20 Game Check-In

[ShelC]

In the NBA they say you know what you are after 20 games (I think?). Not sure that's really true in our case since we haven't seen Book, Beal and KD play together just yet but we're 12-8, currently 5th in the West. Let's see some evals for the first quarter of the season - Thoughts on the guys who have played? The style? The coaching? This is a brand new team so how's the roster composition looked so far? Happy with the trade? The FA signings? Will go with basic letter grades for the poll but feel free to add a plus or minus for some nuance.

[Kryptonic]

Given the rotation of injuries, new players to adjust and brand new coaching staff… I think we’ve done pretty dang good. Was a slow start but seems they’re starting to get a better feel for each other. If we can get healthy…. The leagues in trouble.

[TOO]

Booker and KD give off the we're too good for the regular season vibes when they play together. I give this team a C, too many mental lapses.

[Split T]

I’m on the B-/C+ fence at the moment. We’ve looked quite good when KD/Book both play…haven’t seen the full squad yet. I think the offense will be lethal…I’m worried about the defense. Will we be able to slow down a team like the Nuggets enough to beat them? Or will we have to crank out 4 unreal offensive performances against them? Nurkic vs Jokic did give me some hope.

[bajanguy008]

Booker and KD give off the we're too good for the regular season vibes when they play together. I give this team a C, too many mental lapses.

Ahhhh
Someone else sees it

Was gonna post something along these lines in the Game Day thread. Obviously they have massive respect/admiration for each other but does seem to be a Yeah i got my running mate with me, this'll be light work vibe most games

[Furlanfufi]

I wish we're running more. And the offense is extremely dependant on KD and Book. The coaching staff should put the role players in positions where they can score more to unload the burden on our stars.
And for all the talk about Vogel being a defense master, our defense are still lacking.

[specialsauce]

I’m unimpressed.

We still have no identity. We still have way too many sloppy turnovers and mental lapses. We haven’t really improved since game 1.

[TOO]

Booker and KD give off the we're too good for the regular season vibes when they play together. I give this team a C, too many mental lapses.

Ahhhh
Someone else sees it

Was gonna post something along these lines in the Game Day thread. Obviously they have massive respect/admiration for each other but does seem to be a Yeah i got my running mate with me, this'll be light work vibe most games

It's so obnoxious, they go out and show they can't be stopped for 20 of the 35 minutes they play then the Suns kinda just glide the rest of the time. It's hard to watch.

[JeremyG]

If you count Toronto, then we are 3-7 when Booker is injured. In the 10 games Booker has been healthy, we are 9-1.

[Drewsprocket]

We’re in a good spot waiting for the team to be healthy to come together.

[Split T]

If you count Toronto, then we are 3-7 when Booker is injured. In the 10 games Booker has been healthy, we are 9-1.

Ya we clearly look much better with Book…think too many people in here are judging the team they’ve seen too often this year(the one with Book out).

I’m still not convinced the one with Book is good enough, but we also still haven’t even seen the one with everyone healthy.

[AmareIsGod]

Relative to expectations I had, C+. Health is sometimes outside of control.

[Kryptonic]

Booker and KD give off the we're too good for the regular season vibes when they play together. I give this team a C, too many mental lapses.

Ahhhh
Someone else sees it

Was gonna post something along these lines in the Game Day thread. Obviously they have massive respect/admiration for each other but does seem to be a Yeah i got my running mate with me, this'll be light work vibe most games

It's so obnoxious, they go out and show they can't be stopped for 20 of the 35 minutes they play then the Suns kinda just glide the rest of the time. It's hard to watch.

100%…. Tired of all these huge leads getting blown. It’s like a poorly scripted tv show that you just know is inevitable…. They clean that up and we’re good.

[wpmiller42]

I think if we hadn't blown some weird games (the 2 against the Lakers and the 2 against SA in particular), I would have given an A. But it's a B for me right now. Injuries have been frustrating, but I like what I'm seeing most of the time, and I think there's room for improvement.

[Split T]

I’ll just point out that Booker was out for every one of those 4th Q meltdowns

[Superbone]

I’ll just point out that Booker was out for every one of those 4th Q meltdowns

As good as Durant has been, Booker is definitely the catalyst for winning Suns basketball.

[Superbone]

I give us a B- so far considering we have yet to have our Big 3 in a single game. Lots to work on but I can see a strong team if we can clean it up. Especially on defense and desire. Like Vogel says, even with our superstars, we need to outwork our opponents. If we do that, I think we can contend with the best including Denver.

[Flagrant Fowl]

I think a 'B' is the fairest. There are so many new parts to this team and the injuries have just made it even more difficult to hit the offensive apex we all expected.

I would've gone lower if some of the role players fell flat, which hasn't been the case at all. I would've gone higher if they weren't so lackadaisical with ball security and rebounding for several games.

[Shabazz]

I will say it has been weird rooting for this team in the non-Booker games, where it’s almost an entirely new roster from this time last season. Other than Book, there isn’t a single “home grown” player we’ve become attached to.

I’m also a lot more emotionally detached watching the regular season this year because of the general feeling that it kind of doesn’t matter. It’s a result of being a little scarred from the last few playoffs and also recognizing that how we perform in December has little bearing on how we’ll do in May, when the single biggest determining factor to our success will be health.

[Superbone]

I will say it has been weird rooting for this team in the non-Booker games, where it’s almost an entirely new roster from this time last season. Other than Book, there isn’t a single “home grown” player we’ve become attached to.

I’m also a lot more emotionally detached watching the regular season this year because of the general feeling that it kind of doesn’t matter. It’s a result of being a little scarred from the last few playoffs and also recognize that how we perform in December has little bearing on how we’ll do in May, when the single biggest determining factor to our success will be health.

Speaking of home grown.