What Happened to The 2021 Phoenix Suns

What Happened to The 2021 Phoenix Suns

The 2021 season is a special year for Phoenix fans the year prior Phoenix won just 39 games and in the 2021 off season they added Chris Paul won 51 and were two wins away from the Larry O’Brien trophy the finals last may have been devastating but it was apparent that a

Core led by Devin Booker dominon the twins Chris Paul and Monte Williams was going to take over the NBA today 3 years later only one player from the entire championship roster remains today’s Suns may still be in the contender conversation but it’s safe to say that

The magic of the old team is gone one of the best teams in Suns history went as quickly as they came so let’s see where they are now no player changed the Phoenix Suns more than Chris Paul Phoenix brought him in prior to the 2021 season and after leading the Thunder to

A surprise playoff appearance the CP3 effect continued in Phoenix Paul brought leadership and stability to a young Phoenix locker room as well as providing more more of an offensive threat compared to Ricky Rubio after making his first ever NBA Finals Chris Paul would sign a 4-year $120 million contract

Extension a controversial measure as he would turn 36 years old next season Paul and his sons would emerge as favorites over the next season leading the league in wins but we all know what would happen next in the Western Conference semi-finals Luca donic would adopt Devin

Booker and Chris Paul would hit a huge three to cut the lead down to 42 Paul would lose his fifth playoff series after being up 20 next season the Suns would again find themselves in a rival in the semi-finals this time being against the Denver Nuggets Phoenix would

Go down 2 with Paul’s last minutes of a son being in game two before going down with the groin strain he would average just 9 and five for the entire series with his age his diminished defensive ability and a massive contract all being factors against him Phoenix knew it was

Time to move on from the point God on June 24th 2023 Paul was traded to the Wizards for Phoenix to land Bradley Beal weeks later he was sent to the Bay for Jordan pool pairing him with the Splash Brothers as a warrior Chris Paul came

Off the bench for the first time in his career and earlier this season suffered a fractured hand against the Pistons at the time I make this Paul is still expected to return this season but he is also expected to be involved in trade rumors before the upcoming trade

Deadline but the way things are headed last year may have just been the last real season of Chris Paul’s career Chris Paul’s always been known to raise the floor of those around him every team he has been on has seen regular season success and has seen players mostly big

Men raise their level of game that remained true in Phoenix with the number one overall pick DeAndre Aon no player has divided a phoenix fan base like Aon one side saw him as a physical freak with the tool sets to take over the NBA combining him with Devon Booker could

Just be this generation’s version of Kobe and Shaq however the other half questioned aon’s work ethic and mentality for years fans were waiting for in to step up and beat the allegations of him being soft statistically Aon took a step back in the 2021 season but he played an

Invaluable role being the primary role and lob man for Chris Paul he was allowed to Anchor a paint on an otherwise Wing heavy team his touches may not have been that of what he wanted but he formed a pairing that would go on to produce many highlights in the valley

In his playoff debut Aon put up 21 and 16 only missing one shot against the defending Champion Lakers and I still remember this game like it was yesterday Phoenix had come out of nowhere making their first playoff since 2010 there was an excitement and a buzz that haven’t

Been there for over a decade but we were just unlucky enough to face against the defending Champions and a bitter rival in the Los Angeles Lakers any sports fan knows that the two versus 7 seating goes out the door the moment a playoff game starts but Aon held strong he played

Well and he limited and albeit injured Anthony Davis the next round he would face the League’s MVP Nica yic The Joker would put up for his standards a relatively human performance on 25 13 and 6 while being swept by the Suns Aiden by no means outplayed yage but the

Joker struggled with 47 2768 shooting splits and in the Conference Finals he was responsible for one of the most famous plays in Phoenix history in game one of the 2021 finals he put up 22 and 19 and then he disappeared The Greek Freak would take over and Aon would be

Outplayed especially on the defensive end while no one can stop Giannis Aon one job was to protect the rim a task he failed to do that offseason Aon felt he should join his draft classmates in Trey young Luca donic Shay gilis Alexander and Michael Porter Jr in receiving a Max

Contract on one hand Aon average 16 and 10 he led the league in field goal percentage and he was quickly rising and is being viewed as one of the League’s best centers however you could also argue that very few if at all centers are worth a Max contract especially

After a disappointing finals run the 20 22 season was a contract year with Aon having a chance to prove himself to his team into the league stats-wise he had remained similar or had improved with his averages in the playoffs not looking too bad however during the sun’s game

Seven disaster he and Monty Williams had a confrontation where it was argued that Aton had quit on the Suns he was subbed out after playing Just 17 minutes as a restricted free agent Aon got the offer he wanted 4 years $133 million from the Indiana Pacers this forced Phoenix to

Make a decision let your number one overall pick walk or bite the bullet and hand out a contract you probably didn’t want to but Phoenix decided to pay him and keep the core together again Aon showed promise stats-wise he was having one of his best seasons at least since

His second year he averaged 18- 10 as well as having some of the best games of his whole career but again his effort was questioned and in the 2023 series against the Nuggets he averaged just 13 and 10 not playing in game six Aon had established himself as a fine Center but

Played nowhere near the contract he wanted DeAndre Aton was traded away in the Damian Lillard trade resulting in Phoenix Landing ysf nurkic Aton Simon Phoenix can be summarized as a frustrating player who put up solid stats but with little actual Improvement in Portland Aon claims that he has

Nothing to prove as a max player but has regressed despite having a better chance to be a star player so far Aon has proved to be one of the most disappointing players of the season and one of the most disappointing Max contract players in a long time Chris

Ball is a large part of a success but some light also has to be shed onto Monty Williams who like Paul oversaw a complete change in Phoenix both on and off the court in his first year in Phoenix Willams nearly saw the Suns make the playoffs in his second season he won

Coach of the Year while leading Phoenix to a finals appearance following his finals appearance he submitted himself amongst the best in the NBA he was selected as a head coach for the All-Star game as the Suns would have a franchise record and League best 64 wins Williams would again win Coach of the

Year something of overlooked with this team is the amount of time missed by stars in the 2022 season due to both Co and injury Booker missed 14 games Paul missed 17 Aon missed 24 Jay Crowder and Cameron Johnson combined to miss 33 the sun saw a revolving door of a starting

Lineup as many of these absences occurred at different points but nonetheless Monty Williams was still a beacon of stability even after being destroyed by Dallas Phoenix gave him a 4-year deal that off season Williams’s last season as a son would regress with them just winning 45 games Phoenix

Lacked the regular season’s ability seen the year prior ala wasn’t all Monty williams’ fault after Robert sver was forced to sell the team the new son’s owner Matt ishbia installed a win now mentality with one of his first moves to be trading the twins for Kevin Durant

Due to injuries Durant would only play Eight Games in the regular season before the playoffs this never gave us a true look of a Paul Booker Durant and Aton starting lineup and and it didn’t give Monty Williams a lot of chance to work with his guys either but still Phoenix

Underperformed in the playoffs and Williams became the scapegoat his firing was surprising but not unheard of as his fellow coaches of the year in Nick Nur and Mike buen holer were also without teams that off season Monti would do well for himself signing a $78 million contract with the Detroit Pistons this

Made him the highest paid coach in league history as well as one of the highest paid coaches in all of sports but in his first year the Pistons have struggled much more more than what anybody could imagine his short 10 years so far has seen Detroit with the longest

Losing streak in NBA history however wins and losses are never the best way to measure the impact of a deep rebuild while his time so far in Detroit has been short I hope it does last for a while like many other Suns fans I will still always be rooting for Monty no

Matter where he is Monty Paul Booker and Aon are the headliners of the 2021 Suns but this team is nowhere without its depth and its depth you can’t mention without talking about the twins coined by D Cameron Johnson and male Bridges became known as the twins for both being

Long Wing players who could play defense and shoot the three ball following his finals appearance Cameron Johnson showed improvements across the board and showed flashes of being a three-level scorer he averaged just 12 points per game in 2022 but that was not due to a lack of ability he was the team’s best

Three-point shooter who could go off at any point he famously hit nine three-pointers as well as a buzzer beater against the New York Knicks in a 38-point Outburst he would also go on to finish third in Sixth Man of the Year voting but Johnson would start to lose

His status as a young player he was already an older guy being drafted at 23 years old and now at 26 he hadn’t quite developed into a star but was still poised for a big contract extension but the sun’s windown mentality prevailed and Johnson did not make the cut the

Suns were sitting at a disappointing 30 and 27 just barely making the six seed in the west when Cameron Johnson was traded to Brooklyn in Brooklyn he had the opportunity to get more touches on a rebuilding Squad and in his 25 games as a net last season he would put up career

Numbers starting every game he got a brand new contract seeing him make over 21 million per year for the next four seasons while he hasn’t emerged as a star he has noticed one of the League’s best three-point Shooters being a critical part to this Brooklyn Nets team

His partner in crime male Bridges has flourished his last full season as a son saw him nearly win Defensive Player of the Year Bridges exploded as a member of the Brooklyn Nets last season he would average an efficient 20 six points per game with putting up a career-high 45

Days after the trade this season m is still putting up great stats while being the League’s Iron Man with the longest active streak of games played sitting at over 436 straight games played Bridges and Johnson are known as two of the best teammates in the entire league these are

Guys who shaped Phoenix history and hold a special heart in the place of many Phoenix fans while they have both flirted with an idea of a return to the valley it is safe to say like Williams they will always have supporters from Phoenix the other player in this trade

Who doesn’t get talked about as much was Jay Crowder Crowder is less talked about during this era of Suns basketball but in his two years in Phoenix he would be a veteran Wing who started the majority of games Crowder was always known as a feisty player who was a heart of this

Phoenix team following the Maverick’s loss Crowder had felt disrespected by the Suns and their front office and he announced that he was sitting out the season until he could be traded being a part of the Kevin Durant trade Jay Crowder was eventually traded to the Milwaukee Bucks and now being on a

Contender in Milwaukee Crowder has another chance to win an NBA Finals ring however he has only played sparse minutes in the season due to injury and crder wasn’t the only son to be a part of the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2021 season Tory Craig was traded from Phoenix to Milwaukee for cash

Considerations Craig spent most of his time coming off at the bench but was a solid rotational piece on a team with a ton of wing depth he was known as a great defender and rebounder for his position who averaged 35% from three for his career Craig played sparse minutes

Coming off the bench in the finals but he was an interesting case as no matter the outcome he was an eligible ring member for both teams after the finals toi Craig signed with the Pacers averaging six points in 20 minutes for a year in Indiana to the Delight of many

Suns fans Tory Craig was traded back to Phoenix in February of 2022 for jayen Smith Craig would put up similar stats in his 2 and 1 half Seasons before signing with the Chicago Bulls this off season so far Craig is averaging about 6 and five while shooting 38% from three

But has played Just 27 games due to our plantar fascist Sprain and since we’re talking about the Pacers let’s talk about Jaylen Smith Smith was one of my favorite players during his short time in Phoenix he was the 10th pick in the 2020 draft but spent most of the season

In the G League he played all six finals games averaging just 3 minutes played and the next season he was averaging 16 and3 per 36 minutes coming off the bench in Phoenix Smith was traded for Craig and was given much bigger role in the 2022 season in his 22 games played he

Averaged 13 and S primarily playing behind Miles Turner this season he is averaging 10 and 5 in 17 minutes per game but just like his time in Phoenix he has been incredibly efficient per his 36 minute stats at just 23 years old sxs is still a young player who will

Hopefully get his time in the Limelight and spending time coming off of the bench with Jaylen Smith was Cameron Payne Payne had bounced around the league prior before joining the Phoenix Suns but found a consistent spot coming off the bench in Phoenix he was always a bit of a controversial player with a

Funky looking jump shot he could come off the bench and provide an immediate spark or he could shoot the team into a worser spot he was almost the exact opposite of Chris Paul’s stability in the 2023 season he started a career high 15 games mostly due to Paul missing time

Pay also scored a career postseason High 31 points in the Sun’s Game Six loss to the Nuggets this off season he was traded to the Spurs for a protected second round pick only to then be waved it was honestly a shame to see such a core player turned into almost nothing

This offseason he joined Jay Crowder in milwauke and he’s been playing pretty consistently but he hasn’t been putting up the same averages we saw during his time in Phoenix and another consistent rotational piece we saw was Frank Kaminsky Frank the Tank spent most of his time coming off the bench being the

Primary backup to DeAndre Aton being a SF footer with a jump shot he was one of the last archetypes of the slow three-point shooting big men Kaminsky played two solid seasons in Phoenix until injuries took him out for the 22 season after being waved by the Suns

Kamitz had brief stints in Atlanta and Houston but never saw the same playing time he did in Phoenix or Charlotte the former college player of the year now plays in the Serbian basketball league and the Euro league Kaminsky wasn’t the only foreign big man we saw in Phoenix

As along with the trade that gave the sons Cameron Johnson in 2019 gave them Dario sarich sarich like Kaminsky was primarily known for his ability to space the floor as a four he was was a key bench player until an ACL tear in the finals ruled him out for the 22 season

SAR was traded in February of 2023 to the Thunder for Darius basley sarch signed with the Warriors prior to the season and he’s been having a good year coming off the bench with even a few starts he’s been averaging 10 and five shooting 41% from three on about four

Attempts per game and the last two pieces of the Suns team were guys who had short NBA careers first was the Egyptian American player abdell nater nater spent the last two seasons of his NBA career in Phoenix the 2021 season would be the best of his career albe it

In just 24 games nater was waved in February of 20122 and wouldn’t be seen until a few months ago where he would sign with a team in the Australian NBL and the last player to mention is taon Alexander Alexander was an undrafted rookie before signing a 2-way contract

With Phoenix in 2021 he would play Just 15 games in his NBA career before being waved by Phoenix that August Alexander spent 2 years playing basketball in Italy before playing with the Greensboro swarm the Charlotte Hornets g-league team Alexander was most recently traded to the Delaware Blue coats the Jazz farm

Team where he would win a g-league title like every roster the 2021 Suns had a few players who came and went in the league but the Suns had amassed a plethora of strong role players that were special both on and off the court this Phoenix team built the valley and

They gave us the most relevant basketball and Phoenix since Steve Nash I love having someone like Kevin Durant anyone would love having a top 15 play player of all time on their team but while this year’s Suns team may have the star and the name power they have yet to

Match the magic and the success provided by the 2021 Squad it is easy to wonder what if but I can also sit and remember what was one of the best teams in Phoenix history if you are still here then thank you for watching but that is

It for this one and I will catch you guys later

The 2021 Phoenix Suns shocked the world by going on a historic and unprecedented finals run. Today, the suns are still seen as contenders, however Devin Booker is the only remaining player for 2021. Today we look at what happened to the 2021 championship team