Phoenix Suns: Biggest strengths and weaknesses for 2017-18
Weakness No. 3: Defense. Everything related to defense
If it sounds like the Phoenix Suns’ offense was bad last year, their defense was even worse.
The Suns’ 109.3 defensive rating ranked 28th in the association, but because they were playing at the league’s second-fasted pace, they were also giving up the most points at a whopping 113.3 per game — the most opponent points per game surrendered in NBA.com’s database, which dates all the way back to the 1996-97 season.
Suns opponents shot 46.7 percent from the field (26th) and 38.2 percent from 3-point range (30th). Their transition defense was similarly porous, as opponents averaged 16 fast break points per game (29th) and 18.1 points per game off turnovers (28th).
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In other words, if you were playing the Suns, you’d be shooting the fifth-highest mark from the field and the highest percentage from downtown in the league, while scoring the second-most transition points and third-most points off turnovers.
Funnily enough, other teams only averaged 22.2 assists per game against the Suns, but that may have been because Phoenix’s defense was so bad their opponents didn’t need to move the ball much to score.
In 2017-18, the Suns will sport a nearly identical roster. Bledsoe is a good defender when engaged, but as he gets older, loses some athleticism and focuses more on the offensive end, he will no longer be the bulldog who hounds people up and down the court.
Booker is a miserable defender at this point, and though improving on that end should be one of his main goals for 2017-18, he’s still only 20 years old. T.J. Warren needs to stay healthy to continue his progress on that end. Chriss is still only 20 as he enters his second season. Chandler will be a step slow at age 35, while Len has failed to prove himself as a starting-caliber center.
Next: Phoenix Suns 2017-18 season preview
The rest of the bench is incredibly young, so the defensive woes can be expected to continue in 2017-18. That’s okay for a team that needs to take its licks to learn, but defensive progress should be a key focus if this green core is ever going to grow into a perennial contender.