The Lay Of The West
Speaking of the West, a considerable amount of Phoenix’s projected improvement this upcoming season lies in the simple fact that the bottom of the conference is not as strong as it was back in 2013-14 when it took 49 wins to make the playoffs. The West is more top-heavy now, giving the Suns their chance to avoid setting a new franchise record for longest playoff drought.
The Suns have virtually zero chance of winning a playoff series as currently constructed. The Golden State Warriors are the defending champs, the San Antonio Spurs completely reloaded, the Oklahoma City Thunder are healthy again, the Houston Rockets landed Ty Lawson, the Los Angeles Clippers bolstered their bench and the Memphis Grizzlies aren’t going anywhere.
But outside of those six teams, the last two spots in the West are up for grabs.
Don't tell anyone, but I've become cautiously optimistic about the Suns chances of sliding into the playoffs next year.
— Scott Howard (@ScottHoward42) July 10, 2015
After missing out on DeAndre Jordan, the Dallas Mavericks will be depending on Chandler Parsons, an on-his-last-legs Dirk Nowitzki and Wesley Matthews, who is coming off a scary Achilles injury. They could make things interesting depending on how much Dirk has left in the tank, but I don’t see the Mavs being a playoff team next year.
Sir Charles In Charge
The Portland Trail Blazers, another playoff team from last season, lost four of their five starters. Unless Damian Lillard morphs into a Monstar, the Blazers will be one of the worst teams in the West. The Los Angeles Lakers have some promising young players and actually did relatively well in free agency despite not landing a superstar, but come on. They’re not a playoff team either.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are still far too young. The Denver Nuggets are keeping around Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler, but trading Lawson means they’re ready to commit to a longer rebuild behind Emmanuel Mudiay. They won’t be a playoff team this season, leaving the Suns, New Orleans Pelicans, Utah Jazz and possibly the Sacramento Kings to wrestle over those last two playoff spots.
The Jazz have a promising young core and the Pelicans should build on their success from last season behind new head coach Alvin Gentry and the monster that is Anthony Davis, but the Suns should be right in the mix with those two teams. After an offseason that addressed so many problem areas and solidified the team’s core for the foreseeable future, anything less than a playoff appearance next season would be a disappointment.
Next: Is Mike James A Possibility For The Suns?