Suns Rank High in Week 7 NBA Power Rankings
The Phoenix Suns look pretty damn good.
The Suns currently sit atop the Western Conference at 13-6 and currently riding a four game winning streak. They're currently tied for second in points differential with 6.8.
Phoenix is set to take on the Kings, Bulls, Rockets and Spurs within the next seven days.
Heading into that stretch, here's how some top sites across the web rank the Suns in Week 7:
Bleacher Report: No. 2
Behind: Boston
The Phoenix Suns have had a couple of bad losses since Chris Paul went down with a heel injury (he's missed the last seven games), but on balance, things appear headed in the right direction.
The Suns have the second best net rating in the league, and Cameron Payne may be building some confidence that could pay off later in the season (or in the playoffs).
In his seven starts, Payne is putting up 18.9 points, 6.4 assists and 3.0 threes while shooting 44.7 percent from deep. His offensive box plus/minus has climbed to well above average, which is closer to what he did in his first two seasons in Phoenix than it was in a down 2021-22 campaign.
Given CP3's age (37) and injury history, getting this kind of reliability from Payne is critical.
The Athletic: No. 3
Behind: Boston, Milwaukee
Torrey Craig was touched on in their break down of new faces for each team:
"Phoenix is one of a few teams that don’t have a ton of additions to choose from. They’re down Jae Crowder and Cameron Johnson at the forward position, which has made the reacquisition of Craig even more important. He has started the past 11 games, and he’s playing about half the games. His reputation comes from defense, which is how he’s stuck around in this league. But his outside shooting has been a really good surprise. The 2020-21 season (36.8 percent) is the only time he’s flashed an outside shot worth respecting. Other than that, he’s been below 33 percent every season of his career. But he’s knocking down 39.3 percent of his 3s this season. He might not maintain that rate, but it’s something they really need right now."
NBA.com: No. 3
Behind: Boston, Milwaukee
"The Suns have climbed back into first place in the Western Conference with a four-game win streak, capped by a revenge win over the Jazz on Saturday. Deandre Ayton totaled 57 points (on 22-for-32 shooting), 33 rebounds and four blocks in two wins over the weekend, with 15 of those 57 points and seven of those 33 rebounds (including six on the offensive glass) coming in the clutch. He had a big tip-dunk against the Pistons on Friday, sealed the win over the Jazz with another offensive rebound, and was 7-for-8 on clutch free throws. The Suns are now 3-4 in clutch games (3-2 without Chris Paul) and one of three teams — the Celtics and Cavs are the others — with only two losses that weren’t within five points in the last five minutes.
"Paul practiced on Wednesday and could return this week, but the Suns’ temporary starting lineup had much better numbers over the winning streak (plus-17.9 per 100 possessions) than it did over the previous five games without CP3 (minus-16.4). Damion Lee has also given them some good minutes off the bench (with Landry Shamet also on the shelf) and now ranks third in the league in 3-point percentage (49.3%), having shot 10-for-19 from deep over the winning streak. He is the Splash Brother-In-Law, after all.
"The Suns are still just 2-5 (with three straight losses) on the road, and their first of four meetings with the Kings is in Sacramento on Monday. All four Suns-Kings meetings were within five points in the last five minutes last season, with Sacramento responsible for two of Phoenix’s nine clutch losses."
Thank you for making Inside The Suns your destination for Phoenix Suns news. Please be sure to give us a like on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @InsideTheSunsFN for news, updates, analysis and more!
Top Phoenix Suns News
Phoenix Hopes to Maintain Momentum vs. Kings
Suns Promote James Jones to President of Basketball Operations
