The NBA's new season has been underway for more than two months. Which team's performance has disappointed us the most? In the Eastern Conference, it was the Bucks and the 76ers at the beginning of the season. At that time, both teams were struggling to win a game and ranked at the bottom of the East. However, as the season progressed, they found their rhythm and started winning games. The Bucks even won the NBA Cup championship and have now climbed to fifth in the East. The 76ers, although their record is not as good, ranking 11th, they have recently been winning more than losing. Embiid, Maxi, and George are gradually developing chemistry, and it can be imagined that the 76ers' ranking will rise in time.
In the Western Conference, it's the Suns, Kings, and Pelicans. The Kings are a strange team. During the offseason, they assembled a trio of Fox, DeRozan, and Sabonis, with Monk coming off the bench. No matter how you look at it, they should be a championship-level team. However, their current record is a mess, worse than last season. They were even swept by the Lakers. According to the latest reports, the Kings are willing to trade Fox, which suggests they are preparing to rebuild the team.
The Pelicans are even worse to look at, with a record of 5 wins and 29 losses, ranking dead last in the league. Last season, they made it to the playoffs. The Pelicans are basically on the verge of disbanding. Now, Ingram and Zion are both on the trading block, but one is too fragile, and the other wants a max contract, so the Pelicans have been unable to trade them away, making the rebuilding process difficult. Of course, the Pelicans' poor record is due to many injuries. Besides them and the Kings, the Suns are also a team that looks good but doesn't perform well. Currently, their record is 15 wins and 17 losses, less than a 50% win rate. Crucially, the Suns' ranking has fallen to 11th in the West, and they are close to not qualifying for the play-in tournament. Moreover, the Suns have recently suffered three consecutive defeats.
They lost to the Mavericks (without Doncic), Warriors, and Grizzlies. In fact, the Suns' roster is not bad; they have many players who can contribute. Besides Durant, Booker, and Beal, they also have Tyus Jones, O'Neal, Allen, Nurkic, Okogie, Dunn, and Iguodala, among others. Their roster depth on paper is undoubtedly top-tier in the league. If they had a teammate like Harden, their record would likely be better. The trio of stars is not as effective as Harden alone. Looking back at the early part of the season, the Suns were once hot and even topped the West.
After Durant got injured, the Suns started losing games continuously, and their ranking plummeted. That's when we realized how important Durant is to the Suns. However, surprisingly, after Durant returned, the Suns' record did not improve significantly, and they still struggled to win games. The reason is that the Suns are a purely offensive team with almost no defense. Additionally, the trio of stars never developed chemistry. Booker is obsessed with playing one-on-one, Beal is unpredictable, and Durant performs steadily but unfortunately cannot win games. We often see this scene:
Durant works tirelessly, scoring, grabbing rebounds, organizing plays, and defending all by himself, but he just can't win games. According to NBA big data statistics, Durant has averaged 36.1 minutes per game this season, the sixth-most in the league. This is really wearing him out, and the Suns seem unable to find a solution to the problem. Unless Beal is moved to the bench, which is unlikely given his $50.2 million salary, or they seek a trade, but as long as the trio is not broken up, it seems futile. Beal's contract is too large; which team would want to take it on?
In summary, the Suns have become the big loser. It's unclear why they signed Beal in the first place. As long as Beal stays, the Suns have no future and can say goodbye to the championship. Even making the playoffs is questionable. Not long ago, Durant gave an interview in which he said, "We are all disappointed with our results. We need to find ways to get better. We need to stay united, maintain confidence, and keep working hard. What I mean is that we are frustrated, but we are all competitors, and we are eager to win." It's clear that Durant is somewhat disappointed now. If the Suns don't make the playoffs this year, it's hard to imagine whether the Reaper will apply for a transfer again.