The Phoenix Suns’ 2024-25 season didn’t start as planned, but the All-Star break offered them a chance to reset and refocus on making a playoff push. However, their first game back looked all too familiar.
Despite a season-high 27 points from Royce O’Neale, the Suns fell to a San Antonio Spurs team missing Victor Wembanyama. This marked Phoenix’s fourth consecutive loss, dropping them to 26-29 and placing them 11th in the Western Conference. If the season ended today, they wouldn’t even qualify for the Play-In Tournament, let alone the playoffs. While they remain just two games behind the final Play-In spot, time is running out with fewer than 30 games left.
What makes this defeat particularly painful—beyond losing to a struggling Spurs team without its best player—is that Kevin Durant logged 39 minutes. He has played at least 39 minutes in each of the last four games he’s been available for, yet the Suns have lost all four.
Durant has been exceptional in those games, averaging 30 points on an impressive 62.2/41.7/78.3 shooting split, along with 4.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists. However, despite his stellar performances, Phoenix has continued to lose, including two games against teams below .500.
Durant is playing significantly more minutes than most stars—Kyrie Irving leads the league at 36.6 minutes per game, yet Durant has exceeded that in recent contests. Losing games is one thing, but doing so while pushing a 36-year-old Durant—who has battled injuries and played fewer than 60 games in four of the past five seasons—is a serious concern.
The Suns’ biggest issue is their lack of depth, forcing them to rely heavily on Durant and Devin Booker. Even so, they continue to lose, even against weaker opponents.
Phoenix may still claw its way into the Play-In or even the playoffs, but if they can’t beat a Wembanyama-less Spurs team despite heavy minutes from Durant, it’s hard to expect them to make a meaningful impact. That, unfortunately, is a major disappointment.
