Lost Season Will Mean More if Suns Tank Now

By Robert Neal | Feb 25, 2017

Dec 23, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) and Eric Bledsoe (2) against the Philadelphia 76ers at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The Suns defeated the 76ers 123-116. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

The NBA trading deadline has come and gone, and the Suns only got worse (especially defensively – if that’s possible) with the exit of P.J. Tucker. So now what? What do we expect from Phoenix during their final 25 games of the season?

Coach Earl Watson told Arizonasports.com that it is a critical point of the Suns season. Of course it is, but not for the right reasons. The Suns aren’t fighting for a playoff spot; that’s hopeless. In fact, according to Lucas McLean’s report on ValleyoftheSuns.com, the players don’t seem thrilled about the prospect of playing the rest of the season without Tucker.

Neither are the Suns necessarily showcasing the players they want to trade in the off-season, because they’ve apparently committed themselves to an endless cycle of developing young players…and developing young players…and developing young players…sorry, got caught in a loop there.

What the Suns need to focus on – to put simply – is losing. If they want a top-three talent pick in the NBA draft, they need to tank. There. I’ve said it. I’ve never been a big fan of tanking, and I’ve always despised the teams that do. But the Suns can accomplish two goals by not winning another game this season. One: They can play all the kids, especially in crunch time, to get them used to NBA pressure. And two: Get a better draft pick. After watching some of the kids choke away games this season, they will most likely contribute strongly to the main objective – losing.

In soon-to-be 50 years, the Suns have never tanked. Not obviously, anyway.

More from Suns News

Some think the Suns tanked in 2005-2006, but not for the usual reasons. As reported in The Sportscaster, Mike D’Antoni thought the Suns would match up better with the Los Angeles Lakers than the Sacramento Kings in the playoffs. So, he benched Raja Bell and Steve Nash, allowing the Lakers to win a game, and win a first round match-up with the Suns. It was a decision that almost backfired when the series went to seven games – but that’s another story.

Most teams tank big time, not for playoff positioning, but for higher draft picks.

How about the 2006-2007 Seattle (Soon to be Oklahoma City Thunder) Sonics? They traded away Ray Allen to Boston for the fifth pick of that year’s draft. They were so bad at 31-51 that they managed to snare the second pick in the draft all by themselves. After Portland obligingly took Greg Oden (a historic bust) the Sonics picked Kevin Durant, a future MVP and star of the franchise in Oklahoma City – at least until Durant snubbed Oklahoma City for Golden State.

Remember the Spurs in 1996-1997? It was one of the most famous tank jobs of t all time. The Spurs lost David Robinson to injury for 76 games that season. The resulting mess of a team San Antonio put out on the floor with deliberate malfeasance put up a miserable 20-62 record. And of course when the time came, the lottery balls bounced in the Spurs favor. (When is that team ever not lucky?) And out of the draft that year came Tim Duncan, making the Spurs dominate for years to come.

How else could LeBron James end up in Cleveland if the team hadn’t tanked in 2002-2003? They traded away their best players to make sure they finished 17-65. Their three top scorers were traded with practically nothing in return. Everyone knew that high school superstar LeBron James was going to go pro, and be the very first pick in the draft. How else was Cleveland going to get a shot at the one and future King if they didn’t tank?

I don’t like tanking. I don’t want the Suns to tank. But with so few games left in the season, it won’t be a season-long tank. It would just be a 25 game tank. That’s doable, right?

This team has been trying to win, and there’s nothing wrong with still trying to win as long as they put their youngest (and worst) players on the floor. They’ll lose anyway. So now, let’s hope the Suns go lose some games, and get a top three pick. Once the NBA draft lottery balls start bouncing, with the Suns’ luck, or lack thereof, a sure top-three pick will probably turn into a seventh pick anyway. So the more games the Suns lose now, the better.