The Phoenix Suns rebuilt around the Big Three of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal expected to compete atop the Western Conference standings this regular season. Instead, first-year coach Frank Vogel’s team entered the final weeks of 2023-24 hoping to avoid the play-in before a playoff berth.
After a 4-1 start to its daunting final 10 games, Phoenix fell to New Orleans on Sunday giving both teams 46-32 records. The Suns have the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans, so for now, they’re out of the play-in at No. 6 and the Pelicans are in it at No. 7.
With their own loss on Sunday, the Rockets were eliminated from postseason contention, ensuring a spot in the postseason for the Golden State Warriors.
The Dallas Mavericks came out on top over the Rockets on Sunday, giving Dallas an even safer feeling in the top five, two games ahead of the Suns with all 10 teams having four or fewer games remaining.
Here’s a look at the teams currently impacting the Western Conference playoff picture with the Suns’ next game Tuesday against the Clippers. The two teams will play each other again the following day.
Where are Phoenix Suns in the NBA’s Western Conference playoff standings?
| Place | Team | Record | Games Back | Last 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 54-24 | — | 7-3 |
| 2 | Denver Nuggets | 54-24 | — | 7-3 |
| 3 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 53-25 | 1 | 5-5 |
| 4 | Los Angeles Clippers | 50-28 | 4 | 7-3 |
| 5 | Dallas Mavericks | 48-30 | 6 | 9-1 |
| 6 | Phoenix Suns | 46-32 | 8 | 7-3 |
| 7 | New Orleans Pelicans | 46-32 | 8 | 4-6 |
| 8 | Sacramento Kings | 45-33 | 9 | 5-5 |
| 9 | Los Angeles Lakers | 45-34 | 9.5 | 8-2 |
| 10 | Golden State Warriors | 43-35 | 11 | 7-3 |
| 11 | e-Houston Rockets | 38-39 | 16 | 5-5 |
