Suns Week 21 Stock Exchange: The “lazy” Suns, the lack of an edge, and the return of IT

I gave myself a few hours after the Phoenix Suns‘disappointing loss against Milwaukee Bucks to start writing my weekly summary of the past week. I still don’t know which direction I should go or exactly how I feel about this team at this point in the season. Who is ready for me to understand it as I type? This could get interesting…

On the one hand, I feel disappointed. I expected more. I figured when you had three top talents in the NBA, coupled with a career year from Grayson Allen from beyond the arc, this team would be tough to stop. This is hardly the case. Are they excellent offensively? Yes. Are they getting in their own way? More than any team I can remember in recent history.

Every night I find myself frustrated in one or more aspects of how they perform. Or not, for that matter. A team that can look so good can just as easily look so putrid.

On the other hand, I feel acceptance. I’ve accepted who and what the Suns are, and if I get too emotionally invested, I’ll get burned again.

Being a Suns fan means knowing that the end of the season comes early. Watching this team every night, due to the aforementioned lack of execution, the realization that this team won’t go far in the playoffs has started to define them. I’m letting myself fall gently this year, instead of having my heart ripped out of my chest like years ago.

I’m somewhere in between, I guess. I can’t leave the Suns. This is clearly a toxic relationship. No matter the abuse, no matter how much I want it to work, I will come back again and again. How do I feel ? I have accepted disappointment and I will ride this ship until it sinks.

Well, it got dark. Let’s see… uh… let’s look at some statistics…

• Record of week 21: 2-2
• Week 21 OFFRTG: 119.5 (3rd)
• Week 21 DEFRTG: 121.9 (26th)
• Week 21 NETRTG: -2.3 (18th)

A four-game road trip, and the Suns come out 2-2. It’s really not that bad, especially considering they played the three best teams in the Eastern Conference. But it was a nasty road trip. Yes, even the Ws were dirty and confused. The Suns played a strong quarter against a depleted Cavs team to get this win, and the Hornets’ win was a lackluster performance against a team that couldn’t hit the three-ball.

What a strange road trip. What an interesting week at the Suns Stock Market.

“Lazy” perimeter defense: stock ↓

Perimeter D? What perimeter D? The Suns’ poor turnovers continued throughout Week 21 and opposing teams enjoyed winning three wide-open points after three wide-open points.

In total, the four opponents the Suns faced made 48.2 percent of their shots from beyond the arc this week, or 37.1 percent. And that takes into account that the Hornets are 11 of 38 (28.9%). The defensive communication problem at this point in the season has become comical. The Suns can’t stop the point of attack and can’t recover after collapsing.

The worst part? you can visibly see them just abandoning the room. There were times in the Milwaukee game where they didn’t even waste the energy to raise their hand to their opponent.

“The ball moved well,” Damian Lillard said after their victory. “They had lazy switches. We were able to get in the paint and put them in rotation and the ball went where it was supposed to go on a lot of those plays and when that happens you get quality shots.

That’s right, after being ridiculed on national television all morning by Hubue Brown, even the Bucks were calling the Suns lazy.

“We were trying to fly around, but we were getting our asses kicked,” head coach Frank Vogel said. “Sometimes it happens.”

This happens a little too often for my liking. And this is coming from a “defensive guru”? There will be plenty of topics to discuss this offseason. Given the level of talent this team possesses, combined with dashed expectations, a non-existent defense and the poorest fourth quarters since Clinton took over, Vogel’s position will be at the top of the list.

Have an advantage: actions ↓

Ugh. I’m feeling negative energy right now and I apologize for passing it on to you. But the Suns have no semblance of an “edge.” Maybe I spoke too soon. Jusuf Nurkic has an advantage. He has a chip. He plays with controlled aggression. He imposes his will.

But the rest of the Suns? It’s just not in their DNA.

You can have hoops heads like Devin Booker and Kevin Durant on your team, and you’ll be better off for it. You need players who operate using what’s between the ears, knowing when and where to take advantage of clashes. You also need performers. You need players who complement those scorers and make up for it with physical, dominant play, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Or you need defensive hoop heads.

I’m falling into my thoughts from above on perimeter defense, I know. It’s this lack of edge and grit that makes watching this team an adventure every night.

Bringing IT Back: Stock –

In the first moments after reacquiring 5’9” point guard Isaiah Thomas, I felt indifferent. I usually find myself on the side of the line that says, “Let bygones be bygones.” There’s no need to relive the ghosts of Christmases past or want to bring back to life players who once played for the organization.

But then I had to think, which I usually do. My conclusion after a moment of reflection fueled by some St. Patrick’s Guinness? Why not?

The Suns need a backup point guard. It’s absolutely clear. The play, especially the second-team offense, is putrid. So why not? Thomas played for the Suns so long ago – and successfully, I might add – that it feels like we’re in another dimension. As a reminder, Obama was still president, so we are not that far away.

Now that I’ve separated myself more from the moment, I really like this movement. Do I feel like the Suns could have used someone with a defensive mindset to fill this spot? Of course. But they acquired Tahd Young and we haven’t seen him sniff the court, so who cares?

Thanks for reading. I don’t know where I ended up other than a few beers along the way.

Week 22 is the easiest on the calendar. Will the Suns take care of business? Or will opposing teams continue to set records when they face Phoenix?

Phoenix needs a boost. After week 21, the Suns find themselves in 8th place in the Western Conference. They are three games ahead of the Warriors and Lakers. Being in the Play-In is not where you want to be, especially considering the Suns’ record of collapsing when the lights are brightest this season.

We’ll see how this all plays out in Week 22.