Suns a laughing stock to Lakers and Hornets after play-in shambles

The Phoenix Suns might have been one of the pleasant surprises of the regular season, but that quickly vanished in the play-in tournament.

Defeat at the hands of the Portland Trail Blazers meaning they could yet become the first seventh seed to fail to make the playoffs.

Lakers and Hornets right to not have Mark Williams in town

By far the biggest talking point of the Suns' defeat was the fact that center Mark Williams played only 22 minutes, failing to see any action in the fourth-quarter.

This was a gamble by head coach Jordan Ott to go small, just as the Trail Blazers did, but the implications of this will reach into the offseason.

Williams will be a restricted free agent, and looking at the surging Charlotte Hornets their decision not to be on the hook to pay for his services may well be the decision they traded him away.

To get a pair of first round picks in return looks even better, while for the Los Angeles Lakers the circumstances were different and yet it has still worked out for them (as it so often does).

Los Angeles vetoing a trade for Williams also worked out long-term, because they too don't have to worry about paying him to stick around.

They also plugged in Deandre Ayton as a stop gap, and while he's hardly a massive upgrade you can be sure he will be out there in the playoffs for the Lakers.

There may be an element of necessity with that, but the point remains neither the Lakers or the Hornets have missed having Williams on their roster at all this season.

The player himself still has the chance to flip the script on this one, although the Golden State Warriors again look like the kind of opponent coach Ott may want to go small against.

If anything the Oklahoma City Thunder, who the Suns will face in the first round of the postseason if they make it that far, would be a better team for Williams to showcase what he can do.

The signing of Williams was viewed equally as a bit strange at the time, but also a real get as a young big man with legitimate size. Something the Suns have lacked since Ayton left town.

Williams even held up his end of the bargain by turning in the healthiest season of his career to date, appearing in 60 games (55 starts).

But if he's not going to be trusted in the most important moment of the Suns' entire season, then what does that say about his long-term fit in The Valley?

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