round fantasy pick, would be huge. But Durant will be 36 before the season begins and is in Season 18, making him a risky pick in the early rounds.”
Bleacher Report: No. 7
Andy Bailey says:
“The Phoenix Suns were a bit underwhelming last season, but injuries limited the star-studded trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal to just under 1,800Â possessions (or around 18 full games).
“With Beal only appearing in 53 games and the rest of the team struggling to jell after major roster shakeups, going 49-33 may have been a little better result than we remember.
“Simply getting better health for him (which may be a lot to ask, at this point in his career), should make the Suns better, but they also managed to upgrade some key rotation spots this offseason.
“After trying sort of a “point guard by committee” approach with Beal and Booker, they now have two of the steadiest 1s in the league in Tyus Jones and Monte Morris. Mason Plumlee is better than last year’s backup 5, Drew Eubanks, too.
“The expectations for this Phoenix squad may have just been a year early.”
NBC Sports: No. 9
Kurt Helin writes:
“The talent on the roster is unquestioned — two of USA Basketball’s gold medal starters from Paris are on this team in Kevin Durant and Devin Booker. However, to contend Phoenix will need a bounce-back season from Bradley Beal as a third option. More importantly, Mike Budenholzer (an outstanding regular season coach) has to get the Suns to defend better, and Tyus Jones has to be the floor general point guard they need (he can be and was a steal on a minimum contract). That’s too many questions to put them in the contender tier to start the season, but this team can be a huge threat if everything clicks.”
Where do you think the Suns stand in the power rankings right now?
See some more odds for the Suns heading into the season below.
*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, exclusive content, and access to our seasonal magazines! SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*
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
