The turmoil of the Phoenix Suns continues as their season slips through the cracks, with almost no remedy to resolve its issues and getting it on track to make the play-in tournament for the playoffs.
The Suns are currently lodged in the 11th spot of the bracket, and it seems the margin between them and the 10th spot is more significant than any obstacle they will face all season. Here is the funny thing: that margin is only three games behind the Sacramento Kings, but the way the Suns have been playing, those three games feel like 10 and never will be made up.
Both teams shot the ball at a high percentage in game one, but the Suns shot more than 55% and still lost the game. Star forward Kevin Durant’s body language throughout the game was a microcosm of the way things have been going.
Durant has not played with passion on the defensive end since the return of the All-Star break when his name was shopped as a trade piece without his acknowledgment.
Now, he seems like a player with a “dead man walking” mentality who goes through the motions on the defensive end of the floor, which is most important for this team to get out of its predicament.
The offensive end Durant will never have a problem getting buckets; that’s what he was born to do, and he continues to do that for himself. In the box score, it looks like he is not part of the problem for this team’s losing issues.
After carefully watching the tape of game one of the Pelicans’ short two-game series, there were five possessions during which we watched Durant stand and watch in the rebounding department and stay behind on defense after not getting a foul call, arguing with the refs, and walking back on defense.
It is imperative that the leaders of this team lead by example on the floor, even if they lack social leadership skills. Playing hard on both ends of the floor will not only translate to the stars playing at their best but also help the role players calm down, relax, and do their jobs confidently.
This team will never get it right if stars are distracted by off-the-court issues.
Devin Booker was mentioned in a recent report from Chris Haynes of “the Haynes Brief report” on Friday morning, which said his coach, Mike Budenhozer, had a complaint that he was being too vocal to guys on the floor and during timeouts in the huddle.
The thought that a Head Coach would not want his star player to be vocal on the floor and during timeouts is asinine. There has to be more to this report than we have been given. Make no mistake, this was a calculated move on Booker’s part to get this information out because in his press conference after the loss to the Pelicans, Booker expressed in a vague way his displeasure with such a request.
“It could be fixed with just a little bit more talking, I’d say,” Booker told reporters on Thursday. “Things get tough, and we get quiet as a team. From my experience and what I’ve seen, you know, that’s not the way to get through it.” Said Booker.
This does not sit right, so what could have happened here? Can it be that Booker was so upset at the lack of fire and intensity of coach Bud in these situations that he took it upon himself to be the team disciplinarian, and Bud did not like that and said to “tone it down”?
What exactly is he being asked to tone down? Is the question here.
It can’t be that he is being told to tone down team communication on the floor regarding Xs and Os and to keep the team uplifted. Perhaps Bud’s “tone it down” comment was directed at Bookers basic floor communication but rather speaking of him possibly coming down on players in a more harsh like way when they make mistakes on the floor, more like showing a guy up in front of everyone.
If that is the case, Bud is right to ask his player not to be so judgmental of everyone as to put them down, especially when Booker himself makes some of the same mistakes on a nightly basis. This cant be just about basketball x’s and o’s.
In Booker’s case, can this be a result of a star player’s entitlement to think he can do and say whatever he wants because he is the face of the team? When Bud challenges that, he is upset, and somehow, his camp allowed this report to come out to make his coach look bad in an attempt to get him dismissed. That is a possibility.
This explains a lot about what has been and is still going on amongst this team and why they can’t focus on what truly matters: the game of basketball and winning games.
Coach Bud has a right not to allow himself to get put in a situation where he is losing control of his team. On the other hand, Booker should have the right to challenge guys who are not giving it their all and making the same mistakes over and over.
It’s the give-and-take balance of Coach and star player; that’s the way the sports world runs, and that balance is vital to a team’s success.
Regardless of what happened, we will probably never know, but one thing that stands out after hearing this story is that this is another situation where star players are somewhat in control of the team, and when they get tired of a coach, they can conspire to run him out of town.
If the Suns relieve Bud of his duties this off-season, we will have seen this three times, and the last two would be one-year tenures. When does the finger get pointed at the ones who have been here each time this has happened, as coaches get run out of town for whatever reason?
Players have to allow new coaches to grow with their team, and if the star player is not on board and believes fully in the system, the result will be similar to what we have seen from the Suns the last three years.
At the same token, Coaches need to establish respect from players by being the disciplinarians they need, and when that does not happen, they lose their locker room very quickly.
The Suns are in between a “rock and a hard place.” They have to find a coach who can bring this balance to a team in desperate need of tough leadership. Star players have to allow this coach to do his job, and with their full support and will back him on whatever the coaching philosophy is.
This is why we see a talented Suns team look so discombobulated. They are a team divided, and whatever is divided against itself will surely fall, and fall fast, as we have seen with the 2025 Suns.
The Suns ended up winning the second game of the back-to-back with the Pelicans 125-108 and were led by Bol Bol, who scored a season-high 25 points and a career-high five three-point baskets, and he continues to gain more confidence. Hopefully, that will spark them to try to squash their differences and learn to play together. There is an old saying in sports: “You don’t have to like the guy next to you to play as a unit.” The goal is winning, and you must do your job to the best of your ability to ensure that.
Issues like this should stay in-house because once they are released into the wild, so to speak, they are hard to wheel back in and get under control.
KAZUAL SPORTZ RADIO NETWORK 