{"id":660021,"date":"2026-03-15T19:38:34","date_gmt":"2026-03-15T19:38:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/660021\/"},"modified":"2026-03-15T19:38:34","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T19:38:34","slug":"suns-face-tough-schedule-in-pursuit-of-top-6-in-west","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/660021\/","title":{"rendered":"Suns face tough schedule in pursuit of top 6 in West"},"content":{"rendered":"

BOSTON \u2014 The Phoenix Suns are less than a month away from finishing their regular season on April 12 against the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder.<\/p>\n

Who knows what will be at stake at that time?<\/p>\n

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Right now, they\u2019re looking to bounce back on March 16 against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden after yielding a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter of a 122-115 loss to the Toronto Raptors on March 12.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast game, we had some slip-ups we can definitely control on the defensive end,\u201d Suns forward Royce O\u2019Neale said. \u201cCommunicate a little better. Feel like our communication got to be on point, especially going into these last couple of games of the road trip.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Raptors outscored the Suns, 27-10, in the final eight minutes of the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019ll be good going forward,\u201d Suns guard Jalen Green said after the loss to the Raptors. \u201cLearn from it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Phoenix Suns visit Toronto Raptors as 6-game road trip continues<\/p>\n

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) dribbles the ball around Toronto Raptors guard Ja’Kobe Walter (14) in the first half at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, on March 13, 2026.<\/p>\n

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Phoenix Suns visit Toronto Raptors as 6-game road trip continues<\/p>\n

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) dribbles the ball around Toronto Raptors guard Ja’Kobe Walter (14) in the first half at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, on March 13, 2026.<\/p>\n

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2 \/ 4<\/p>\n

Phoenix Suns visit Toronto Raptors as 6-game road trip continues<\/p>\n

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) dribbles the ball between Toronto Raptors guard Ja’Kobe Walter (14) and center Jakob Poeltl (19) in the first half at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, on March 13, 2026.<\/p>\n

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Phoenix Suns visit Toronto Raptors as 6-game road trip continues<\/p>\n

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) shoots the ball as Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) looks on in the first half at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, on March 13, 2026.<\/p>\n

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Phoenix Suns visit Toronto Raptors as 6-game road trip continues<\/p>\n

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) dribbles the ball past Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) in the first half at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, on March 13, 2026.<\/p>\n

With 15 games remaining, Phoenix (39-28) has the third-toughest remaining schedule. The final three games of its six-game road trip are against teams that have already clinched postseason play.<\/p>\n

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The Celtics (44-23) are second in the Eastern Conference with Jayson Tatum back after missing most of the season with a right Achilles injury suffered in last year\u2019s playoffs.<\/p>\n

The red-hot San Antonio Spurs (49-18) are second in the Western Conference, while the Minnesota Timberwolves (41-26) are fifth.<\/p>\n

Phoenix continues the road trip on March 17 against the T-Wolves in the second of a back-to-back and caps this stretch March 19 against the Spurs, who are 17-2 since Feb. 1.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery game is super important,\u201d Suns guard Collin Gillespie said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to take it one game at a time. Can\u2019t have mental lapses or the little details slip, and we know we\u2019re fighting for something every game. Every time we step on the floor, it\u2019s an important game. We can\u2019t let these opportunities slip, especially in the West.\u201d<\/p>\n

Three tough opponents, and the Suns can\u2019t afford to drop all three games in their pursuit of a top-six spot in the West. They are currently seventh in the West as teams 7-10 compete in the play-in tournament for the seventh and eighth seeds in each conference.<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou just understand the importance of every game,\u201d Suns coach Jordan Ott said. \u201cYou get to this point, how close the standings are. I think that\u2019s a big point to our guys. We\u2019ve got to value every possession, every game, every opportunity knowing how close everything is.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Thunder may have a one-seed in the West at stake when facing Phoenix next month.<\/p>\n

The Spurs trail Oklahoma City by three games heading into March 15, but own the head-to-head tiebreaker, 4-1.<\/p>\n

Phoenix has a realistic chance to land the sixth or even fifth seed. They\u2019re two games behind the T-Wolves for fifth and have a head-to-head tiebreaker, 2-0. Phoenix and Minnesota meet one more time on March 17 in a huge game for both teams.<\/p>\n

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Phoenix trails the Denver Nuggets by just one and a half games for sixth, but it\u2019s 0-2 against them this season. There is one more matchup on March 24 in Phoenix.<\/p>\n

While the Suns can\u2019t win the head-to-head tiebreaker, they can gain a full game over the Nuggets with a win that night.<\/p>\n

Minnesota and Denver are interesting teams. Playoff tested. Have a superstar leading the way. Anthony Edwards is a special player. Nikola Jokic is the game\u2019s best player.<\/p>\n

But the Nuggets and T-Wolves find themselves having to fight off the Suns to avoid the play-in.<\/p>\n

Then there are the Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers.<\/p>\n

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Remember when the Suns stunned the Lakers, 113-110, last month in Phoenix? The Lakers have gone 8-1 since, with Doncic looking like the game\u2019s best player.<\/p>\n

Averaging 33.2 points during this stretch, Doncic hit a game-winning baseline jumper to knock off the Nuggets in overtime, 127-125, on March 14 in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

The Lakers are finding ways to win, but the Suns are just three games behind them for third and have the head-to-head tiebreaker, 3-1.<\/p>\n

That could change soon.<\/p>\n

The Houston Rockets are fourth in the West and just a half-game behind the Lakers. They play each other twice \u2014 March 16 and March 18.<\/p>\n

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The Suns have a chance to catch either one, but they are fully aware that taking care of their own business is the most important thing in pursuit of a top-six seed.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlayoffs are right around the corner,\u201d Suns guard Jordan Goodwin said after the March 13 loss. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to double down on everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com<\/a> or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com<\/a> today.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Where Phoenix Suns are in pursuit of top-6 seed in West<\/a><\/p>\n