Locked On Suns - Daily Podcast On The Phoenix Suns

We are joined by the founder of Early Bird Rights, Jeff Siegel, to take a deep dive into what trade season could look like around the NBA and how Phoenix should operate.

What will the market look like for Kevin Love? The Suns have been mentioned as a possible destination, but there could be other teams more desperate to make a playoff push and take on his huge salary.

If not in a trade Love, how should Phoenix use Tyler Johnson’s expiring contract? As Siegel laid out, there are several intriguing options for Phoenix outside of Love to pursue using Johnson’s bloated salary.

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @jgsiegel, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Following the Suns’ hot start, regression to the mean has sunk the ship a bit. However, that doesn’t mean Phoenix is nosediving to the Western Conference basement. The rest of the teams are bad enough that the Suns have stayed right in it.

They are clustered with the Thunder, Kings, Trail Blazers and Spurs for two playoff spots.

What needs to happen for Phoenix to stay afloat, and who are the contenders and pretenders in this battle for the bottom two seeds?

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Even though the big fella was finally back, it wasn’t enough for the Suns against this Clippers juggernaut. Deandre Ayton fared well in his return with 18 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 block in only 24 minutes.

What stood out to the most to us about Ayton?

Also, Kelly Oubre Jr. was up to the challenge of going one-on-one with Paul George, providing highlight plays on both ends. Oubre is proving he can fit whatever role is asked of him within Monty Williams’ system.

Finally, as always, stick around for flagrant fouls and stats to watch to close it out. Who landed on the negative side in a 121-99 loss in Los Angeles?

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We take you inside the Suns’ 1-point loss to Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers in a game the Suns in which led by 16 at one point. Carmelo Anthony was solid throughout and Portland’s star backcourt of Lillard and CJ McCollum took over in the second half.

Without Devin Booker, the Suns were hard-pressed for points. That made Kelly Oubre Jr.’s big night, especially in the clutch, even more impressive. But inefficient games from Ricky Rubio and Mikal Bridges hurt the Suns.

The Suns dropped two games in heart-breaking fashion leading up to Deandre Ayton’s return tomorrow night in Los Angeles. Will things change soon?

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We finish up our annual trimester report cards looking at the first third of the Suns’ season by breaking down the performance of Cameron Johnson, Mikal Bridges and Aron Baynes.

The two young wings are sitting wasted on a broken bench, while Baynes has a chance to revitalize that bench when Deandre Ayton returns this week.

We discuss how Johnson can be better in small ball lineups while Bridges’ usage is a continuing concern regardless of his three-point percentage, as well as how Baynes’ defense can help him overcome regression from deep.

As always, it’s a heavy mix of stats and observations, with grades for each player. Dive in!

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A listener favorite is back, as we debut Part I of our Suns trimester report cards! Today, we dive deep into our takeaways plus advanced metrics for Devin Booker, Ricky Rubio and Kelly Oubre.

Booker is still in the 50/40/90 club through a third of the season. However, we are starting to notice some defensive regression. But don’t worry, Booker still received the best grade, which shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Rubio has been such a treat to watch, and the numbers show how important he is already to his new squad in the Valley. Where would the Suns be at this point without Rubio?

Finally, we go deep on Oubre. He’s put more of an emphasis on rebounding and finishing at the rim, but the inconsistency still shows itself from time to time.

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We break down possibly the Suns’ worst loss of the year, a 115-108 unraveling at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies.

After the game, Monty Williams talked a lot about knowing personnel and how that was the story of the game. Jaren Jackson Jr. killed the Suns, Devin Booker looked possibly hurt, and the bench was hapless in a game that Memphis thoroughly won.

From about the 10:00 mark in the first quarter on, the Grizzlies played better, and Phoenix couldn’t take advantage after cutting the lead to four in the fourth period.

All the momentum the Suns gained by dominating Minnesota disappeared.

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

After the 2019 draft back in June, Zach Milner of The Stepien joined to discuss why Cam Johnson and Ty Jerome made sense in Phoenix. A quarter of the way through their rookie seasons, we brought Zach back on to assess what we have seen from both rookies thus far.

Johnson certainly looks the part of a plug-and-play wing, but he’s surprisingly holding up well in an area we originally doubted. Meanwhile, as Jerome settles in, we wonder what his most optimal role is with the Suns.

Stick around for some early 2020 draft talk, too! Who makes sense for Phoenix, if they keep their pick?

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @ZachMilner13 @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Thanks to outstanding outings from Dario Saric, Ricky Rubio and Mikal Bridges, the Suns cruised to a runaway victory over the Timberwolves, their second win over the potentially playoff-bound Wolves.

Unlike the teams’ first battle, Booker wasn’t the only player who stepped up, and the overall balance helped propel the Suns to a dominating win.

As Deandre Ayton’s return nears, we look at what this game tells us about how he can help the Suns when he gets back into the lineup.

We close the show by breaking down how the Suns went small against Karl-Anthony Towns and Minnesota as well as the momentum they’re building offensively since the return of Rubio.

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Even though the Suns lost and fell to 2-2 on their road trip, Devin Booker and Ricky Rubio still showcased how valuable they are on a nightly basis. An aggressive Mikal Bridges is also always a great sight.

What’s next for Frank Kaminsky, especially once Aron Baynes and Deandre Ayton are back? Right now, it looks like Kaminsky might be out of the rotation entirely unless we see drastic improvement soon.

Even though Kaminsky has struggled mightily, they will receive a huge boost from Baynes as soon as Monday against Minnesota. We discuss how much Baynes could help the Suns before Ayton’s return next week.

Follow on Twitter: @LockedOnPHXSuns, @esidery, @BrendonKleen14

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.