The Phoenix Suns could be on the verge of a 19-game losing streak
By Adam Maynes
How apropos of an already terrible 2017-18 season that the Suns could end the year on a 19-game losing streak, not only the longest such streak in franchise history, but also a sad and terrible sign of the Phoenix Suns’ recent struggles.
Already on an 11-game losing streak, the second double-digit losing streak of the season (the second time in franchise history they have had two such streaks in a single season), but the Phoenix Suns still hold the most difficult remaining schedule of any team in the NBA with their opponents holding a 58.9% winning percentage (as of the afternoon of March 26).
Devin Booker is still out and at some point soon could possibly be shut down for the remainder of the year, and T.J. Warren has been in and out of the lineup with health issues himself – the team’s two highest scoring players on the roster.
Phoenix Suns
Already with Tyson Chandler “shut down” for the rest of the year, and Alan Williams only now making his return to the lineup, the Suns’ top players have had a terrible time staying healthy, making the already difficult up hill climb to victory even more insurmountable.
This evening (March 26), the Suns face the Boston Celtics, the East’s second best team by record. Next Phoenix takes on the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday evening. One has the feeling that while it seems likely that Los Angeles is the better team, a team that could potentially be taken down if Phoenix has their full contingent of players, although the Clippers have won seven straight over Phoenix including three so far this season.
If Phoenix is unable to pull out a win then, the next two games are almost impossible, both road games against the Houston Rockets on Friday, and Golden State on Easter Sunday. Houston too has won seven straight against the Suns including a dramatic 142-116 victory in November, while the Warriors have won 13-straight versus Phoenix, the longest losing streak by the Suns against any team in the league.
If the Suns do not steal a victory against the Boston Celtics or Clippers, and follow that up with an all but expected loss to the Rockets, that would prove to be the team’s 14th straight, which would be the longest losing streak in the franchise’s history. A loss to the Warriors would thus be the team’s 15th consecutive.
Phoenix then faces the Sacramento Kings in the first of three consecutive home games, next Tuesday, April 3. This might be the second best opportunity to win a game the rest of the year, especially if Booker has returned by this point.
Sacramento is currently 24-50, 12th worst in the Western Conference, and only five games behind Phoenix for the worst record in the league. The Suns have won two of three against the Kings this season, evidence of the potential that the Suns could steal a win, possibly even without Booker and even Warren.
Their last two home games would then be much more difficult, with games against the New Orleans Pelicans who currently sit in the 5th spot in the Western Conference playoffs, although tied with the Oklahoma City Thunder for 4th, and thus vying for home court advantage in the first round. If the Pelicans are still fighting for that spot, they will be that much more difficult to defeat, something I wouldn’t expect even with a full Suns contingent.
The last home game of the Suns’ season is April 8 versus the Golden State Warriors, again, an almost guaranteed loss – even if the Warriors rest everyone notable name on the roster.
The season wraps up on April 10, on the road, against the Dallas Mavericks. The currently 22-51 Mavs who are currently 3.5 games behind Phoenix in the reverse standings, will likely be locked in their final position marking a win or loss irrelevant. The same could potentially be said for the Suns and therefore fans might actually see the two teams go all out with the hope of ending their miserable seasons on a high note.
That being said, if the Suns have already shut down Booker, even if Warren is playing, then it is still an uphill battle to victory. It should be recalled though that the Suns have swept the first two games from Dallas this season, and a victory over their reverse standings foes might be the Young Suns’ best chance between now and the end of the year.
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Should Phoenix lose out, again, they would end the year on a 19-game losing streak, an accomplishment fans and the franchise would never have imagined reaching, especially for a franchise who for some many years has seen tremendous and traditionally consistent success.
Over these final eight games, if Phoenix happens to win three, presuming the Clippers, Kings, and Mavericks are their best target to do so, they would still finish with a 22-60 record, potentially not good enough to clinch the worst record in the league (the Memphis Grizzlies may not win again for two years), although still marking the second 60-loss season in the franchise’s first 50 years, the first being their inaugural year of 1968-69 when they finished 16-66.
At the same time, losing out would nearly guarantee the best odds to win the lottery and grant them the opportunity to select the best available player, most notably University of Arizona star center, DeAndre Ayton. Such an addition, coupled with a strong free agent signings and/or trades, and the addition of a franchise center with rising star Josh Jackson and undisputed star Devin Booker, and the pain of all this losing over the past few seasons, including what could be a 19-game losing streak, will be forgotten.