Another head hangs lowly. Child is slowly taken…
The Phoenix Suns return home, not as warriors triumphant, but as a team battered and broken, dragging themselves back after a road trip that was nothing short of punishing. A dismal 1-3 stretch — marked by defeats at the hands of the Nuggets, Grizzlies, and Rockets — only further exposed their mounting struggles. Their lone victory came against a Dallas squad missing its firepower, a hollow consolation in the grander scheme.
This is no mere slump; this is a collapse in slow motion. Once standing three games above .500 on February 1, they now find themselves six games beneath it, victims of a 5-14 freefall that has drained the hope from a season once filled with promise. They are not just limping home. They are unraveling like a stray thread on a t-shirt that unseams the collar. Shoulda just left that tag.
And the violence cause such silence. Who are we mistaken?
In this bleak stretch, even the victories feel hollow, mere footnotes in a spiraling narrative. They scraped by the lowly Jazz, needing a miracle, Rex Chapman-esque three-pointer just to force overtime. They edged out the Bulls by four, but only because their Big Three poured in a combined 81 points. A win against the Pelicans on the second night of a back-to-back felt less like triumph and more like a desperate attempt to save face. And then, there was the Clippers game, which featured an improbable fourth-quarter comeback, fueled by 19 points from Kevin Durant and a desperate 10-point spark from part-time G Leaguer Collin Gillespie. Even in victory, the cracks are widening, the foundation trembling.
My point? Even when the Suns win, it’s a grind. Every inch contested, every moment a battle. There have been no dominant performances, no statement victories that instill confidence. Just survival.
But you see, it’s not me. It’s not my family. In your head, in your head…
In this brutal stretch, and truthfully throughout the season, convincing wins have been a rarity. The Suns have won by 16 or more points just four times all year. A 27-point rout of the Lakers back in November, a 25-point victory over the Warriors a full 20 games ago, a 24-point win against the Nets nine days before that, and a 17-point triumph over the Pelicans in late February. Scattered, fleeting glimpses of control in a season defined by struggle.
Their four wins by 16 or more points rank as the eighth-fewest in the NBA. Only Atlanta, Brooklyn, Washington, Utah, Charlotte, Philadelphia, and New Orleans have fewer.
Zombie, Zombie, Zombie…
Meanwhile, at the top of the standings, the Oklahoma City Thunder have steamrolled their opponents by 16+ points 27 times, exactly half of their 54 wins. When the Thunder win, they dominate. They step on your throat. They kick you in the ribs. The Suns? Only 13% of their victories come with any sense of authority. More often than not, even their triumphs feel like a war of attrition.
The Phoenix Suns have won just 4 games by 16+ points this season. That’s 13% of their total wins (4 of 30), which is tied for sixth-least in the NBA.
In short? When the Suns do win, they don’t blow teams out.
— John Voita (@DarthVoita) March 13, 2025
“This road trip took a little bit out of us,” Mike Budenholzer said after Wednesday’s loss. “But I think these guys, couple of nights in their own bed, get back in our gym, we’ll be ready to go.”
But will we be ready to go?
Another mother’s breakin, heart is taken over. When the violence causes silence, we must be mistaken…
It’s one thing to watch your team lose. It’s a painful experience that fans of all teams endure. But what makes this stretch so unbearable is the brutal collision of expectation and talent. This isn’t a rebuild, it’s not a case of low expectations where you hope for growth and minor victories.
Wizards’ fans, for example, weren’t fantasizing about 50+ win seasons or championship runs. They wanted their young guys to show progress and carve out a direction for the future. But when you have Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal on the roster, the bar is different. Expectations soar. And when you consistently fall short of those expectations, it hurts. But when it happens again, and again, and again? It becomes a form of torture.
This team, with all its star power, should be playing with a fire that’s yet to be consistently seen. It’s no wonder the Suns’ once-vibrant fanbase has transformed from a passionate, sometimes rowdy bunch into a group of apathetic zombies, numbed by the disappointment. It’s as though we’ve become a reflection of the team itself.
And so, tomorrow night, the Suns will take the court at home against the Kings. But what will it be like? After yet another setback, will the crowd be quick to voice their frustration? Or will the team finally give them something to cheer for, something that will ignite even a spark of hope again?
I’m not sure what’s more painful. The frustration of these losses or the looming uncertainty about what the future holds.
Zombie, Zombie, Zombie…
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