The nightmare that is the Phoenix Suns' 2024-25 season took another cruel turn on Sunday, with Kevin Durant suffering an ankle sprain as the team were walloped by the Houston Rockets. A defeat made all the worse because the Rockets are in control of the Suns' first round pick in this year's NBA Draft.
The loss also made the prospect of the Suns making the play-in tournament look as unlikely as it has all season, and the fact they have the toughest remaining schedule in the league doesn't make for pretty reading. It has since been revealed that Durant will miss at least a week of action - which would take in three games - a huge blow as he has been their best player this season.
This is the final chance for Bradley Beal to win The Valley over.
This is not the turn of events that fans will have wanted to see - and Beal is still out with a hamstring issue of his own although he is progressing nicely - but this is where we find ourselves as the calendar flips to April. Beal has a no-trade clause and is going nowhere, whereas the likelihood of Durant moving on this offseason is as strong as ever.
It has been a tough season for Beal in Phoenix - really since he arrived this has not gone very well - but to his credit he has done whatever the Suns have asked of him. He has willingly come off the bench and wants to be on the team, which is if nothing else a positive starting point. Beyond that however and he's too injury-prone at this point and is not a good defender most nights.
Bradley Beal has a -236 plus/minus this season. That is 532nd out of 562 players in the NBA. pic.twitter.com/mAFnLK4yRw
β John Voita (@DarthVoita) March 29, 2025
Which is strange because a lot of the quickness he clearly possesses is still there, but there is just not a lot of fight to get over screens or stay in front of his man. Being the third option on this team - and with a host of below par defenders such as Tyus Jones and Bol Bol around him - the deficiencies of Beal have been laid bare, and it has been ugly.
But if he is to return to action before the end of the regular season - and the most recent update was positive - then this is the perfect chance to show fans that he can still be something for this group. With Durant gone he can assume a larger scoring role, something he excelled with while a part of the Washington Wizards.
Suns without Bradley Beal is so much better man ππ pic.twitter.com/bFyMM1gToH
β ππ΅πΆπ―π―π’β (@Stunna999_) March 25, 2025
He will still be a dreadful defender - but if you're putting up 30 each night - it makes that fact easier to swallow. As it is Beal's 17.3 points per night is his worst output since the 2015-16 season, although the 39.5 percent he has managed from deep has been more than acceptable. Unfortunately for Beal however, the offensive has clearly hummed much better without him on the court.
For the season the Suns sit a respectable 10th, putting up 115.1 points each night on average. Contrast that with when he is on the court, and that number shrinks to 111.0, a worrying decline. The ball sticks to Beal when he is out there, although from his point of view he could be trying to get his on a roster that features both Durant and Devin Booker.
Which is what the franchise will be hoping he can do for the rest of the campaign, if he can even get back on the court. Striking up any sort of chemistry with Booker - as well as upping the scoring punch with Durant out - is about the best the Suns can hope for here. That's what their future is looking like anyway, so they better get used to it. Bleak yes, but it is all they've got right now.