Suns give timely reminder on why you shouldn't give up on them yet

The Phoenix Suns returned to winning ways on Christmas Day, as they moved one game above .500 in beating the Denver Nuggets 110-100 at home. A game that sadly did not feature Devin Booker on what is viewed as the unofficial beginning of the NBA season, but which did include stellar performances from Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal.

Both finished with 27 points apiece to lead the way, while the re-introduction of rookie Ryan Dunn to the starting lineup restored some balance to the rotation. He has cooled off massively on his hot start to life in the league - but in bringing Royce O'Neale back off the bench alongside Grayson Allen - looks to have found his spot in the rotation.

It also ensured that this team remains hard to truly give up on.

If you're familiar with Suns Reddit - and if you're not then you should probably stay away for your own sanity - then you will likely know that a growing number of the fanbase appear to be in favor of blowing this whole thing up and going for a large scale rebuild. This despite having barely any draft picks between now and 2031.

This radical way of thinking not only includes moving on from Durant - and also Beal if anybody will take him - but also trading Booker so as to give him a better chance at winning a ring. A noble suggestion for sure, but the win over the Nuggets once again showed us that it is time to pump the brakes on all of the negativity for a moment.

The fact remains that this Suns group - although lacking in size and also seemingly fight when up against an inferior opponent - is still actually quite good on their night. Which admittedly has not happened too often so far this season, but that 8-1 start was not nothing, and they've had some dreadful injury luck to this point.

Yes the Nuggets look a level or two below their title-winning best of a couple of seasons back - although they have a player the Suns should have tried to sign this summer - but a win over a three-time winning league MVP in Nikola Jokic is still impressive. Talk of a championship in The Valley seems a long shot right now - but in a seven game series - the Suns could beat this Nuggets team.

Which is exactly why we shouldn't be giving up on this group as we know it just yet. Partly because it doesn't look like the top three players are going anywhere anyway - no matter what Jimmy Butler says - but also because this looks a team that could win a series or even two when everything breaks their way.

The end goal for this team is a first ever championship, but we all know how difficult that is going to be to try and achieve. Plenty of teams that have been better than this Suns roster have failed, but those fans who are in favor of tearing it all down need to remember how bleak the situation was in Phoenix prior to the arrival of Booker.

The situation didn't even really turn around properly until the NBA's bubble - and although there was that one finals appearance - you can be a long time waiting to get back there. This current team has at least an outside shot of achieving that, while a rebuild to get back to where this group is right now would likely take the rest of this decade.

You need only ask the likes of the Detroit Pistons or Orlando Magic what many years of losing and not having a legitimate star to cheer for feels like. Things have changed for both those organizations now, but they were both out in the wilderness for a long time prior to that. So enjoy Booker's prime, and the tail-end of Durant's while you're at it, because this team shouldn't be written off entirely just yet.