Are the Phoenix Suns Still a Western Conference Contender?

One of the top teams of the last couple of seasons has run into trouble, but does that mean we should no longer classify them as an NBA contender?

There are many talented teams in the NBA, with the Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets leading the charge in each conference.

Still, chalk doesn’t always find its way to the NBA Finals, and there are likely other teams that we can look at that could have value in the futures market. 

Below, we’ll highlight one of those teams and look at their current futures prices on the FanDuel Sportsbook. 

The Phoenix Suns have qualified for the postseason as a top team for the last two seasons, but they haven’t been able to add a championship. Last season, the Suns bowed out in a second-round seven-game series with the Dallas Mavericks, while the year prior, they lost in the NBA Finals to the Milwaukee Bucks. 

Phoenix has put a lot of faith in its core and head coach Monty Williams, but a rough December has carried over into the new year. The Suns have found themselves sitting seventh in the West, but some positive trends have emerged. Entering action on Thursday, the Suns have won four straight and some of their regular season mojo, but many wonder if they still have the makings of an elite team in the West. 

From an outsider looking in, there’s still much to like about this team. Does that mean that we should ignore their struggles? No, they’ve had enough success to give them the benefit of the doubt.

The Suns are priced at +1500 to win the NBA Championship, the eighth-best odds. In addition, the Suns boast the sixth-shortest odds to win the Western Conference at +950. Oddsmakers still respect the Suns, and although that doesn’t automatically mean we should back their futures, it does imply that they will figure things out. 

Even though we don’t love their current price to win the NBA title, it’s hard to ignore their value in what seems to be a wide-open Western Conference. None of the top teams have demonstrated overwhelming playoff success, which could benefit the Suns. There’s reason to buy into the Suns’ price to win the West at +950, which holds value above +750.