Midway through November, the Phoenix Suns certainly appear to have surprised folks connected to the NBA with a record above .500 (8-6 at the time of writing).
After trading future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets and cutting bait with Bradley Beal — essentially paying him not to play for the Suns by waiving and stretching his contract — Phoenix is relying on Devin Booker and a ragtag band of solid role players around him to compete.
The early results are promising, especially provided trade acquisition Jalen Green has been injured for all but five quarters of the season so far. But if you look under the hood, there’s definitely reason to be concerned.
Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer Alex Speers said on a recent episode of The Athletic’s NBA Daily show with Andrew Schlect that the Suns’ soft schedule in the early going explains their record.
They note that 10 of the 13 games the Suns played prior to a brutal loss against the Atlanta Hawks came against eight teams who ranked in the bottom 10 in offense and defense.
That doesn’t mention the fact that wins against the New Orleans Pelicans, Indiana Pacers and Los Angeles Clippers, to name a few, occurred versus opponents who are significantly banged up due to injuries.
Of course, you’re supposed to beat bad and/or injured teams at this level. You’re not going to be a playoff team at season’s end if you can’t take advantage of the scheduled games betting markets expect you to win.
Still, the Suns’ steady start doesn’t appear to be fooling anyone.
In a recent tier list of all 30 NBA teams put together by Zach Kram and Kevin Pelton of ESPN, Phoenix was slotted into their “Play-in Dreamers” tier. The only tier below that is titled “Barren for Darryn” — noting league bottom-feeders who could be in the mix for the No. 1 overall pick next year to potentially select Kansas star Darryn Peterson.
That bottom tier included the Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards, Brooklyn Nets and Pacers, the latter of which has simply appeared lost without Tyrese Haliburton healthy.
Take a (pretty painful) trip down memory lane with us this Saturday #Suns fans (✍️ Brian Leibowitz)https://t.co/3KJpntKWFB
— Valley of the Suns (@ValleyoftheSuns) November 8, 2025
By a record standpoint, the Suns stand out like a sore thumb in their grouping with the Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzlies, Dallas Mavericks, Charlotte Hornets and Pelicans. All of those squads sport worse win-loss marks than the Suns.
But it wasn’t all bad reviews for Phoenix, as Pelton wrote, “The best vibes in this tier, surprisingly, belong to the Suns. With Devin Booker playing at an All-NBA level and Collin Gillespie filling in well for the injured Jalen Green, Phoenix is making an early case for fit over the talent lost when Durant was traded and Bradley Beal bought out last summer.”
Hey, we’ll take “best vibes.”
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That being said, vibes alone does not a playoff team make. The Suns at the time of writing are in the mix for a play-in spot once playoffs roll around, but they have plenty to prove to doubters around the league moving forward.
If Phoenix can continue to weather the storm with Green sidelined and potentially start beating teams above them in the standings, maybe the ESPNs of the world will start to give the Suns respect outside of their “vibes.”