Media Day, games, draft, and offseason moves. KSRN gives you their takes on the Phoenix Suns.
The Phoenix Suns took on the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday in what appeared to be another slow start for the Suns (72-49 at halftime). The marquee matchup was surely seeing Rookie center Deandre Ayton go up against the entertaining Joel Embiid. Unfortunately, Ayton (18pts/11reb) had no answer for Joel Embiid (42pts/18reb) who was a force to be reckoned with.
The Phoenix Suns have done something that hasn’t been done since 2015: a 4-game winning streak. In just one week the Suns doubled their win totals. This begs the question, “What on earth has changed for the Phoenix Suns?!”
Tonight, Talking Stick Resort Arena, which opened its doors in 1992, welcomed its 40 millionth guest to the epicenter of sports and entertainment in downtown Phoenix during the Suns vs. Spurs matchup.
The Phoenix Suns did something Thursday night that was unthinkable and yet absolutely typical at the same time.
As the Phoenix Suns (1-5) struggle to find consistent point guard play, Élie Okobo has seen increased minutes in their recent games. Sunday, Okobo played 31 minutes and graced the team with 18 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds. All with 50% shooting from the field to boot. This has been a significant improvement from his counterpart, Isaiah Canaan, who has struggled in the starting role with a +/- as high as -25 (versus Golden State). So the question becomes, do the Suns start the Rookie out of France against the San Antonio Spurs on a spooky Halloween Wednesday?
The result of this game should come as no surprise to Suns fans. The defending champs took care of their “little brother” Monday night in Oracle Arena by 20 points. In a game that was marked for Golden State to regain their confidence after previously losing to the Denver Nuggets, the Warriors sped off from the moment the ball was tipped and never looked back.
Robert Sarver and the Phoenix Suns have fired GM Ryan McDonough this morning, nine days before the regular season starts and just two years before his contract ends. The move hasn’t perplexed fans, the timing has. After what many would call a successful offseason; drafting #1 pick Deandre Ayton, signing key veteran Trevor Ariza, and even trading a disgruntled player in Marquese Chriss. But the question remains, why now?
In the midst of a failing NFL & MLB Team, sports fans in Arizona turn their eyes towards a team with a fresh start and new sponsor (PayPal); the Phoenix Suns. The young Suns opened their preseason last night against the divisional foe the Sacramento Kings.
The Phoenix Suns held a media day at Talking Stick Resort Arena, we got a close look at the team for the first time all together in one room. One room that featured podiums and photo booths to do the team and individual pictures.
Sports in Arizona is a unique market. In a state that prides itself as a place to retire and remain active, we get many residents from all over the country. When this happens, they bring their “fanhood” with them. We can’t fault them for it. I would only hope that if Cardinals/Suns/Diamondbacks/Coyotes fans move to another state, they would still root for their home teams. We can, however, certainly fault ourselves for selling our tickets to opposing fans, but that’s a topic for a different day. You would generally expect that the Arizona sports market is lacking when it comes to player loyalty. “Why would anyone want to stay in Arizona when the large markets get to have all the fun and glory?” Historically, Arizona athletes have actually been notably loyal.
