The Phoenix Suns are the first team in the league this season to reach 50 losses after the Cleveland Cavaliers trounced the young team in their gym on Tuesday night. After the game, Suns star Devin Booker has some poignant words for his relatively inexperienced teammates.
Following from SB Nation’s Evan Sidery,
“I think right now is an evaluation period for us. We know that as a team and we’re not treating it like that. I think our whole team has been spoiled enough, including myself, with playing time at a young age to where we get to play through the mistakes. Sometimes there’s punishment, sometimes there’s not. To look at teams like Cleveland, you make one mistake you’re out of the game. We’ve been babied a little bit and it shows sometimes. You [have to] look yourself in the eyes as a team altogether and understand that this game isn’t given to you…we just need to be humbled a little bit”
Booker’s words, on the surface, seem like an indictment of his team’s performance. Many individuals who heard the comments surmised as much.
According to Scott Bordow of AZ Sports Central, Booker was only echoing the words that head coach Jay Triano has said before.
Following from AZ Central Sports,
“I didn’t read it and go, ‘Wow,’ ” Triano said. “It’s something that we talk about on a regular basis in front of everybody. I think he’s heard me say it enough.”
The Suns are among the youngest teams in the league, and the roster as a whole has minimal experience with being a professional NBA player. With an average roster age of 24. 5, according to RealGM, the front office would do well to see about infusing some veteran leadership into the locker room this offseason.
A little guidance can go a long way for a team starving for direction.
