PHOENIX — Painful endings are far too frequent on Planet Orange, and so they by no means get simpler.
Unless they characterize new beginnings.
That’s the silver lining for the Suns following their hasty exit from the NBA playoffs on Monday at Mortgage Matchup Center, a sport the place their appreciable struggle wasn’t almost adequate.
Thud.
“I do think there’s a sense of pride with this group, we hear it often (from) the city and the fans,” Suns head coach Jordan Ott stated. “That’s what hurts today. Because it ends. That team ends. And they should be proud of what they did this year.”
Harsh classes had been absorbed in opposition to Oklahoma City. The Suns shot 59.5% from the sphere within the first half in Game 4, making 11 three-pointers and receiving 29 factors from the tandem of Collin Gillespie and Grayson Allen. And they nonetheless trailed by eight factors at halftime, which illustrates the standard of opponent they had been dealing with.
It additionally underscored the staff’s solely unforgivable sin, dropping a play-in sport at dwelling to Portland that dropped them right into a matchup in opposition to the reigning NBA champions.
Meanwhile, Devin Booker did little to quell fears over the state of his sport. He scored two factors within the first half, each on free throws. He missed three subject objective makes an attempt whereas Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks every hoisted up 12 photographs. He additionally dedicated 5 turnovers, and extremely, the Suns had been higher with him on the bench in the course of the first half.
Booker was a lot better within the second half, however not almost adequate. He is now 1-5 in elimination video games.
Now that it’s over, the Suns have landed in an odd place. They have landed within the area between the top and the center.
The coronary heart tells you that the 2025-2026 season was a smashing success. The Suns received 45 video games and would’ve posted 50 had Dillon Brooks not damaged his left hand. They shattered preseason predictions and successfully mocked the consultants who noticed nothing however doom and gloom in our foreseeable future.
The Suns unveiled a brand new tradition; a terrific younger head coach (Jordan Ott); a tone-setting robust man and fan favourite (Brooks); and gritty core items for the long run (Jordan Goodwin, Collin Gillespie, Oso Ighodaro). For three months, they punched up and landed haymakers. They ranked among the many greatest tales within the NBA.
“They’re organized, disciplined, physical, they attack the game,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault stated.
“I just have a high respect for the job that they’ve done this year. You know, they’ve obviously had a great season … they were able to get their floor raised very quickly, which is impressive. They got organized on both ends of the floor. They had a very clear identity that they played to very consistently. Those are the marks of a very strong foundation.”
And but the mind tells one other story. The Suns slogged to the end line, had been swept from the postseason for the second consecutive look and have now misplaced 10 consecutive playoff video games. They are in no man’s land, a staff adequate to make the playoffs and but they’re miles away from title competition.
The Suns have loads of work remaining. They want extra dimension. They want a balanced roster. More trades and difficult selections are certainly on the horizon.
And but the duality of the second ought to excite Valley sports activities followers. Owner Mat Ishbia is relentless, aggressive and free spending, an proprietor who does greater than writes checks. He checks crucial field. He is prepared to do something it takes to win. He has promised to ship a championship to Phoenix, and after making good on his promise to Suns followers coming into the season, he deserves the good thing about doubt. But this a lot is each daunting and plain:
The Suns went from the basement to the No. 8 seed in a single exceptional season. The subsequent steps are a lot steeper and much tougher.
