Tuesday, Jan. 11th @ Toronto WIN! 99-95
Thursday, Jan. 14th @ Indiana WIN! 112-94
Sunday, Jan. 16th @ Detroit WIN! 135-108
This Week's Games
Monday, Jan. 17th @ San Antonio WIN! 121-107
Thursday, Jan. 20th @ Dallas TNT 7:30 PM EST
Saturday, Jan. 22nd vs. Indiana BSAZ 9:00 PM EST
Suns Stories
Devin Booker leads Suns with season-high 48 points in win vs. Spurs
https://arizonasports.com/story/2974157 ... -vs-spurs/
3 Trade Deadline Deals Involving Suns Big Man Dario Saric
https://valleyofthesuns.com/2022/01/18/ ... rio-saric/
Devin Booker, Darius Garland named NBA Players of the Week
https://arizonasports.com/story/2940107 ... -for-suns/
ESPN Power Rankings
https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/330 ... eep-rising
CBSSportsline Midseason Grades1. Phoenix Suns
2021-22 record: 33-9
Previous ranking: 2
Chris Paul is looking to secure his fifth season of averaging 10 assists and two steals with his third team. He did it over three consecutive seasons with New Orleans (2007-10) and once with the Clippers (2013-14). He is the only player to accomplish the feat with two franchises since the NBA started recording steals in 1973-74. At 36, he also would be the oldest player to hit those marks in the same season. -- Lopez
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2021 ... irst-half/
SI Power RankingsPhoenix Suns: A+
The Suns have emphatically proven that last season's run to the NBA Finals was no fluke, posting the league's best record and second-best net rating in the first half of the 2021-22 season. They've essentially been a top-five offense and a top-five defense for the majority of the season, and that's with Chris Paul posting the worst field goal and 3-point percentages since he was a rookie. Devin Booker is shooting a career high from 3-point range, Deandre Ayton, Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges have all continued to develop, while JaVale McGee and Jalen Smith have plugged a hole at backup center. Overall, Monty Williams' squad couldn't have asked for a better first half of the season. -- Colin Ward-Henninger
https://www.si.com/nba/2022/01/17/nba-p ... nd-sellers
NBA Power Rankings1. Phoenix Suns
Current record: 33-9
Previous ranking: 2
Casual buyers. Phoenix can and should browse around the market, but James Jones doesn’t need to make any splashy moves. The Suns are comfortably in first place in the NBA, though Jones does have some movable pieces in Jalen Smith and Dario Saric, whose salaries add up to a mid-priced veteran. Saric hasn’t played since tearing his ACL in last year’s Finals, and Smith has actually had some nice moments this season after the team curiously declined his option, which means he’s a free agent this summer. Trading Smith isn’t as obvious as it once was thanks to the potential he’s flashed with the starters, as well as Deandre Ayton’s own up-in-the-air contract situation. Still, if anyone can help Phoenix in a playoff series, Jones should be poking around for a bargain.
https://www.nba.com/news/power-rankings-2021-22-week-14
#2 Last Week: 3 ↑
Phoenix Suns
Record: 33-9
Pace: 100.3 (6) OffRtg: 111.8 (6) DefRtg: 104.1 (2) NetRtg: +7.7 (3)
The last time the Suns had played a matinee in the Eastern time zone (New Year’s Eve in Boston), they were down 30 before halftime. But in Detroit on Sunday afternoon, you could see in the early-game defensive effort of Devin Booker that they weren’t going to let that happen again, even though they were able to come back from second-half deficits in Toronto and Indiana earlier in the week. The Pistons hung around with some tough shot-making in the first quarter, but Phoenix eventually gained separation and registered their most efficient offensive performance of the season and their ninth win by at least 20 points. (Only the Jazz — 10 – have more.) The Suns have won the last 28 games they’ve led by double-digits (having lost two in the first nine days of the season).
Two weeks ago, the Warriors and Jazz were the only teams that ranked in the top six on both ends of the floor. Now, it’s only the Suns, who rank first offensively and third defensively in the month of January. Alas, Deandre Ayton was back from his Health-and-Safety absence for less than four games before he turned his ankle in Detroit. Jalen Smith had actually retained a spot in the rotation with both Ayton and JaVale McGee healthy, playing some minutes alongside both of the other bigs over the last 10 days.
The Suns are 7-1 in rest-advantage games (only three teams have played more), and they’ll have three more over the next two weeks, with the first of those being their visit to Dallas on Thursday.