Since being drafted 4th by the Phoenix Suns in the 2017 NBA Draft, Josh Jackson hasn’t exactly lived up to expectations. He struggled almost immediately in his first two years in the league, averaging 12 points and 4.5 rebounds on just 41.5% shooting.
He eventually got traded to the Grizzlies in 2019 and has looked better than he has ever been. And while his time with the Suns is in the past now, he recently flamed the organization on Instagram to a disgruntled fan (the comment has since been taken down):
“Your entire organization is unproductive. Stop blaming 20 year old kids for 15 years of sucking.”
Jackson’s comments are pretty harsh, but they’re not wrong. After reaching the Conference Finals in 2009–10 season, the Suns have experienced their worst period of on-court failure to date, missing the playoffs for nine consecutive seasons, having posted a combined win-loss record of 272-450 during that stretch.
If you go back even further, their struggles are still there. They’ve only reached the NBA Finals twice in their entire existence and have lost both of those series in six games.
Needless to say, while Jackson isn’t a shining example of success himself, the Suns’ problems go way deeper than one individual player. The organization, from the top down, just appears to be a step behind everyone else. With Devin Booker, DeAndre Ayton, and a slew of other talented youngsters, they’re hoping to change their course in the near future.
We will see if they can get it right this time.
