Phoenix Suns 2016-2017 Season Preview: Eric Bledsoe
The 2016-2017 NBA season is less than 50 days away, and the Phoenix Suns are in the last phase of their offseason.
The biggest concern for the Suns this season, will be the health of their top-gunner, Eric Bledsoe. Coming off of his second-consecutive season-ending injury, Bledsoe will need to stay healthy if the Suns want any chance of making a playoff push.
Last season’s stat: 20.4 PPG, 6.1 APG, 4.0 RPG
This season, Bledsoe looks to have an All-Star season. It may be a stretch for a player who has been labeled as “injury-prone,” but he has all the potential to become a top point guard in 2016-2017.
Before suffering his meniscus tear in December, Bledsoe was on pace for his best season in the NBA. If the Suns didn’t sideline him for the rest of the 2015-2016 season, he could’ve come back and continued his strong play. But, Phoenix decided it was best for Bledsoe to recover fully and begin training for next season.
That means that this season, Bledsoe should be 110% ready to go. There’s no reason for him to have to hold back play, and with the Suns finally looking like a team on the rise, he should try to take off in 2016-2017.
With Brandon Knight and Devin Booker looking to split time at the shooting guard position this season, Bledsoe will have to take on the leadership role in Phoenix. What that means is that he can’t afford a bad year. If this young team wants to become one of the best in the NBA in upcoming years, it will start with Bledsoe.
2016-2017 season stat predictions: 22.1 PPG, 6.3 ASP, 3.4 RPG
This season, Bledsoe is going to finally breakout. The Suns could finally show some light at the end of the tunnel. They have no reason to hold back any longer, unless they truly just want a lottery pick.
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That won’t be the case. Phoenix sees that that have an opportunity to finally bring some attention to the desert, and they’ll want to attract it. They want to build young, but next season they’ll be looking free agency to fill some veteran roles with actual star material.
They’re going to finally let Bledsoe lead this team, and he’s going to show the NBA that he could be an All-Star.
Expect Bledsoe to be the biggest threat for the Suns this season, and to see his name on the All-Star ballot midseason.
Whether that means the Suns will crack a playoff birth or not is still uncertain. But it could very well be in sight if they allow their stars to be stars.