Life is good for the Phoenix Suns right now. Despite the schedule beginning to ramp up in difficulty, they continue to win games against more fancied opponents.
They're 2-0 in Emirates NBA Cup action having most recently dispatched of the Minnesota Timberwolves, while victory over a San Antonio Spurs team without Victor Wembanyama is still no easy feat.
Bill Simmons offers Suns horrible dose of reality.
So of course it would be none other than Bill Simmons of The Ringer who would come along and bring the franchise crashing back down to earth.
He recently had Zach Lowe on his podcast to break down the League Pass rankings of each team, and he took this opportunity to remind Suns' owner Mat Ishbia that the organization is still in a bad spot entirely of his making.
Simmons is right in his assessment that the team are much more likeable this season, and that they could get to 35-40 wins and certainly look on pace for that currently.
But he also rightly brought up that, despite Ishbia feeling himself a little with the Suns turning into what he promised they would this offseason as a defensive-minded tough out, the future remains bleak.
The majority of their upcoming first round draft picks have either been traded away or can be swapped when the time comes. It is great to have Devin Booker so engaged, and to be above league average on both ends of the court without Jalen Green is excellent.
But there's only so much of having role players like Grayson Allen and Collin Gillespie overachieve before reality sets in.
Where Simmons might yet be proven wrong however is the fact that the lack of draft equity hasn't stopped the Suns improving rapidly so soon after trading away Kevin Durant.
The most important piece of the puzzle was getting head coach Jordan Ott, who could yet find himself getting some Coach of the Year buzz.
The Durant trade that netted them Green and Dillon Brooks does not look like a disaster (although Green does have to get back on the court soon to contribute), while the Mark Williams move hasn't blown up in their faces either.
If anything coach Ott has handled the dilemma around not playing him in back-to-backs perfectly.
So although it would be great to know that their own draft picks were coming down the road, as long as the front office can make moves to keep the roster competitive and Booker engaged, then Ishbia can continue to feel good about the change of direction in The Valley.