of course we’re a national joke. Don’t you watch TV
Outside of The Jump with Rachel Nichols and Amin, I don't see the Suns coverage any different than that of other bad teams. Being bad is different than being a laughingstock or a joke of a franchise.
Are the Suns bad? Sure, but they're not any worse than teams like the Kings, Cavs, Hawks, or Timberwolves. Being knocked for being bad is one thing but being discarded and discredited is another and the Suns don't fall in that latter category.
I know Barkley has ripped the organization but that's a little different. When he does bash the Suns he doesn't get Eddie and Shaq to join in with him, it's typically just a Barkley rant as a former player who lives in Phoenix.
When news comes out of someone interviewing with the Suns, the headline doesn't predict failure like that Knicks/Thibs piece. Players aren't questioned in the pieces that announce they signed here or rumors of a player being traded here doesn't talk about them going to basketball purgatory.
Locally the Suns get ripped but that's quite different than being the joke of the NBA. The Suns aren't viewed as relevant enough to be the joke of the league and there have been other organizations that have stunk worse that have kept that title from the Suns as well.