Are Suns Capable of Winning the West?
The Phoenix Suns have seen a wild rollercoaster ride in recent weeks.
Once pacing the Western Conference as the top seed, Phoenix looked as strong as ever in the early stages of the season by having one of the best records in the league.
A five-game losing streak coupled with significant losses to teams such as Dallas and Boston dampened Phoenix's hot form before the Suns got back on track over the weekend.
After folding a ten-point lead with six minutes left to play in their loss to the Wizards, the Suns sit with a 19-13 record and are one of four teams that are two or less games back from the No. 1 seed, which is currently shared between Memphis and Denver.
Phoenix has yet to be at full strength, a scary thought in what has potential to be another viable contender to emerge victorious from the West.
In a recent slate of bold predictions for The Athletic, Doug Haller says the team could very well make another trip to the NBA Finals.
"Chris Paul is working his way back. Deandre Ayton might be an All-Star. Devin Booker is in the MVP discussion. At some point, the Suns will get injured sharp-shooter Cam Johnson back, and they’ll finally deal Jae Crowder, which will provide much-needed backcourt depth. Blowout losses to Dallas and Boston this month are hard to explain (if you watched, you understand), but this team wasn’t expected to soar this early. A rough patch or two was expected. The Suns will hit their stride after the All-Star break. — Doug Haller"
There's been times where Phoenix has looked every bit of the team we've seen reach new heights for Valley basketball. There's also been stretches of time to where fans left the Footprint Center feeling uneasy about their chances.
The ups and downs will come with any NBA season, and it's certainly hard to replicate a 64-win season. Yet to Haller's point, the Suns haven't fielded a healthy starting lineup for majority of the season and have still managed to position themselves as one of the top teams in the West as the calendar year closes.
Competing teams in the Western Conference shouldn't be left off the hook, either.
Denver/Memphis are very strong teams at the moment, but both lack the deep-playoff experience Phoenix has. The Suns have also proven to be capable of defeating New Orleans, Los Angeles (Clippers) and Sacramento, too.
With Golden State seemingly out of the picture now, the West feels as open as ever. The Suns' resume stacks up better against any other current competitor to lead the way.
Phoenix should only get better, too. The Suns will (hopefully) return to full strength while also adding another contributing piece with an eventual Jae Crowder trade.
Perhaps picking Phoenix to win the West isn't so bold.
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