Previewing Suns' Road Trip

The Suns are set to play four games on the road.

Nov 10, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) moves the ball down the court in overtime during a game against the Sacramento Kings at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Allan Henry-Imagn Images / Allan Henry-Imagn Images

PHOENIX -- Week four of the 2024-25 NBA season is now upon us. With that, the Phoenix Suns are in pursuit of a start to the season that could mirror the historic 64-win effort just three seasons ago.

The Suns' 8-2 start to the campaign happens to be the fourth-best of anyone across the association behind the dominant Cleveland Cavaliers, defending champion Boston Celtics, and a top contending squad in the West that they will face off with this week.

This could very well be a challenging week for the Suns without any accentuating factors, but the absence of Kevin Durant will do just that - especially with all four games on the road.

A brief preview of all four teams on the slate for the Suns over the coming days - all will be games on the road:

Tonight: Utah Jazz

This will serve as the opening game of the 2024 NBA Cup group play - which the Suns have a fantastic chance to win if they take care of business tonight.

The Jazz are now 2-7 on the year after starting the season 0-6 - with injury issues, stagnant offense, and a regression thus far from Lauri Markkanen being key factors in the tepid start to the new year.

Don't let that distract from the fact that the Jazz have been a frequent thorn in the Suns' side over recent years, as the wide-open, spaced-out offense has been a tough matchup for a Phoenix squad that has typically lacked 99th-percentile athletes.

This game can't be taken lightly, but the Suns should be able to secure a victory despite being without Durant.

Wednesday: Sacramento Kings

This will be a game in which Phoenix looks to return the favor just days after Sacramento snapped the seven-game win streak that had started on October 26.

The Kings followed up the victory on Sunday night with a loss last night at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs - and will be sans Malik Monk for at least the next two weeks.

Nonetheless, Sacramento remains a quality space-and-pace squad that could force the Suns to outpace offensively to win the game.

Friday: Oklahoma City Thunder

This is game two of the NBA Cup group play - and Phoenix could be receiving a favorable matchup here.

OKC was already without Isaiah Hartenstein, who suffered a fractured hand during the preseason slate - the loss of Chet Holmgren to a pelvic fracture on Sunday was another gut punch.

With this, Oklahoma City could very well be rolling out an undersized lineup - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the tallest player in the starting lineup in a victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night.

This could be a prime opportunity for the Suns to dictate the game inside the paint, but that could very well be a double-edged sword as well. The Thunder's athleticism and explosiveness is ample throughout the roster. That could cause the defense to be stretched thin on the perimeter - and Mark Daignuealt is renowned for exposing blatant mismatches.

Sunday: Minnesota Timberwolves

This will be the first time the Suns and Wolves face off since Minnesota swept the Suns in the first round of the playoffs at the end of April.

Minnesota has encountered a fairly bizarre season thus far - the results have been anything but uniform as the squad tries to adjust from Karl-Anthony Towns to Julius Randle.

Naz Reid, Donte DiVincenzo, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker also comprise one of the best bench trios in basketball, while Anthony Edwards has began his fifth campaign by shooting at levels similar to 2016 Stephen Curry - nearly 12 three-point attempts per game at a 46% clip.

It will certainly be interesting to see how the switch to Randle can impact this match-up, at least as far as the regular season goes.

This game will be a Sunday afternoon duel so Phoenix can make it back home in a timely manner for a home date with the Orlando Magic on November 18.