The Phoenix Suns needed a new spark to get them over the hump and into the playoffs, and Bradley Beal obliged with his best stretch of the season.
The Phoenix Suns are through to the real playoffs now that they have steered clear of the risky play-in tournament path, but this was by no means an easy season for the team. During the regular season, one could argue that the Suns were the most inconsistent team in the league.
The Suns badly needed another player to step up and lead them over the finish line after witnessing Kevin Durant win the team’s first-half MVP award and head coach Frank Vogel win the third quarter of the season.
Which is why, despite struggling through the first half of the season, Bradley Beal was the team’s fourth-quarter MVP, and it came at just the right time.
It seemed like Beal had finally found out how to get along with two superstars, Durant and Devin Booker, during this final stretch of games. After missing a significant amount of time due to injury earlier in the season, Beal was too passive; however, over the last ten games in particular, he has contributed positively and has not only stayed in his lane.
To end the 82-game schedule, there were two outstanding games: one against the Sacramento Kings, when Beal helped his team win, and another fantastic effort against the Minnesota Timberwolves. In fact, Beal is averaging 21 points and 4.5 assists in April while making an absurd 69.4 percent of his 3-pointers on fewer than three attempts a game.
Bradley Beal today:
36 points
6 rebounds
5 assists
2 steals
1 block6-6 from 3-PT.
It’s time. pic.twitter.com/N0VK6N0qGy
— LEEZUS (@AndrewLeezus) April 14, 2024
However, Beal’s run during this run is associated with an even better statistic, 35.3. The number of minutes he played each game as the Suns finished 6-2 and completed the NBA’s most difficult schedule. Beal knew how to make the most difference when the Suns needed everyone to step up to make the playoffs.
He was also more adept defensively than anticipated, to the point that it won’t come as a shock if Beal covers Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards for portions of their postseason matchup. Beal, who is thirty years old, appears to be the fastest player on the Suns team despite suffering many ailments during the season.
That means he can continue to go ahead of faster guards while Durant tries to contain Edwards for a spell. Although the Suns did not acquire Beal for that specific reason last summer, it may wind up being the most significant aspect of his contribution to a starting lineup that is constrained by the presence of center Jusuf Nurkic on the court.
But in all honesty, Beal wins this award all by himself thanks to the “Point Beal” looks he’s been giving his supporters for the past month or so. With Booker appearing to be this team’s de facto point guard in the early going of the season and doing well while doing so, it has been a huge benefit for the team that Beal has entered the picture and allowed Booker to resume his best role on the court: scoring points.
Although the Suns had one of the worst turnover rates in the league during the regular season, it has improved the roster’s balance and partially mitigated the problem by running more plays through Beal. They’ve improved to a still-dreadful 23rd place in the last ten games, averaging 14.8 per game. Nevertheless, that figure is superior to the 14.9 they were able to achieve overall.
Therefore, it cannot be said that Beal lost this award. Considering that this may have been Booker’s best regular season ever statistically, it seems terrible that he hasn’t won it once this season. For that last quarter, Durant was also doing his usual things, but aside from that, there was no surprising competition. However, Beal went out and deservedly won this prize, capping off a difficult season for him personally.
