What to Expect From Suns as Regular Season Concludes
The Phoenix Suns should be in for a wild ride to end the regular season. After trading for Kevin Durant, the Suns are the talk of the NBA and are heavily expected to compete for their first NBA Finals title.
With 22 games remaining, there should be no shortage of stories revolving around the Suns. What should we expect going into the final stretch of the season?
Growing Pains
Everyone expects Phoenix to catch fire right out the gate upon the arrival of Kevin Durant, but that may not be the case.
In the past we have seen super teams struggle to win games in the beginning of their tenure while they are still figuring out chemistry.
Durant, Devin Booker and Chris Paul are all used to having the ball in their hands so it will certainly take time before the Suns truly click as a team.
While Durant has played with a lot of other All-Star caliber players in the past, this is a completely different team. Phoenix has had a very particular style of offense for the past three seasons since Paul was traded to the Suns, so it will not be easy to adjust to an offense with Durant/Booker figuring out who will be the focal point.
Suns End the Season Hot
With talent like Durant, Booker, Paul and Deandre Ayton all sharing the court together, it is only a matter of time before they figure it out.
The Suns are currently the fifth seed in the Western Conference but the room for error is extremely small. Phoenix only has four more wins than the twelfth seeded Portland Trail Blazers, so they will need to continue to put their foot on the gas and win games the rest of the way.
After a week or two of playing with one another, the Suns should be able to click as a unit and use their talent to truly dominate.
When Durant joined the Golden State Warriors in 2016, it only took them six games before they ultimately went on a 12-game winning streak. There was a lot of talent on that Warriors team and with so little time playing with each other, they were still able to make it work.
It's a matter of when - not if - Phoenix starts to win games consistently.
Chris Paul Averages Career Low in Points
It's already evident that Paul has regressed a bit on the offensive end. He is currently averaging 13.7 points per game, the lowest of his career.
As Durant comes into the fold for the Suns, Paul now becomes the fourth scoring option behind Durant, Booker and even Ayton. Expect both his points and shot attempts to go plummet.
At 37-years-old, Paul is not at a point where he is capable of scoring at a high level consistently. Phoenix already has two proven scorers in Durant and Booker so they won’t even need Paul to pitch in that much on offense besides facilitating.
All the Suns need from Paul is to run the offense (which should be an easy task with all the talent surrounding him) and to be the leader that he has always been known to be.
