Eric Bledsoe Says The Suns Are ‘Trying To Get A High Spot’ In The Playoffs

For two seasons now, the Phoenix Suns have come improbably close to making the playoffs. This year, point guard Eric Bledsoe doesn’t just want to come close, nor does he want to sneak in – he wants a high playoff seed. As he tells ABC15 in Arizona:

“We’ve definitely trying to make a run at a playoff spot. We’re not trying to get the last spot, either,” Bledsoe said Monday at Larry Fitzgerald’s 7th annual Supper Club event.

“We’re trying to get a high spot. We’re definitely looking forward to it.”

It’s an admirable and understandable goal. The Suns’ chances of reaching that goal, however, aren’t all that high. Jeff Hornacek’s double point guard system took the league by storm in its first year, with Goran Dragic and Bledsoe running wild on opposing defenses. Rather than try to replicate that success, the Suns sought to add on it one season later, signing Isaiah Thomas to be their third lead ballhandler. Unfortunately, instead of bolstering the offense, having too many cooks in the kitchen (or running point, you get the idea) led to clashing egos and crumbling chemistry. The Suns ended up trading away both Dragic and Thomas, landing another point guard – Brandon Knight – in return.

The Bledsoe/Knight pairing didn’t produce the desired results. Though it was a small sample size – 11 games to be exact – the duo had a net rating of -1.1 when they shared the court, according to NBA.com. The hope is that as the two get more familiar and learn each other’s tendencies, that number will rise. There’s no guarantee that it will, obviously, and if it doesn’t, the Suns could have a tricky situation on their hands given the money they just committed to Knight.

The Suns’ constant player carousel is cause for concern, and not just because it’s costing the Suns continuity. Dragic and Thomas, both of whom were unhappy in their roles (Dragic publicly, Thomas privately), were just the start. Markieff Morris has quite explicitly demanded a trade, saying he no longer wants to play for the Suns after they disrespected his brother. There were even odd rumblings of Hornacek wanting out to coach Iowa State. Are these all just one-off instances, and it’s only a coincidence that they’re happening so close to one another? Or is it a pattern? If it’s the latter, that doesn’t bode well for the Suns front office.

Brandon Knight, Goran Dragic
Getty Image

And let’s not forget the brutality of the Western conference. Without even mentioning the heavy hitters at the top, the New Orleans Pelicans and Utah Jazz will be much-improved, and it’s a mortal lock that the Oklahoma City Thunder, who missed out on the eighth seed by a half game, will be back in the playoffs. The Portland Trail Blazers and, to a lesser degree, Dallas Mavericks could drop, but that still doesn’t leave much room for the Suns.

Even if they lose Morris, a key contributor for the past two seasons, the Suns will still have improved, especially with Tyson Chandler now holding down the interior and another year of growth from young players like T.J. Warren and Alex Len. But even with all of their improvements, the West may just be too strong for them to realistically get anything more than the seventh or eighth seed. Which is still a very good thing! It’s all about reasonable expectations. To be in the contention for the Western conference playoffs in just the third year of what was supposed to be a rebuilding project is no small feat.

(Via ABC15)

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