What's Gone Exactly Wrong for Suns During 3-Game Losing Streak

The Suns are on their first three-game losing streak since the first week of the season.

Mar 17, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Jalen Green (4) brings the ball up against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) in the third quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images | Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns had only lost three games in a row once this season before last night's 116-104 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Now, the Suns (39-30) find themselves facing adversity in a very crucial part of the season, as the Minnesota loss moved them three games back of the sixth seed in the West with only 13 games to go.

Phoenix needs to figure things out fast or it will likely be stuck in the top play-in spot by the time the season ends, even though the end of the Suns' six-game road trip won't be any easier as Phoenix will take on the San Antonio Spurs (51-18) tomorrow night to close it out.

Here are the biggest takeaways of what's gone wrong for the Suns over this three-game losing streak:

Suns Unable to Sustain Momentum - Especially in 4th Quarter

Mar 13, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) steals the ball from Phoenix Suns guard Jalen Green (4) during an attempted dunk in the second half at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

Phoenix got off to a hot start in the Minnesota loss last night, going up 11 early in the first quarter, but saw that lead disappear entirely in the third quarter and could never recover.

The same thing happened late in the fourth quarter of the two previous losses to the Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors with Phoenix blowing late leads down the stretch in both games.

There's no doubt that some of this can be attributed to the tough scheduling Phoenix has had, as the Suns played both Toronto and Minnesota on the second night of back-to-backs and clearly looked gassed.

However, the Suns' offense has really stagnated at certain points with Phoenix shooting just 34.4% in the fourth quarter and 43.1% overall over the last three games.

These games have not been easy matchups by any stretch, but they were all very winnable based on how Phoenix had been playing before falling apart.

The Suns have been great all season in learning from mistakes, but were unable to do so in all three of these games, so we will see if they can correct it moving forward.

Suns Can't Capitalize on Devin Booker's Hot Scoring Streak

Mar 16, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) reacts after a game against the Boston Celtics during the second half at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images | Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

Even though the Suns have been losing, Devin Booker has been scoring the ball at an elite rate with 34 points against Minnesota, 40 against Boston and 31 against Toronto.

Booker was hot even before the losing streak and is averaging 33 points over the last eight games.

Phoenix was on a four-game win streak before this losing streak with Booker playing like this, so what's changed now?

The most notable factor is the Suns have not been able to get much consistency from anyone else, and it has led to them trying to force feed Booker down the stretch despite him getting double- or triple-teamed every time.

Jalen Green, who has looked good in some games, including a 34-point outing against Toronto, and Collin Gillespie, who only had seven points across three games before 12 last night against Boston, are the two players who can help out Booker the most when it's needed.

As for Booker himself, he can do a much better job of staying composed when calls don't go his way and when teams are being extra physical with him.

Injuries Rattle Suns' Rotations

Mar 17, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Collin Gillespie (12) works around Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (27) in the second quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images | Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

The long-term injuries of Dillon Brooks (left hand fracture) and Mark Williams (left foot third metatarsal stress reaction), as well as Grayson Allen (left knee soreness) last night have certainly played a big role in Phoenix's losing streak.

Ideally, the Suns want a starting lineup centered around Booker, Green, Brooks and Williams with the fifth starter being whoever fits best, but Booker, Green and Brooks have only shared the floor together for 41 minutes total this season due to their injuries.

This has led to Gillespie and Royce O'Neale becoming regular starters, but it might be time for a change, even though Suns coach Jordan Ott said before last night's game the Suns "need a little stretch of being consistent with our rotations" (via The Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin).

Phoenix is very small with its current starting group of Gillespie, Booker, Green, O'Neale and Oso Ighodaro, and teams have been able to take advantage offensively, which has culminated to the three opponents on the losing streak shooting 51.2% overall from the floor.

O'Neale has not scored in double figures once over these three games and Gillespie's recent struggles along with the emergences of Haywood Highsmith and Rasheer Fleming off the bench could force Ott to try something new.

It's obvious Phoenix needs to make some sort of a change whether it be with the rotation, defensive coverages or a way to find offense outside of Booker at least until Brooks and Williams return from their injuries to help the Suns get out of this funk.