NBA Insider Marc Stein: The Phoenix Suns Are the West’s BIGGEST Surprise

NBA Insider Marc Stein: The Phoenix Suns Are the West’s BIGGEST Surprise

They’re they’re doing it with a small team. We’ve barely seen Jaylen Green. Always happy to welcome in my friend, our NBA insider, Mark Stein. Mark, how are you? I’m good, Espo. Probably not as good as you, but I’m all right. I’m all right. I mean, the team in our city is winning. I I didn’t expect me to be on the winning end and the Dallas uh fan base to to be struggling so far this season, but what has surprised you early on here uh in the NBA? What’s caught your attention? Well, it was funny because I knew you would I figured you’d want to obviously focus on on your squad and um you know, there are not many pleasant surprises in the Western Conference. You would have to say the Suns are certainly in that category. In the in the East, we’ve got them. I mean, the Pistons, I thought last season the Pistons were the best story in the NBA, going from 14 wins to 42, surviving the 28game losing streak, which set a single season record. But for the Pistons to go up a notch, for Cade Cunningham to be forcing his way into the MV MVP conversation, for Duran to be playing at an all-star level, they’ve been a great surprise. But so is Toronto. I think even Philly with you all the injuries they’ve had and they’ve found a way to win the Bulls. So, like in the East, we have surprise teams, but in the West, your Suns might be the number one surprise at the as we dribble to the 20 game mark. We’re not quite there yet, but we’re we’re getting there. What surprised you most? I mean, obviously the record and being the same as it was this time last year is surprising, but what’s caught your eye with the Suns and from people that you’ve talked to, what’s kind of been the vibe around this squad? Well, look, they the messaging in Phoenix, as I’m sure you guys have discussed many, many times, was that if nothing else, the Suns were going to play scrappy, be watchable, be fun, and try to make the fans smile after last season, which was as dispirit dispiriting as it could get. And again, it is still early. And I think you would also agree with me that the schedule has not been the toughest to this point. But they’re doing that. They are playing with a great spirit, a great scrainess. I’ve only seen them once in person when they came to Dallas, but like they they are they’re they’re doing it. I mean, they’re with a small team. We’ve barely seen Jaylen Green, but I think what I took a quick glance this morning at the at the league leaders. I think they’re 12th in defense in defensive rating. Again, very early. Not the toughest schedule, but I don’t remember too many people saying that the Suns would have a top 12 defense even. So, no, there there were plenty saying they might be the 30th uh the worst defense in the league. I mean, I think Vegas the overunder was sub 30. So, I mean, they they they definitely fall into the pleasant surprise category. The question will be how long can it last? How will they do as the schedule gets tougher and my instinct is you would rather have Jaylen Green out there than not? So, they got to get him healthy and get him back and and and see what he and Book can do as a tandem. Yeah, I think that the respect for Jordan Au and his ability to coach and develop systems has been uh something that’s really caught a lot of attention around the league as well. But you bring up the injuries. How surprised have you been uh and with how much we’ve seen these soft tissue injuries and kind of the attention that has been getting around the league? Obviously, you mentioned Jaylen Green. He’s one here in Phoenix, but it’s kind of been prevalent throughout the NBA. I mean there there’s no other way to say it. It sucks. Like it just it’s the beginning of the season. This is when hope teams genuine generally still have hope. Now we’ve actually seen at the bottom of the East and the I mean the bottom of the West. You look at the bottom of the West and it’s stunning just how many teams are already in chaos in in real trouble. But also, you know, the NBA put out the video yesterday. There’s been six buzzer beers already in the first 30 days of the season. I mean, these are the things we should be talking about, but obviously we’ve got off-c court issues with the whole gambling story, which was a thunderbolt that, you know, shook the whole league when that happens two, three days into the season. But yeah, I mean, the injuries because there is nobody seems to have the answer there. there is no clear-cut answer beyond shorten the season and we know that’s not happening tomorrow. So the like you talk to so many people around the league. Steve Kerr has spoken about this so many times. The faster pace of the modern NBA. Not just the faster pace, the literal mileage guys are putting on the court coverage demands in modern defense and you know what it takes to get out to all these three-point shooters and the number of threes being taken. I mean, that’s been a key element certainly of the Sun’s early success is that a always gets four shooters on the floor. Okay, we can talk about the Suns lack of size. We can talk about the Suns lack of a traditional point guard. You know, center questions, whatever it is, but Jordan Knot seems to find a way to get four shooters on the floor. threes are going up and Book has so much gravity as a star that he bends the floor even if he’s not your textbook Steve Nashian point guard and that’s how they’re doing it at the offensive end and let’s we all know it for a decade now the three-point shot has changed the game that the way has been played play the game the way the play the way that the game is played has has changed changed dramatically. The demands of modern defense have changed dramatically. And every front office is worried about it. And how to fix it is a very elusive answer. And I and I am not the medical expert who can even pretend to provide it. I can only relay to you what I hear when I talk to coaches, GMs, and players. But I mean that there’s no way that this doesn’t bring you down to I mean last last weekend last weekend I couldn’t believe like I just one one calf injury after another updates you know Anthony Davis John Morant Drew Holiday then WBY then the groin thing happens with Giannis. It’s just it it’s how can you not find that disparity? I mean, you haven’t you haven’t played a doctor on a podcast or anything, you know, just that just the experts you talk to. I try not to. I I mean, yeah. I mean, look, when you cover the league and you you know, we’re constantly talking about injuries, you know, I want to think I’ve learned something over the last 30 odd years, but uh no, you you were uh you know, you’ve patented the hashtag this league. Has this season so far lived up to that? because it feels like this is the quintessential 15 games that uh that defines this league so far. Well, I I think it genu it it usually does live up to that and that’s why the hashtag works because I mean I remember in my in my I mean it was it sounds funny because it’s such a simple statement but I when I was a very young beatw writer covering the Lakers and Mitchoff absolute legend in the LA media covered the Lakers for years and years and years for the LA Herald Examiner and the Daily Breeze and just I you know I was you I’m in my 20s. I’m in over my head. I’m covering the NBA probably sooner than I should be. Um, you know, and I’m I’m still wound tight after all these layers, but back then I was just wound super tight, always uptight, always. And you know, he he would just say, you know, something always happens. And it sounds so simple, but it but I mean, it is it is the NBA. something like thunderbolts just strike in this league with great frequency. We we’re inching towards that uh December date where guys are going to become uh trade eligible. What have you heard kind of rumbling wise so far? And uh have you heard anything on the Sun’s front when it comes to interest in any movies? I got to say I think it’s still too soon for it. I mean, look, we are talking in Dallas. Certainly, there’s a lot of questions about how are the Mavs going to move forward given how start how bad their start has been. So, there’s a lot of Anthony Davis curiosity. There’s a lot of John Morant curiosity because of what’s happening with the Grizzlies. Now, we’ve got LaMelo Ball curiosity because of the story yesterday and and and where the Hornets are, the Kings, because they’re off to such a rough start. But it’s a lot of concepts right now and I wouldn’t say it’s I you know you know it’s still too we got to get it we got we got to at least get I think to December 15th before anything truly serious starts to percolate. Um, you know, the Suns obviously don’t have huge optionality because, you know, their their storage of of trade assets is limited. But I, you know, I think honestly the way they would look at it is since they’ve barely seen Jaylen Green, like Jaylen Green when they can get him healthy is going to be a major addition. And I say when, I hope I don’t have to say if. They got to get him healthy. Got to get him back out there. Yeah. Uh you and uh your Substack mate Jake Fischer are doing something cool today at 3 PM Eastern. You guys are going to do a chat over there on the Stein Line. Uh is you know I’m I’ve been a subscriber. I know you guys do this kind of stuff, but how fun is it to talk uh with your subscribers and kind of just discuss the NBA like that? Yeah, actually today starts year two with Jake joining me as a twice a week contributing writer. And so I can’t believe that a year has already flown by. It was literally last year, the the Thursday before Thanksgiving that that we announced that Jake was going to be writing for me. So, we do like to do this from time to time where we have a a chat for our subscribers only. It’s basically, you know, our version of ask us anything. You got to be a subscriber to be part of it. And uh we’ll be in there celebrating year 1, but also, you know, the celebrations will last about 30 seconds and it’ll be like, “Where’s AD going? Who are the Suns trading for?” Just like you. So, it’ll be good. I’ll throw a couple Suns uh curveballs your way as well. It’ll be It’ll be good. Uh go over and subscribe to the Stein Line on Substack. It is one of my favorite reads and it hits your inbox directly, so you don’t have to go search for it. you. It finds you. Uh, you can also follow Mark at the Steinline. Mark, always a pleasure. Thanks for your time. Thank you for putting up with my coughing. I can’t help it. I start shouting and then I start coughing. Are you, by the way, are is I can’t Is that a PHNX hat you got on there? It is. It’s our flag. Yeah. So, we Yeah. So, we’re we’re both wearing We’re both wearing our respective uh company headwear today. Some Sometimes we got to shill, right? My or my orange glasses. I I can’t find my orange glasses though, so apologies. I’ll ship you a new pair and a PHNX hat so we can get that Dallas thing off your head. You Hey, you know what? If you send me one, I’ll wear it for I’ll wear it for Southwest Bias. Send me one. That is That is coming your way. Mark, have a happy Thanksgiving. We appreciate you. Be good. The toxin.

NBA Insider Marc Stein isn’t holding back — he says the Phoenix Suns are the Western Conferences’ biggest surprise this season. From their unexpected defensive identity to the rise of key rotation pieces like Grayson Allen and Dillon Brooks, the Suns are outperforming every preseason expectation.