The Phoenix Suns are laboring through an ugly performance against the Los Angeles Lakers, as they fell behind by 20 points in the first quarter and have trailed by double digits for much of the game. At halftime, Stephen A. Smith tore into the team after their latest ugly performance in what's been a wildly disappointing campaign.
The Suns have not managed to meet expectations this season, as they had a 31-36 record heading into this game. Despite that, they aren't far behind the Dallas Mavericks for the No. 10 seed in the Western Conference, and team owner Mat Ishbia made it clear recently that he hasn't lost hope in his squad just yet.
"I still believe in our team. I still believe in Coach Budenholzer. I believe in the guys we have. And at the same time, at the end of the season, if we don't get to where we expect to get to, I'll have enough data and evidence that it didn't work or it did work. And then we'll make decisions based on that," Ishbia told ESPN recently.
It's tough to have faith in Phoenix, though, when they are getting mopped by the LeBron James-less Lakers, and Kevin Durant is seen going after his coach Mike Budenholzer on the sidelines. Smith was appalled with what he saw from the Suns in the first half, and he let them hear it.
"The Phoenix Suns resembled a little kid that was placed punishment by his parents and assigned to do chores. That's how they made playing the game of basketball look in the first half, like it was this arduous, painful task that they had to subject themselves to. That's how bad they looked," Smith said during ESPN's halftime show for this game.
"The Phoenix Suns resembled a little kid that was placed on punishment by his parents and assigned to do chores. That's how they made playing the game of basketball look in the first half."
Stephen A. Smith RIPPED on the Suns on the halftime show pic.twitter.com/7rwvCHdKED
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 16, 2025
Despite their woes in this game, the Suns have hung around in the second half, as they entered the fourth quarter trailing by 12 points. However, as Smith notes, it may be tough for them to pull off a comeback given how poor they have looked throughout this one so far.
Related: Kevin Durant, Mike Budenholzer Get Into Heated Argument During Suns Clash vs. Lakers
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This story was originally published March 16, 2025 at 4:36 PM.