The 2021-22 NBA season is in full swing, with teams having played approximately half of their scheduled 82 fixtures.
Both the Eastern Conference and Western Conference tables are taking shape, and one team is standing out from the crowd: the red hot Phoenix Suns.
Phoenix Suns enjoyed only their second winning season in 11 years during the 2020-21 season when they posted a 51-21 record (.708) during the regular season.
The Suns were 10-8 by the end of January but hit a purple patch of form in February and March, where they went 23-6 to give themselves a legitimate shot at NBA Championships glory.
Suns reached the playoffs, facing the much-fancied Los Angeles Lakers in the First Round.
All the best sportsbooks online gave the Suns no chance against the Lakers but were proven wrong when the Suns ran out deserved 4-2 winners.
Third-seed Denver Nuggets were next in line for the Suns, but the Nuggets could not stop Chris Paul or Devin Booker from running the show.
Sun ran out 4-0 winners, emerging victorious 122-105, 123-98, 116-102, and 125-118 to progress to the Conference Finals.
The L.A. Clippers went into the Conference Finals game against the Suns as overwhelming favorites.
However, the bookmakers got their predictions wrong once again, with the Suns defeating the Nuggets 4-2.
Booker bagged a triple-double in the opening game, and the Suns never looked back as they reached their first NBA Championship finals in 28-years.
Unfortunately for Suns fans, it was not meant to be, and Pheonix fell 2-4 to the Milwaukee Bucks despite winning the first two games.
The Suns’ wait for a title continued.
An Amazing Start to the 2021-22 Season
The Suns started the current season like a house on fire.
They went 3-1 during the preseason, although it is difficult to gauge a team’s credentials in a non-competitive environment.
October saw the Suns struggle for consistency, and they ended the first month of the campaign with a 2-3 record.
What happened next was nothing short of amazing.
November saw the Suns play 16 games, eight with home-court advantage and eight on the road.
During November, the Suns were scintillating and won all 16 games, including a convincing 126-97 victory over the Nuggets, a 113-107 win over the high-flying Brooklyn Nets, and a 104-96 win over resurgent Golden State Warriors.
The winning streak continued into December when the Suns beat Detroit Pistons, although they finished December 9-5.
The Suns have played ten games in January and have won nine of them.
A 100-123 loss at home to Miami Heat is the only blot on an otherwise perfect copybook.
To date, the Suns are 36-9 (.800) in the Western Conference, some 3.5 games ahead of the Golden State Warriors, and 5.5 in front of the Memphis Grizzles!
A Huge Turnaround For The Suns
Licensed under CC BY 2.0Suns fans are well overdue for some NBA Finals success.
Their beloved Suns have the eighth-best winning percentage in the competition, winning 53% of their games across 54 seasons.
However, they are yet to win an NBA Finals despite reaching a final on three occasions.
The coaching staff deserves a pat on the back for turning around the Suns’ fortunes.
The Suns missed out on the playoffs from 2010-11 through 2020-21, when they reached their third NBA Finals.
The team went from 34-39 (.466) in 2019-20 to 51-21 (.708) last season and are now tearing up this season with a 39-6 (.800) record.
In Devin Booker, Chris Paul, and Deandre Ayton, the Suns have a trio of players who would get into almost any of their rivals’ teams.
Paul is reaching the end of his career – he is 36-years-old now – but is showing no signs of slowing down.
Booker and Ayton are only 25 and 23, respectively, so they have their best years ahead of them.
A mixture of talented youth and experience across the Suns’ roster points towards this being the year Suns fans finally see their team win some silverware.