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The Phoenix Suns went an abysmal 36-46 on the season, finishing in 11th place in the Western Conference in an ugly, disappointing, frustrating (insert any adjective you want) season.
It really couldn't have gone much worse.
How bad was the season for the Suns? Check out these end-of-season grades from NBA writers assessing the Suns' performance this season and what the future might hold for the organization.
They are not pretty, to put it mildly. The writers don't pull any punches in their evaluations of Phoenix's terrible season, with one writer calling it a "debacle" and "one of the great roster-building failures in recent memory."
Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia: 'We got to get the next (coaching) hire right'
The Dallas Mavericks also received an F (but at least they made the NBA Play-In Tournament).
Sam Quinn wrote: "The Suns -- who fired Mike Budenholzer on Monday and will hire their fourth coach in four seasons in the coming weeks -- are lucky to avoid an "F-" after the debacle of a season they just endured. Many of the bad grades you'll see here boiled down to circumstances. A team got hurt. A team made a bad trade. A team changed coaches during the season. None of that really applies to Phoenix. This is the team the Suns wanted. It just wasn't very good. The Suns finished the season with a bottom-five defense. That was, at least, a somewhat predictable outcome when they failed to meaningfully address the center position last offseason and bet their perimeter defense on a rookie in Ryan Dunn. That they have now failed to finish higher than 10th in offense in consecutive seasons with three max-salary scorers on their roster is one of the great roster-building failures in recent memory. The Suns gathered a lot of redundant talent and were shocked to learn that there is more to the game of basketball than the ability to make tough shots. Hopefully they'll learn their lesson when they inevitably retool the roster this summer."
Kevin Pelton only handed out two F's, with the Philadelphia 76ers receiving the other.
He wrote of Phoenix: "At least the 76ers can point to injuries as an explanation for their lost season. Phoenix wasn’t good even at full strength, going 19-18 with a negative point differential in the 37 games Bradley Beal, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant played together. Coach Mike Budenholzer proved incapable of reaching his stars and lost his job after one season, and the Suns’ ill-fated attempt to add Jimmy Butler via trade alienated Beal and Durant. Solid debuts for rookies Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro couldn’t salvage a failed season."
Trade Kevin Durant? What's next for Phoenix Suns' summer of upheaval
That's the lowest grade the site handed out for a team in the regular season.
Dan Favale wrote (before the Suns fired coach Mike Budenholzer): "Finishing outside the West's top 10 while having zero control over your own first-rounders through 2031 is failure of the highest order. It is, somehow, made even worse knowing what's to come. Kevin Durant is good as gone. Bradley Beal still has a no-trade clause. Head coach Mike Budenholzer seems like a one-and-done candidate relative to how this season played out, particularly on the defensive end, and the under-utilization of rookies Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro. Suns team governor Mat Ishbia is determined to win and seems unfazed by second-apron expenses and restrictions. This is sort of admirable, until you realize it's the same mindset that led Phoenix here, to basketball purgatory—its own special kind of hell that may force the team to move on from Booker himself."
The site handed out three F's on the season with the Suns joining the 76ers and Charlotte Hornets with the dubious mark.
Michael J. Chandler wrote: "Among a litany of issues for the Suns, a poorly constructed roster (despite being the league's most expensive) with glaring depth issues made winning without Kevin Durant nearly impossible. Phoenix was 33-29 with Durant in the lineup and 3-16 with him on the sidelines."
More: Way too early 2025-26 projections for Phoenix Suns after disappointing season
Reach Jeremy Cluff at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Suns slammed in NBA regular season grades: 'Failed season'
Continue reading...
It really couldn't have gone much worse.
How bad was the season for the Suns? Check out these end-of-season grades from NBA writers assessing the Suns' performance this season and what the future might hold for the organization.
They are not pretty, to put it mildly. The writers don't pull any punches in their evaluations of Phoenix's terrible season, with one writer calling it a "debacle" and "one of the great roster-building failures in recent memory."
Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia: 'We got to get the next (coaching) hire right'
CBS Sports: Suns handed an F grade for season
The Dallas Mavericks also received an F (but at least they made the NBA Play-In Tournament).
Sam Quinn wrote: "The Suns -- who fired Mike Budenholzer on Monday and will hire their fourth coach in four seasons in the coming weeks -- are lucky to avoid an "F-" after the debacle of a season they just endured. Many of the bad grades you'll see here boiled down to circumstances. A team got hurt. A team made a bad trade. A team changed coaches during the season. None of that really applies to Phoenix. This is the team the Suns wanted. It just wasn't very good. The Suns finished the season with a bottom-five defense. That was, at least, a somewhat predictable outcome when they failed to meaningfully address the center position last offseason and bet their perimeter defense on a rookie in Ryan Dunn. That they have now failed to finish higher than 10th in offense in consecutive seasons with three max-salary scorers on their roster is one of the great roster-building failures in recent memory. The Suns gathered a lot of redundant talent and were shocked to learn that there is more to the game of basketball than the ability to make tough shots. Hopefully they'll learn their lesson when they inevitably retool the roster this summer."
ESPN: Suns receive an F grade for season
Kevin Pelton only handed out two F's, with the Philadelphia 76ers receiving the other.
He wrote of Phoenix: "At least the 76ers can point to injuries as an explanation for their lost season. Phoenix wasn’t good even at full strength, going 19-18 with a negative point differential in the 37 games Bradley Beal, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant played together. Coach Mike Budenholzer proved incapable of reaching his stars and lost his job after one season, and the Suns’ ill-fated attempt to add Jimmy Butler via trade alienated Beal and Durant. Solid debuts for rookies Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro couldn’t salvage a failed season."
Trade Kevin Durant? What's next for Phoenix Suns' summer of upheaval
Bleacher Report: Suns get an F- grade for season
That's the lowest grade the site handed out for a team in the regular season.
Dan Favale wrote (before the Suns fired coach Mike Budenholzer): "Finishing outside the West's top 10 while having zero control over your own first-rounders through 2031 is failure of the highest order. It is, somehow, made even worse knowing what's to come. Kevin Durant is good as gone. Bradley Beal still has a no-trade clause. Head coach Mike Budenholzer seems like a one-and-done candidate relative to how this season played out, particularly on the defensive end, and the under-utilization of rookies Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro. Suns team governor Mat Ishbia is determined to win and seems unfazed by second-apron expenses and restrictions. This is sort of admirable, until you realize it's the same mindset that led Phoenix here, to basketball purgatory—its own special kind of hell that may force the team to move on from Booker himself."
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The Score: Suns land an F grade for season
The site handed out three F's on the season with the Suns joining the 76ers and Charlotte Hornets with the dubious mark.
Michael J. Chandler wrote: "Among a litany of issues for the Suns, a poorly constructed roster (despite being the league's most expensive) with glaring depth issues made winning without Kevin Durant nearly impossible. Phoenix was 33-29 with Durant in the lineup and 3-16 with him on the sidelines."
More: Way too early 2025-26 projections for Phoenix Suns after disappointing season
Reach Jeremy Cluff at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Suns slammed in NBA regular season grades: 'Failed season'
Continue reading...
