The Suns went full Mortal Kombat on Tuesday night, finishing the Lakers and eliminating the NBA’s most recent “super team” from any form of playoff contention.
Over the last 15 months, everything has changed about the Suns but none is more jarring than the full blown body swap with the Lakers.
Its the Lakers proving to be the butt of NBA jokes and the strongest example of NBA incompetence, not the Suns.
Its the Lakers desperately trying to figure out how to keep their stars, not the Suns.
Its the Lakers missing the playoffs for the seventh time in the last nine years, the exact same track record as the Suns whose futility had been previously well documented.
Last year in the playoffs, with an injured Chris Paul, the Suns effectively ended the Lebron James Era in Los Angeles.
Driven mad by the exit, Lebron orchestrated a trade for Russell Westbrook that may be the worst in NBA history once all the ripples are felt.
Now the Lakers are staring at a dead end with no reasonable escape plan.
Trading Lebron James might be their only hope. Trading Lebron James AND Anthony Davis might be their best hope.
Who would’ve guessed four years ago that Devin Booker could very likely outlast Lebron James on their respective teams?
Now here comes the crazy part: I’d fully expect Lebron to eye the Suns in the offseason.
Not only is Chris Paul one of his closest NBA pals and James Jones one of his former teammates in multiple stops but the Suns are the perfect combination of proven talent and untapped potential.
And here comes the even crazier part: If the Suns don’t win the NBA championship, I’d be all for it.
Now there is A LOT that has to happen between now and that point: Someone has to stop the Suns this year, the Lakers star would have to demand a trade, the Lakers would have to agree to trade him to a “rival” and the Suns would have to put an acceptable offer on the table. Plus like a thousand other things.
But as we’ve seen over and over again in this era of sports, anything is possible.
Including the Lakers switching places in the NBA hierarchy with the Phoenix Suns.
You love to see it.