The Phoenix Suns started their preseason schedule with a loss this week against the Australian team the Adelaide 36ers. The 36ers are part of the National Basketball League or the NBL. And it was a surprise for everyone as the Suns lost the exhibition match against a non-NBA team. Although it was only an exhibition match, it embarrassed a team that went to the NBA Finals two seasons ago.
Their loss to the 36ers isn’t the end of the world, but the Suns were one of the few teams in the league with their complete starting lineup in the game that early in the preseason. Hopefully, the 10-point loss to Adelaide isn’t a sneak peek of bad things to come for the Suns this season.
Related: NBA games today – Get watch times for the latest NBA preseason matchups
With that said, let’s look at what fans should closely watch as the Phoenix Suns play their two final games of the 2022 NBA preseason.
Deandre Ayton’s chemistry with Monty Williams could be their downfall
Entering his fifth season in the league, Deandre Ayton has established himself as one of the best centers in today’s game. His improvement as a reliable big man played a vast role in their success. Ayton was the “X-factor” of the team that helped them reach the Finals in 2021. However, the relationship between the Suns’ head coach Monty Williams and the starting center went downhill after losing against the Dallas Mavericks in the 2022 Playoffs.
During their media day, the Bahamian center was interviewed by reporters about his interaction with Williams. Much to everyone’s surprise, he revealed that he hadn’t talked to Williams since the Game 7 loss. Now, the question is, how will Monty coach Ayton without prior engagement with him? It’ll be interesting to see how both sides would handle the issue.
Solving the rift between Monty Williams and Deandre Ayton will play a huge role in their success this season. It’s only a matter of which side will be humble enough to admit their mistakes.
Starting Cameron Johnson would open new problems on defense
As the 2022-23 NBA season slowly approaches, Phoenix has made it clear that Cameron Johnson will be the new starting power forward. This promotion is huge for Johnson as he has proven that he can add another scoring option as a starter. Last season, he finished third in the Sixth Man of the Year voting. This season, Johnson will spend more time with the starters. The decision to move him to the starting spot might also be the cause of Jae Crowder’s recent trade request.
Johnson is a capable scorer. However, he doesn’t provide a ton as a defender. Now, if the Suns add another score-first guy to the starting lineup, it puts pressure on Mikal Brides and Ayton to cover him on defensive possessions. Relying on Ayton won’t mean anything since he’s not known as a defensive threat. The Suns should’ve considered this first before giving Johnson a great promotion to Johnson.
Phoenix Suns have a lackluster bench with no leader
After Johnson’s promotion, it has opened a new opportunity for other players to step up to the sixth-man role. The only problem is, who is capable enough of being the team’s sixth man?
Compared to the depth of other NBA teams, the Suns don’t actually don’t have much. They did sign Damion Lee, Josh Okogie, and Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot in the offseason. But none of those guys are known as shot creators. And in certain situations, the team will probably have to rely on their sixth man.
Despite this, the Suns’ bench could see a leader sometime soon. Dario Saric is returning from an ACL injury, and Cameron Payne is primed to have a great year this season. But until then, the Suns’ starters would have to do most of the work to keep some games in their favor.