Clippers star shows trait Suns badly wish they had right now

The Phoenix Suns are not in a good place right now. It tells you everthing you need to know about this horror season - that is more than likely going to result in less than 40 wins for the team - that the best news they've received recently is that another franchise is foolish enough to consider trading for Bradley Beal.

A lot has gone wrong - with the exception of that strong 8-1 start - and head coach Mike Budenholzer has come in for his fair share of criticism. Although not the most outspoken to the media, leaks such as this one involving himself and franchise cornerstone Devin Booker are not a good look. Then again, neither is potentially firing yet another coach at the end of the campaign.

All of this, and the L.A. Clippers are making them look bad too.

The Clippers were not supposed to be a direct rival of the Suns this season. They let Paul George go to the Phialdelphia 76ers, while Kawhi Leonard cannot stay healthy enough for the longer periods required to have the desired impact. While meant a return to the James Harden style basketball that was super effective for the Houston Rockets in the past, but he's now 35-years-old.

The George decision paid off brilliantly however, as it is now the 76ers who are in a worse spot than both the Clippers - and if you can even believe it - also the Suns. This doesn't go down as a victory in The Valley though, as Leonard recently went and did something we haven't seen a whole lot of in Phoenix this season. He actually looked like he cared.

If you've ever watched Leonard play basketball, then you'll know he's the "strong and silent" type. There's a reason he was such a success early on with the San Antonio Spurs, and it had as much to do with his ridiculous talent as it did how he carries himself on the court. But in screaming for their center Ivica Zubac to post up Luka Doncic, Leonard looked as involved as he ever had.

Without even taking into account the fact the play was successful - and that it took several attempts for Leonard to get Zubac's attention - when have you ever seen Booker or Kevin Durant do that? Spot that Nick Richards or even Mason Plumlee has a favorable mismatch, while then going on to call for it and getting out of the way.

It is the little things like that which helps teams win games - and although the Clippers lost on this occasion - it is exactly what that organization will want to see out of Leonard ahead of the playoffs. Being loud on the court can't fix all of the issues in Phoenix, but there's also no question that the Suns go quiet when opponents are taking it to them.

Booker admitted as much to the media recently, and that hasn't changed. Rather than communicate on the defensive end - they have been horrible pretty much all season at consistently getting stops - this group tends to go in on itself, allowing opponents to go off on them. If the Suns should take anything from an older star here, it is to speak and care more on each possession for the team.