Has Phoenix's Best Chance to Win a Title Passed Them?
It's a question many Phoenix Suns fans have asked since the offseason first began: Is the championship window closed?
First, let's get some things out of the way.
Phoenix will again be one of the top teams in the western conference when the ball gets rolling in October.
The same group of players that brought the Suns all the way to the NBA Finals and a record-setting regular season to follow still resides in Phoenix, and unless their collective talent drops to levels unheard of in the league, they'll still be one of the top picks to make a deep run into the playoffs.
Anything can happen in a league that has established itself as some of the greatest reality television on the planet, and to write the Suns off immediately, especially with their recent success, would simply be foolish.
In NBA.com's "30 teams in 30 days" series, the Phoenix Suns were recently put under the microscope by writer Shaun Powell.
Powell took readers through the eventful offseason with Deandre Ayton after flaming out of the playoffs, and mentioned some of the other roster moves made before concluding the preview with this:
"The only semi-concern is Paul creeping up in age and treadwear, although he looked pretty frisky last season and was third in assists per game (8.3). Besides, there was no point guard on the market worth pursuing.
"Phoenix did lose McGee, who had a bounce-back campaign, to free agency. He’s a quality backup, but not irreplaceable. That’s because the Suns extended Bismack Biyombo, who was also solid off the bench and is younger (30) than McGee (34). The other changes were mostly minor: Lee and Okogie, who could play their way into decent rotational minutes.
"Essentially, the Suns are prepared to run it back with a team that went to the NBA Finals one year (2020-21) and then won 64 games a season later. Very few teams have the luxury of forgoing wholesale changes, so in that sense, the Suns should count themselves as fortunate. With Ayton signed and happy, the Suns will bring a core that can match up with virtually any team.
"But you wonder if Paul’s best chance at that elusive championship was lost over the last two seasons. One thing that is always certain: the competition in the West will be as thick as usual for Phoenix."
The debate of whether Phoenix's best chance to get their first NBA title is now in the past has been a popular topic of discussion.
Rarely do teams find themselves in the NBA Finals a second time within a short period, and with a western conference that has only gotten stronger, all eyes are on the Suns moving forward.
Will Chris Paul's age start to show this season? How will the Suns handle their current situation at the four spot with Jae Crowder and Cameron Johnson? Is Kevin Durant still on the table come next year? Will Monty Williams be able to make the needed adjustments come crunch time?
Who knows if those questions are even the right ones to ask. The Suns are a very talented basketball team, and like anything else, time will tell if they're able to elevate themselves and etch their name in history.
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