Suns’ Championship Aspirations Hindered by Underwhelming Supporting Cast

• The Suns struggle despite adding Durant and Beal, falling out of the playoff picture.
• Beal’s injuries and lack of depth were cited as key issues.
• Durant is reportedly unhappy with the team’s situation and lack of improvement.

NBA teams find it challenging to fill their roster with elite players without sacrificing depth due to salary cap restrictions and tax penalties.

The Phoenix Suns’ starting lineup and bench remain shaky even after acquiring Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal through trades. The Suns’ situation, who are now outside of even the Play-In Tournament picture, has not improved with Beal losing so much time due to injury.

Durrant is reportedly dissatisfied with his circumstances at the Suns.

“You talk to people in Phoenix and around that organization, they can feel the frustration with Durant,” ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Christmas.

“Part of that, certainly, is the missed games for [Bradley] Beal. This team was built around those three stars (Durant, Beal and Devin Booker). The underwhelming supporting cast that comes from those massive trades for Durant and Bradley Beal that really gutted the organization and left them having to sign a lot of minimum players to fill out the payroll.

“And then understanding that [the Suns] lack the assets, the draft picks, the trade capital, to go out and really improve this team. This is something they’re going to have to manage in Phoenix with Kevin Durant. You’ve seen it before. It’s a stark reminder of how short of a window, and how this team has to win big, and they have to win big quickly, based on how it was constructed and having Kevin Durant still playing at an All-NBA level. And a healthy Kevin Durant. There’s a lot at stake for this organization. It’s gotta change soon.”

On Christmas Day, the Suns, who are ranked tenth in the Western Conference, will play the sixth-place Dallas Mavericks.

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