Heartbreak after heartbreak, since 1968, the city of Phoenix has been starving for a championship. In its history, the Phoenix Suns have won three Western Conference titles but the ability to close out the season hoisting up the Larry O’Brien Championship trophy just hasn’t been in the cards. This city and this fanbase is ready.
Recently, during the 2020- 2021 season, the Suns fell short, losing in the Finals to the Milwaukee Bucks. This was followed by a historic season where the Suns were able to set a new franchise record for most wins in a regular season. Unfortunately, this historic run came to an end during the second round of the playoffs when they were defeated by the Dallas Mavericks.
But here we are, 2023. A new season and a new opportunity to make history. Although there have been countless injuries to key players on the team, a change in ownership and a question mark over whether or not the current championship window is open, the Suns are currently the 4th seed in the Western Conference.
The Suns are still in a good spot in the Western Conference
Key players on the team have been showing that they are trending in the right direction. Prior to his groin strain injury, Devin Booker was averaging 28 points per game and had consecutive games where he was scoring 40+ points and even a season high of 58 points against the Pelicans. Throughout the month of February, Deandre Ayton has been crucial to the team, averaging 22.8 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. He even had back-to-back 30-point double-doubles!
Rising talent, Josh Okogie, has been having more opportunities to start this past month and he has exceeded expectations and been averaging 16.1 points per game while proving to be a spark on the offense. Not to mention, Chris Paul, the sole owner of the third spot on the all time assist list is still on the team. This past month he has had 4 games where he had more than 10 assists and has an average of 9.7 heading into the final stretch of the season.
As for the bench, they are ranked 11th in the league averaging 36.1 PPG. Unlike some reports, the Suns have not lost much depth on their bench. In contrast, James Jones was able to add players like TJ Warren, Terrance Ross, and Darius Bazley who we hope Monty is able to incorporate more in rotations than he has since acquiring them.
Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns are targeting his Suns debut and return to action in next Wednesday's road game against the Charlotte Hornets, league sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Durant is on cusp of return from MCL sprain that he suffered on Jan. 8.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 22, 2023
Apart from the current roster, Kevin Durant, yes that Kevin Durant, who was averaging 29.7 PPG and 6.7 RPG before his injury gets added to the mix! As reported by Shams Charania, Kevin Durant is expected to make his debut with the Suns on March 1st. There are some questions on what this will look like during a game but some promising news reports described an intense practice/scrimmage that lead to high hopes for the team in regards to building chemistry and cohesiveness with the change.
The Footprint Center is constantly selling out already and the atmosphere is always described as loud and electric. The city and the fans that have been through the lowest of lows with this team are ready for this run.
Like KD stated during his press conference, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done but bringing a championship to the city of Phoenix is the only goal and when your roster looks like this, the window is open. The Western Conference is wide open, with 5 games separating the 3rd seed and the 8th seed, these last 20 games of the season are going to be ones you don’t want to miss.
