Suns Slide Out of Top Ten in Fresh Power Rankings

The Phoenix Suns are on the outside looking in of the top ten in NBA.com's new power rankings.

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns have been fairly inconsistent since returning from the All-Star break, and back-to-back losses against the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder over the weekend saw the team drop out of the top ten of NBA.com's official power rankings with a new week ahead:

Phoenix Suns: No. 11 (No. 8 last week)

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John Schuhmann: "Having come back from 24 points down only to blow a six-point, fourth quarter lead, the Suns are 3-5 against those eight teams that have outscored opponents by more than four points per 100 possessions this season, having allowed more than 123 points per 100 possessions over the eight games. That does include a 2-1 mark (wins over the Pelicans and Bucks) when all three of Bradley Beal, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant have been available, but Booker (ankle) was out against Oklahoma City on Sunday.

"The Suns have turnover issues. They committed 22 (16 more than the Thunder) on Sunday and have now seen the league’s third biggest jump in turnover rate from last season (13.6 per 100 possessions, 10th) to this season (15.0, 25th). They’ve averaged 3.7 fewer shooting opportunities than their opponents, the league’s worst discrepancy by a healthy margin.

"Shooting has also been a problem of late, Grayson Allen is no longer throwing flames, and the Suns last five games have been their worst five-game stretch of offense this season (109.1 points scored per 100 possessions).

"Next up is a date with the champs. Both teams were missing two starters (Beal and Booker for the Suns) when the Nuggets won in Phoenix on Dec. 1."

The Suns will be without Devin Booker for the next 7-10 days with an ankle injury. You can read more about that below:

Suns Timeline for Devin Booker's Injury Revealed