The Phoenix Suns are struggling without future NBA Hall of Famer Kevin Durant, who remains sidelined after suffering a calf strain against the Dallas Mavericks. The team has dropped four consecutive games during his absence, and head coach Mike Budenholzer made it clear that unity is key to getting through this rough patch.
Since Durant’s injury, the Suns have played six games but managed to win only one. To make matters worse, Bradley Beal has also missed time, leaving Devin Booker as the primary leader for the team.
After a 109-99 loss to the Orlando Magic—their fourth in a row—Budenholzer praised the team’s resilience in the face of adversity.“These guys are going to stay together… it’s a good group,” Budenholzer said in his postgame press conference.
“They’ve got a good spirit, they’ve got a good way about them. Through good times and the hard times, you have to keep coming to work, put your individual time, put your team time in, and keep your head up,“ he continued. “This group will do that. They’re very good, they’re very resilient.”
Devin Booker #1, Bradley Beal #3 and Kevin Durant #35 of the Phoenix Suns walk on the court during the first half of the NBA game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Footprint Center. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Tyus Jones stays level-headed
Tyus Jones led the Suns in scoring against the Magic with 18 points. Despite the tough stretch, Jones remains optimistic, emphasizing the importance of staying united and focused on improvement.
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“It’s a long season, it’s a long season,” Jones said. “There are ups and downs in the season. There are times that we’re going to be playing great ball, and there are times when we’re going to be struggling to get a win like right now.”
“You just got to continue to push through, you got to try to just stay somewhere in the middle and just try to continue to improve as a group,” Jones continued. “We know what our goals are. You can’t win a championship in November, so we got to continue to grow each and every day and just stay with it.”
What’s next for the Suns?
The Suns have a prime opportunity to turn things around with a five-game homestand. They’ll face the Knicks, Lakers, Nets, Warriors, and Spurs over the next stretch of games.
However, they’ll need to do so without Durant, who is recovering from a left calf strain and will be reevaluated in the coming days. If the Suns can rally around their core players and maintain the unity Budenholzer stressed, they have a chance to bounce back from this negative streak.
