I know it's early in the season and the Suns have pretty much all the same pieces in place, with a few new additions, but will we see a downgrade in play after a devastating final 4 games of the championship? The West (specifically the Pacific division) is again going to be a tough division, especially when GSW get Klay back and the Lakers figure out how to use everyone accordingly. Clippers will always be tough and will be interesting if Sacramento has anything to offer. The long season can take a toll on the team, especially being in the drivers seat and then the wheels all fall off. I still believe the Suns are the team to beat in the West, but they are not getting the recognition again (which is probably good). Adding McGee will fill the void of Saric (McGee an upgrade IMO) and he has already been a good piece.
Chris Paul got exposed to a weakness in the finals that will most likely wear him out because other teams saw it- picking him up from back court on. Granted, not every player can sustain the energy for an entire game like Holiday did, but to me, it took Paul out of his game. Paul not being himself the last 4 games of the finals was the difference in the Suns having their 1st championship. At the same time, he was the reason for the Suns being in the finals. So not taking anything away from him at all.
The Ayton situation worries me because I can see him not putting in the same effort as he is capable of. But, this could be the complete opposite of that and he plays his A off to prove a point that he is worth the big contract. Hoping it get works out because he is going to be a top player in the NBA for a long time. One thing I would like to see more out of him is shooting the 3. This will allow to bring out the big men from the middle and he can become more of an outside threat. Looking forward to what he can do this season.
Love me some Booker and Bridges combo. They will continue to keep it exciting for the fan base. Hopefully we see a MVP type of year out of Booker.
Now to the players that will make or break another historical run- Crowder, Johnson and Payne. The best part of the playoff run last year was, you could put any Suns player on the court and the confidence was there for each one! That's how I felt when subs came in. Someone new stepped up every game and the opposing teams had no answer for them (until game 3 on in finals unfortunately). If the Suns can get 70% of what these guys did coming off the bench last year, we should expect another deep run into the playoffs again.
The slow start for the Suns does not have me concerned at all. As soon as they get to clicking again, it will be right back to the 20-21' team. It's great to be an Arizona sports fan recently and it sure seems like we will be in great shape for years to come (except for Coyotes and Dbacks
).
My prediction this year for the Suns is to finish 2nd in the division behind either the Warriors or Lakers. 59-23 is my prediction and will make it to the finals again, with this time playing the Nets
Chris Paul got exposed to a weakness in the finals that will most likely wear him out because other teams saw it- picking him up from back court on. Granted, not every player can sustain the energy for an entire game like Holiday did, but to me, it took Paul out of his game. Paul not being himself the last 4 games of the finals was the difference in the Suns having their 1st championship. At the same time, he was the reason for the Suns being in the finals. So not taking anything away from him at all.
The Ayton situation worries me because I can see him not putting in the same effort as he is capable of. But, this could be the complete opposite of that and he plays his A off to prove a point that he is worth the big contract. Hoping it get works out because he is going to be a top player in the NBA for a long time. One thing I would like to see more out of him is shooting the 3. This will allow to bring out the big men from the middle and he can become more of an outside threat. Looking forward to what he can do this season.
Love me some Booker and Bridges combo. They will continue to keep it exciting for the fan base. Hopefully we see a MVP type of year out of Booker.
Now to the players that will make or break another historical run- Crowder, Johnson and Payne. The best part of the playoff run last year was, you could put any Suns player on the court and the confidence was there for each one! That's how I felt when subs came in. Someone new stepped up every game and the opposing teams had no answer for them (until game 3 on in finals unfortunately). If the Suns can get 70% of what these guys did coming off the bench last year, we should expect another deep run into the playoffs again.
The slow start for the Suns does not have me concerned at all. As soon as they get to clicking again, it will be right back to the 20-21' team. It's great to be an Arizona sports fan recently and it sure seems like we will be in great shape for years to come (except for Coyotes and Dbacks
).My prediction this year for the Suns is to finish 2nd in the division behind either the Warriors or Lakers. 59-23 is my prediction and will make it to the finals again, with this time playing the Nets
