Will the Big 3 era with Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal, and Devin Booker flame out before it even gets started?
In the span of six months, the Phoenix Suns made the conscious effort to transform what was one of the better-supporting casts in the NBA into two superstars heading into the final chapter of their respective careers in an attempt to win a championship with Devin Booker.
In a vacuum, it seemed like a great move. Objectively, any time you get the opportunity to acquire Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal via trade, you make the move. Which is exactly what the Suns did. Heading into the season with a core four of KD, Booker, Beal, and Jusuf Nurkic (who was acquired as part of the Deandre Ayton trade), the Suns were a natural favorite. In a sense, many viewed Phoenix as a team that had too much talent to fail.
But here we are. Roughly 30 games into the regular season, a couple of weeks away from the midway point of the season, and the Suns are looking more and more like a failure with every passing day.
The Suns are 14-15 and are officially sitting outside the top 10 in the Western Conference standings. If the season ended today, the Suns wouldn't even have a good enough record to qualify for the Play-In Tournament in the West.
The Phoenix Suns don't just miss Bradley Beal
Perhaps the biggest issue for the Suns is not even their inability to get healthy. With how much the team has struggled this season, I have a hard time believing that all of the Suns' concerns will be answered if Beal returns to the lineup. In fact, in the six games that Beal has played with the Suns, the team is just 2-4.
There are much deeper issues at play here that Phoenix has to try to get to the root of. For instance, the Suns have a below-average offense and defense on the season. That's not a healthy formula that's going to translate to much winning. Add in that the Suns gutted their roster to acquire KD and Beal in the last few months and their issues begin to make even more sense.
Is the end of the Big 3 on the horizon for the Phoenix Suns?
The losing has gotten so bad that there are already whispers of frustration going on behind the scenes in Phoenix. According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, there is a sense of frustration from Durant regarding the situation that is taking place with the Suns.
At this point, how could you blame Durant? He made the trade request with the hope of landing with a team that could win a championship this season. And on paper, the Suns looked like the perfect candidate. However, that simply hasn't paid off for Phoenix.
In fact, with Beal's continuing injury issues, there's a chance that the Suns' big 3 flames out before it even starts.