The Suns would become an immediate winner
In 2018-19, the Phoenix Suns won 19 games a laughable total if it weren’t so sad…
The Los Angeles Lakers acquired LeBron James and have both the cap space and assets to potentially to add two legitimate stars next to him making them instant championship contenders.
The Golden State Warriors are in the NBA Finals for not the second, the third, the fourth, but the fifth consecutive season – and I do not care if they lose a superstar this offseason, the Warriors, even without Kevin Durant, will still be the favorites once again in 2019-20; although they would be a little bit more beatable.
And yet, what if Kyrie Irving goes to Brooklyn (as is the prominent rumor), and what if Kevin Durant joins him (which is probably the best destination for him; he’d be the primary guy, he’d help raise a franchise to the Finals as the team’s face – no one in the East would beat that team; he’d join Irving who is apparently his friend)?
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What if the New Orleans Pelicans refuse once again to trade Anthony Davis to the Lakers, no matter how much they offer or how much he and Rich Paul scream and cry about it?
What if (at the same time), Kawhi Leonard joins literally any other team in the NBA?
And what if all that happened and he joined the Suns? Why would he choose Phoenix?
Obviously there is no doubt that he has earned the right to not play for a losing team, and if he joined the Suns, he wouldn’t have to wrry about that.
Phoenix would immediately be better than the Clippers.
They’d be better than the Kings.
If the Lakers do not acquire another superstar, LeBron would be stuck there all by himself and Phoenix would most certainly be better than them as well
If nothing else, Phoenix would at least be competitive with the Warriors, and second place in the Pacific Division will be good enough for top-four in the Western Conference at worst.
The core of the Golden State roster too is becoming physically tired from the regular grind of long playoff stretches (that much is obvious) and potentially mentally exhausted too.
That isn’t to say that there is any guarantee that Phoenix would in overtake Golden State in 2019-20, but if the Warriors began to prep a little bit more during the regular season for the playoffs in the way that Gregg Popovich has historically prepared his teams, there is always that chance that the they lose enough games, and that the Suns with Kawhi win enough, that Phoenix could even then win the Division.
Yes, I believe that a trio of Kawhi, Book, and Ayton would be that good.