• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Phoenix Sports Today

Phoenix Sports News Continuously Updated

  • Cardinals
  • Diamondbacks
  • Coyotes
  • Basketball
    • Mercury
    • Suns
  • Soccer
  • Colleges
    • Arizona State
    • Grand Canyon University
    • Northern Arizona
    • University of Arizona

ESPN’s Lowe places Suns in top-10 of League Pass Rankings

October 14, 2021 by ArizonaSports.com - 98.7 FM

Just barely, the Phoenix Suns made the top-10 of the annual League Pass Rankings graded by ESPN’s Zach Lowe.

Phoenix is No. 10 in Lowe’s list of the most watchable teams, and not because they are necessarily flashy. They are slow-paced, not often finding themselves in transition and — believe it or not, Suns fans — weighed down by the Chris Paul experience, according to Lowe.

Paul indeed plays at a slow pace. He also doesn’t draw fans outside of the Valley because of his foul-drawing tendencies (let’s see how rule changes to eliminate non-basketball moves changes that this year).

Real basketball nuts probably can appreciate the Suns’ complex offensive tactics more than the casual fan.

RELATED STORIES
  • Suns’ Robert Sarver tight-lipped on Deandre Ayton’s contract extension

  • Devin Booker surprises Girl Scouts with $100K grant at Mercury game

  • Devin Booker comes back like he never left in Suns’ preseason finale

That all is why the Suns aren’t ranked higher.

Phoenix surely has entertaining things going for it. Lowe mentions Mikal Bridges’ defense and Cam Payne’s gear-shift of energy as highlights. Jae Crowder is simply a fun guy — Lowe cites his salsa dancing in the first round of last year’s playoffs.

Devin Booker’s reputation as the archetype of an elite NBA scorer only grows, and Deandre Ayton’s lack of an extension could add an entertainment factor this year. Writes Lowe:

With Suns governor Robert Sarver courtside, do we have potential for an awkward “pay me!” moment in the vein of Shaquille O’Neal screaming at the late Jerry Buss — or a boozy Chandler Parsons shouting, “Max or nothing, motherf—er!” at Mark Cuban out of a cab?

Devin Booker’s bag is bottomless. The array of shots he busted out scoring 82 points over Games 4 and 5 of the Finals was straight-up ridiculous: isolation fadeaways; lefty floaters; catch-and-shoot jumpers launched after flying around picks.

Lowe doesn’t even mention that JaVale McGee’s Vlogging, dunking and general antics could push Phoenix into even more elite territory.

But the ESPN writer does give positive ratings to the Valley court and also the primary Bally Sports Arizona broadcast duo of play-by-play man Kevin Ray and commentator Eddie Johnson., who Lowe calls “elite.”

Lowe creates his annual League Pass Rankings with a point formula where five categories are rated 1-10: Zeitgeist (do people care?), star/highlight potential, style, minutia (announcers, jerseys, court design) and unintentional comedy.

Follow @kzimmermanaz

Filed Under: Suns

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • Diamondbacks Gameday Thread, #92: 7/8 @ Padres
  • Diamondbacks Reacts Survey: Who’s the first half MVP?
  • 2025 NFC West player, position group rankings
  • Jalen Williams received nearly 30 painkilling shots during playoffs
  • The Durant era is over in Phoenix and Booker’s quiet farewell said everything

Categories

Archives

Our Partners

All Sports

  • 247 Sports
  • ArizonaSports.com - 98.7 FM
  • Bleacher Report
  • Heat Waved
  • OurSports Central
  • The Arizona Republic
  • The Sports Fan Journal
  • USA Today

Baseball

  • Arizona Diamondbacks
  • AZ Snake Pit
  • Last Word On Baseball
  • MLB Trade Rumors
  • Venom Strikes

Basketball

  • Phoenix Suns
  • Amico Hoops
  • Basketball Insiders
  • Bright Side Of The Sun
  • High Post Hoops
  • Hoops Hype
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Last Word On Pro Basketball
  • Pro Basketball Talk
  • Real GM
  • Valley Of The Suns

Football

  • Arizona Cardinals
  • Cardinals Gab
  • Cards Wire
  • Deep Dive
  • Last Word On Pro Football
  • NFL Trade Rumors
  • Our Turf Football
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Football Talk
  • Raising Zona
  • Revenge Of The Birds
  • Words From The Birds

Hockey

  • Elite Prospects
  • Five For Howling
  • Howlin Hockey
  • Last Word On Hockey
  • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Talk
  • The Hockey Writers

Soccer

  • Last Word on Soccer
  • MLS Multiplex

College

  • AZ Desert Swarm
  • Busting Brackets
  • College Football News
  • College Sports Madness
  • Devils In Detail
  • House Of Sparky
  • Last Word On College Basketball - Univ of Arizona
  • Saturday Blitz
  • Zags Blog
  • Zona Zealots

Copyright © 2025 · Magazine Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in