Conclusion
Despite a really rough two-month stretch, I think the schedule is overall pretty fair to the Suns. There’s a real chance for them to jump out ahead early on, and they’ll have the opportunity to protect their playoff positioning down the stretch, while finishing the season with back-to-back home games.
About two weeks ago I wrote a piece setting out five short-term goals for the Suns, and I found it funny to reflect on that and see one of the goals was indeed to win 45 games, which is where I have the team projected this year.
I think 45 wins as a whole is really a perfect over/under for the team, basically along the lines that if they can’t get to that mark, then some dramatic changes needs to happen because they’re not going in the right direction, although there’s a little more uncertainty now with the Markieff Morris situation.
Either way, it’s going to be absolutely crucial for the Suns to get it figured out right away. They have a really good opportunity to start 3-0, and while it’s probably definitely too dramatic to overreact to the first three games of the season, they really could end up mattering. The Suns missed the playoffs by just one game two years ago, and it’d be quite devastating for that to happen again.
Anyway, I’ll leave you with some overall stats and notes on the upcoming season. Feel free to let me know if you disagree with any of my predictions in the comments section below. You can also find me on twitter: @SChasenKU.
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Longest home stands:
Feb. 2-21 (7 games – All-Star break is in between games 5/6)
Nov. 12-18 (4 games)
Longest road trips:
Nov. 29-Dec. 7 (6 games)
Dec. 30-Jan. 3 (4 games)
Jan. 26-31 (4 games)
Mar. 1-6 (4 games)
Back-to-backs (14 total):
October: 1
November: 1
December: 5
January: 2
February: 1
March: 4
April: 0
Hardest full month (by opponent):
February –
Notables: vs. TOR, HOU, UTA, OKC, GS, HOU, SA, LAC, MEM (9/10 gms)
Easiest full month (by opponent):
March –
Notables: vs. CHA, ORL, NYK, DEN, MIN (2x), UTA, LAL (2x), SAC, BOS, MIL (12/16 gms)
Road-game-dominant months (listed by % of games played on the road):
March: 11-of-16 games are on the road – 68.8 percent
January: 9-of-14 games are on the road – 64.3 percent
December: 10-of-18 games are on the road – 55.6 percent
Home-game-dominant months (listed by % of games played at home):
February: 9-of-10 games are at home – 90.0 percent
October: 2-of-3 games are at home – 66.7 percent
November: 8-of-14 games are at home – 57.1 percent
April: 4-of-7 games are at home – 57.1 percent
Next: The Suns Should Trade Markieff Morris Now