ESPN Has Low Expectations for Suns This Season

Don't bet on the Phoenix Suns to do much this season, according to ESPN.

Nov 18, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) talks to referee John Butler (30) during the first half of an NBA game against the Orlando Magic at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images / Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

It's safe to say the Phoenix Suns aren't in a great place at the moment.

After starting 9-2, the Suns have dropped their last five outings while stars such as Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant are sidelined with injuries.

Phoenix has struggled mightily, as some would expect, though there's still optimism that the Suns can turn things around and get healthy with much of the regular season still in store.

Not according to ESPN.

In an article going over smart bets for the rest of the year, Andre Snellings was anything but optimistic on Phoenix's outlook.

"The Suns began the season on fire, winning eight of their first nine games to sit atop the Pacific Division. But in that ninth game they lost Durant to a calf strain, and he hasn't played since. Without Durant, the Suns have lost five of their past six games with a loss margin of 12.2 PPG," wrote Snellings.

"The Suns' three superstars have an unfortunate injury history that suggests their struggles without Durant might not be a short-term issue. Despite playing 75 games last season, Durant has averaged 26.5 missed games over his last four seasons without even factoring in that he missed the 2019-20 season in its entirety recovering from injury. Booker has averaged 19 missed games in the last three seasons, while Beal has averaged 34.3 missed games during that span."

Snellings - in his bets to make/not make for Phoenix - suggested to avoid placing wagers on the Suns to win any of the division, conference or championship:

"There is just too much uncertainty surrounding availability, even before we get to unanswered questions from last season about whether a perimeter-based Big Three -- with all three being score-first players -- can win in the playoffs," he wrote.

Snellings says to take the Suns winning fewer than 49.5 games and also being participants in the play-in tournament:

"The Suns have a scoring margin of -1.5 PPG. During the past three seasons, only two teams with a negative scoring margin have even finished over .500, and none with more than 46 wins. Last season, with Durant playing his most games since the 2018-19 season, the Suns still won 'only' 49 games. They may not hit that mark this season," wrote Snellings.

"If the season ended today, the Suns would just miss the tournament as the sixth seed. However, sorted by scoring margin, the Suns would just miss the tournament on the other side in the 11th slot. The West is deep, and the Pacific Division is the most competitive division in the NBA, with all five of their teams currently above .500. This could easily push the Suns, who just missed the play-in last season as the sixth seed, down into the play-in mix this time around."

Despite the recent skid, Suns coach Mike Budenholzer says his squad is sticking together.

"I think overall, the competitive spirit, the things that we've leaned on, while we can always be better, we got a group that's competitive. We got a group that will stay together, it's the things that we talk about," said Budenholzer after Phoenix's fifth straight loss.

"Losing is hard, this league is hard, so we got to fight through it. We got to compete our way through it, but while there's things that we need to work on and improve on, the competitiveness of our group has been in a good place when we were winning. I would still say the same thing right now, while we're struggling, that the guys know how important competing is.”

Phoenix is on a short break before returning to action next Tuesday against the Los Angeles Lakers.