Phoenix Suns: 5 Midseason Takeaways
5. The Defense Has Been A Major Letdown
When the Suns added Tyson Chandler to a starting lineup that already featured a notorious ball-hound in Eric Bledsoe and the versatile P.J. Tucker, the team had the makings of a top-10 defense.
On Media Day and leading into the season, all Hornacek and the Suns wanted to talk about was their commitment to changing a 46-year trend of run-n-gun offense with no concerns given to their lackluster defense.
Unfortunately, this team has not only failed to live up to its preseason billing as a top-10 defense, but has actually unraveled into one of the league’s most porous defensive units that gets burned more times than Brandon Knight gets embarrassed on highlight reels.
Through the first 43 games of the season, the Suns are surrendering 106.0 points per 100 possessions, ranking them just above the Los Angeles Lakers and New Orleans Pelicans as the league’s third worst defense. Their opponents are shooting 47.5 percent from the field (the worst mark in the league) and 37.8 percent from three-point range (the third worst mark).
It’s not just the half-court defense that has struggled, however, since the Suns’ 16.7 turnovers per game (third most in the NBA) lead to 19.2 opponent points off turnovers (third most) and 16.0 opponent fast break points (second most).
Before Tuesday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers, the Suns had a rough and physical practice that was all about the team’s problematic defense. It helped Phoenix hold the Pacers to 97 points on 41 percent shooting…but the Suns still gave up 24 fast break points and 17 points off of turnovers.
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“I think our turnovers just need to not go the other way,” rookie Devin Booker said after the game. “If you have a turnover, just throw it out of bounds so we get to set our defense.”
From transition defense to weak side defense to all-around defensive effort, Phoenix has been entirely underwhelming. Brandon Knight gets lost in screens and off the ball. Mirza Teletovic is a complete sieve. Tyson Chandler looks a step slow and Alex Len is still developing as a rim protector. Ronnie Price is injured and Devin Booker and T.J. Warren are still learning the game.
A slight drop-off was to be expected when Bledsoe went down for the season with a torn meniscus 11 games ago, especially with so many young players playing so many minutes now. But even before that, the Suns were a bottom-10 defense. Unless they come out with that same focus every night like they did Wednesday, they’ll continue to be a horrendous defense by nearly every statistical measure.
Next: No. 4