Phoenix Suns preseason schedule announced

Raise your hand if you’re already antsy waiting to see Devin Booker, Eric Bledsoe, Josh Jackson, Marquese Chriss, Dragan Bender, Alan Williams, Tyler Ulis, and the rest of the gang on the court again?

If you actually raised your hand, I’m not going to lie: That’s Awesome. You’re a true fan and I can sense your excitement. If you’re like me, I haven’t been more excited for a season since the 2010-11 year following the team’s latest Western Conference Finals run.

If you didn’t raise your hand, that’s okay. You’re probably driving and your passenger is reading this post to you and you have your hands squarely on the 10 and 2 on your steering wheel.

Drive safe, my friends.

For all of our scheduling enjoyment, the Suns have finally announced their 2017-18 preseason schedule, a five game slate that includes a game against the Brisbane Bullets, one of the more historic teams in the National Basketball League, Australia’s top league.

With the NBA’s attempt to lesson the stress on the it’s players, preseason’s have slowly become shorter and shorter over recent years. In fact, the Suns’ five game schedule is the shortest the team has scheduled since the two games the Suns (and every other team in the league) played in 2012.

Apparently one are the traditional eight-game preseason schedules.

https://twitter.com/Suns/status/892481978292813824

While for many years the Suns and their NBA opponents scheduled eight games to fulfill their preseason requirements, in recent seasons the team’s schedule has shrunk to the now current five game practice run.

Obviously the preseason doesn’t mean a whole lot in terms of how a team will play in the regular season, but for fans the games can be an insight into some aspects of what we should all expect.

Last preseason the Suns finished with a 4-2 record, and ran the ball up and down the court like the run-and-gun Suns of old, leading to the expectation that the regular season would be series of high scoring track meets. This proved correct as the Suns were regularly at the top of the league in pace, although it didn’t necessarily translate into regular season wins.

Year	Preseason Record	Regular Season Record
2017-18	? (5)	?
2016-17	4-2 (6)	24-58
2015-16	4-2 (6)	23-59
2014-15	1-6 (7)	39-43
2013-14	5-2 (7)	48-34
2012-13	4-3 (7)	25-57
2011-12	0-2 (2)	33-33 *lockout
2010-11	2-6 (8)	40-42
2009-10	4-4 (8)	54-28

In October fans will get a glimpse at how the offensive may have evolved over the summer and see to what degree Dragan Bender’s role will be expanded in the team’s attempt to score. His length and versatility can stretch the floor like only a few professionals can, but will he be able to drain those shots with efficiency? Or will the back of the rim bricks that we have grown so accustomed to continue?

Certainly fans will also get a glimpse at how Josh Jackson can handle NBA (and international) competition, and certainly what his job will be on the defensive end. There is no doubt that no draft pick since Amare Stoudemire has garnered as much excitement coming into a preseason as Jackson has so just seeing the number 99 running up and down the court with the energy that he brings will be worth the time to watch.

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And lest we forget: Devin Booker. Book will likely see his minutes relatively limited in the preseason stretch (as will several of the other starts) and thus may not get the opportunity to blow the lid off arenas just yet. He is, however, the team’s biggest draw, and all fans will be watching to see if we can grab any early insight into to what level his abilities on the court have grown as he enters his third season in the NBA.

These questions and more will be answered on October 3 when the Suns tip off the 2017-18 preseason in Portland, and with only 62 days until that first game, the energy and excitement surrounding the team will only continue to grow.

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