In a recent media press conference, Suns GM James Jones explained the mindset of his team after being swept by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round. According to Jones, the priority will be about maximizing what Durant brings to the table as an All-NBA scorer and doing whatever it takes to build a competitive team around him.
“[The focus is to] figure out how to maximize Kevin Durant. No one’s done it yet. I believe we’ll be the first team to do it. It was just the totality of figuring out when where and how to do it together. We could not get on the same page and we ran out of time,” said the Suns GM. “But I think if you ask Kevin he’ll tell you. Kevin enjoys playing the game, we enjoy him playing the game, and when he’s playing at the highest level… we’re damn near unbeatable.”
"A constant focus for us is to continue how to figure out and maximize Kevin Durant. No one has done it yet. I believe we'll be the 1st team to do it."
James Jones.
"When he's playing at the highest level, he makes us a really, really good team and we're damn near unbeatable." pic.twitter.com/SOAL5iyp9k
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) May 1, 2024
Jones is right about one thing: the Suns are hard to beat when Durant is at his best. Despite everything that happened this season between the injuries and inconsistent lineups, Durant was still able to lead the Suns to a top-six seed in the West and they were one win away from achieving a 50-win season.
Sadly, despite getting hot down the stretch of the season, the Suns’ dominance did not translate into the playoffs and their flaws were exposed to a degree that was too much for the team to recover. In the days that have followed, everything has come into question for the team and even Durant’s loyalty to the franchise was being doubted like never before. For now, he remains with the Suns but the whole league will be watching their situation this summer after sacrificing so much for the team they already have.
What’s Next For The Phoenix Suns?
New franchise owner/governor Matt Ishbia paid top dollar to put this roster together and he expected immediate results. Surely, he thought, with three of the top 25 players in the game, they could compete for a title as one of the best teams in the world. Instead, they were humbled by a younger and inexperienced team as Ishbia’s own people called him out for being a dysfunctional owner.
But while this squad’s title ambitions officially died in Game 4, the Suns clearly aren’t ready to give up completely. Kevin Durant, who turns 36 in September, is coming off a campaign where he averaged 27.1 points and 6.6 rebounds per game on 52.3% shooting. As long as he’s playing at this level, the Suns have a chance against anyone in the West.
Unless the Suns can find a trade for Bradley Beal or Jusuf Nurkic, there’s nobody they can definitively move this summer and the only real option for change is to replace head coach Frank Vogel and try a different voice in the locker room. Whatever decision is made, it will be with Kevin Durant in mind as they look to maximize his status as an All-NBA superstar.
Regardless, this playoff run was a massive disappointment for the Suns and it won’t be easy to change their downward trajectory. But if the front office gets creative with their moves, it’s possible they could find something that works and finally make good on that Finals contender they promised the fans.
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