Can the Suns take advantage of a cold James Harden and slumping Clippers?
Who: Phoenix Suns (28-33) vs. Los Angeles Clippers (32-28)
When: 8:00pm Arizona Time
Where: PHX Arena — Phoenix, Arizona
Watch: TNT, truTV, Max
Listen: KMVP 98.7
It’s wild how just a handful of wins can completely shift the narrative.
If the Suns had handled business — beaten the Hornets, taken at least one from the Blazers, closed out a bad Pelicans team (twice), and handled the Nets — they’d be sitting at 33-28, good enough for the sixth seed in the West. But they didn’t. The urgency wasn’t there. And now, instead of playing as the sixth seed, they’re playing against the sixth seed.
Instead, they sit in 11th, 4.5 games back of sixth, four games out of 10th, stuck in the murky depths of the standings. The Western Conference has sorted itself into tiers, hasn’t it? The contenders (seeds 1-5), the hopefuls (6-7), and the rest of us. Phoenix is firmly in that last category, staring up at the teams that seized the moments they let slip away.
So bring on Los Angeles. They’re struggling too. Can the Suns capitalize on a team that’s 1-5 since the All-Star break? Do they have the ability to win on talent and skill alone? Or will this be yet another case where the margins — the little things, the intangibles — matter more than the stars trying to execute the game plan?
Probable Starters
Injury Report
Suns
- Bradley Beal — QUESTIONABLE (Left Calf; Injury Management)
- Cody Martin — OUT (I guess he’d rather be in Charlotte)
Clippers
- Derrick Jones, Jr. — OUT (Right Groin; Strain)
- Norman Powell — OUT (Right Hamstring; Strain)
- Ben Simmons — OUT (Left Knee; Soreness)
Uniform Matchup
What to Watch For
The Clippers, a team the Suns have beaten three times this season, are far from invincible. They’re 1-5 in their last six games, stumbling down the stretch as they try to avoid the Play-In.
Their struggles from deep stand out. After shooting a respectable 36.1% from three (12th in the league), they’ve cratered to 32.6% during this skid. And James Harden? He’s been ice cold, bricking 7.7 threes per game while coughing up 5.3 turnovers a night (most in the league). When your lead guard is hemorrhaging possessions and missing that many shots, the door stays wide open for opponents to take advantage.
James Harden nails his target, unfortunately it’s his opponent LeBron James walking to check back into the gamepic.twitter.com/cfCETsJTR8
— Hot Hand Theory (@HotHandTheory) March 3, 2025
Can the Suns force James Harden into the same mistakes that opposing teams force on Devin Booker and Kevin Durant? Since the All-Star break, Booker has been 13th in the league in turnovers (3.4 per game), while Durant sits at 50th (2.4) and Beal at 41st (2.6).
Key to a Suns Win
Ball security. Shocking, I know, but the Suns are terrible when they cough it up. So, uh, like don’t do that anymore?
The Suns have committed 17 or more turnovers in 17 games this season. They are 3-14 in those games.
— John Voita (@DarthVoita) March 3, 2025
Prediction
The Suns have handled the Clippers this season, even if the games have been tight. Tonight? Not so much. The gap is wider, and the result isn’t in their favor.
Clipper 121, Suns 115
Listen to the latest podcast episode of the Suns JAM Session Podcast below. Stay up to date on every episode, subscribe to the pod on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, YouTube Podcasts, Amazon Music, Podbean, Castbox.
Please subscribe, rate, and review.