Five Way Too Early Predictions About the Suns in 2017-18
By Adam Maynes
The Suns will Finish 5th in the Western Conference
Of course this is predicated on who comprises the roster next season beside Booker, but is also dependent upon a Western Conference whose best teams are dominant, though the rest are forced to feast on one another to find relevancy.
Ryan McDonough will have some very legitimate opportunities to improve the roster this off-season and thus the results of this team next season, potentially shooting the Suns’ record to approximately 50 wins. Even if he is unable to trade for a current star, the draft alone will offer an opportunity to improve the roster, let alone what he might be able to acquire in potentially trading Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight. If nothing else then finding more good, young, and hungry talent, another year of growth and the further addition of depth of talent alone can catapult the Suns into becoming a decent team.
The upper crust of the West in Golden State, San Antonio, and Houston are not going anywhere. They will be 1-3 in some order next season as they were this. The Clippers with 51 wins, the current fourth team in the West, could see their roster blown up drastically diminishing their results, although said results have been diminishing already and they likely won’t be an improved threat even if they were to keep their current core intact. Utah, also with 51 wins, won a relatively weak division and unless they somehow acquired the likes of Paul George or Jimmy Butler, their status in the West will remain static. Russell Westbrook can only do so much in Oklahoma City by himself, and no one should be too afraid that Memphis, Portland, Denver or New Orleans will suddenly take a giant leap into the upper strata.
Even if one of this season’s 4th through 15th ranked teams other than Phoenix managed to jump into contention as an elite team solidifying the 4th overall spot in next season’s playoffs, if the Suns have an improved roster, there is still a legitimate opportunity for them to snag that 5th position overall.
Suns fans would be elated to live in that scenario next season, and should the standings play out with any relativity to this season’s overall, only 51 wins will get them there.