Suns fall out of Play-In spot as postseason hopes fade

Phoenix has faced issues on both ends of the floor throughout the season. However, their problems seemed to have been fixed, bringing in a fresher rotation, high-energy defensive talent, and great offensive scoring and playmaking from Kevin Durant and Devin Booker.

That was until the last two games, as the team struggled with turnovers, poor shooting stretches, and defensively not being able to stop teams from racking up points – especially from the three – all contributing to a bad stretch at the worst possible time.

With the regular season winding down, the Suns will need a string push in their remaining games to reclaim the play-in spot from the Mavericks. However, their remaining schedule features matchups against heaving hitting teams, making the road ahead even more challenging.

Falling out of the play-in tournament picture is a stark contrast from preseason expectations when the Suns were meant to be NBA Finals contenders, bringing in head coach Mike Budenholzer. Now, with just weeks left, they face the real possibility of missing the postseason all together.

Phoenix will have an opportunity to end this trail of bad luck in its next game against the No. 2-seeded Houston Rockets. With Houston in dominant form this season, Phoenix will need a near-perfect performance to pull off an upset. A loss would only push them further from playoff contention, raising even more questions about their fading postseason hopes.