Bright Side Baller: Another brutal loss proves the Suns are exactly who the standings say they are..
Another night, another reminder of how far the Suns are from contention.
Some teams just have your number. For the Phoenix Suns, two of them happened to come in back-to-back games. First, the Minnesota Timberwolves. An imposing force built on size, length, and athleticism, a combination the Suns simply couldn’t counter. Four games. Four losses. A season sweep.
Then came the Houston Rockets on Sunday night, a team defined by relentless athleticism, defensive tenacity, and sheer grit. Three more games. Three more losses. Another sweep.
That’s right. The Suns are 0-7 against Minnesota and Houston this season.
At this point, there’s little left to analyze. The season is running on fumes, and games like this don’t reveal new problems; they only reaffirm the ones that have plagued Phoenix all year. There’s no magic fix, no late-season revelation, no Band-Aid capable of covering a wound this deep. This team isn’t just struggling. It’s in critical condition, both in the short term and the long term. And once again, against Houston, the Suns were given a stark reminder of just how far they are from being anything close to a consistently competitive team in the NBA.
The Suns weren’t just beaten in the first half. They were obliterated. Every statistical category tilted in Houston’s favor, a lopsided beatdown that had more to do with the Rockets looking great than the Suns looking bad.
And yet, Phoenix played a key role in that greatness. They made it easy. They let Houston dominate the glass, gave away possessions with careless live-ball turnovers, and allowed transition buckets like clockwork.
Same script. Same outcome.
Outhustled. Outworked. Outclassed. The Suns didn’t just look like a struggling team on Sunday night. They looked exactly like what the standings say they are: the 11th seed in the Western Conference.
Bright Side Baller Season Standings
Have yourself a night, Collin Gillespie!
The Suns may have fallen flat in Minnesota, but CG12’s performance was enough to earn him his second Bright Side Baller award of the season. He dominated with 88% of the vote and now has surpassed former Suns Josh Okogie and Jusuf Nurkic, as well as current Sun Damion Lee.
Bright Side Baller Nominees
Devin Booker
28 points (12-of-17, 1-of-4 3PT), 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 turnovers, -26 +/-
Kevin Durant
11 points (5-of-11, 1-of-3 3PT), 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover, -27 +/-
Mason Plumlee
9 points (3-of-3), 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 0 +/-
Monté Morris
10 points (4-of-6, 2-of-2 3PT), 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, -4 +/-
Bol Bol
7 points (3-of-5, 1-of-3 3PT), 0 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 turnovers, -6 +/-
Grayson Allen
7 points (2-of-5, 1-of-2 3PT), 0 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 0 blocks, 1 turnover, -22 +/-
