If Ryan McDonough gave us #TheTimeline, it appears Gregory is ushering in #TheAlignment

Phoenix Suns fans know this feeling but it’s not deja vu.

In our effort to make sense of time, we give it names. The Renaissance. The Dark Ages. The Summer of Love. These monikers don’t just mark a place on the calendar, they summon emotion, memory, meaning. They define eras not only by what happened, but how it felt to live through them.

The Phoenix Suns have had their eras, too. The Barkley years. Seven Seconds or Less. The Valley Boyz. Each carries its own weight. Each conjures flashes of identity, style, culture, and moments that made us feel something.

And then there’s another phrase, a quieter one. Two words that carry with them a different kind of emotion. One not rooted in excitement or pride, but in caution, patience…and missed opportunity: The Timeline.

Even typing it, there’s a twinge of anxiety.

That phrase takes us back to an era when Ryan McDonough ran the show, and the organizational mission was clear: get young, build through the draft, and embrace the pain along the way. Losing was tolerated, even encouraged, because the vision required it. Tank, collect high picks, develop them. That was the formula.

In some ways, they succeeded. Between 2016 and 2020, the Suns made six lottery selections: picks No. 4 and 8 in 2016, No. 4 in 2017, No. 1 in 2018, No. 6 in 2019 (which they traded back from), and No. 10 in 2020. It was a full commitment to the long game—a trust in time.

But time isn’t always kind. And top picks aren’t always answers.

The dream of The Timeline didn’t falter because of bad luck. It faltered because the execution lacked vision, consistency, and above all else: patience. It wasn’t until McDonough was gone, and James Jones reshaped the franchise’s approach, that the team began to pivot from patience to production. That’s when the wins came.

The Timeline promised the future. But ironically, it couldn’t survive the present.

The 2025–26 Phoenix Suns find themselves in the midst of a defining chapter. A transition. A recalibration. This is a team trying to correct past mistakes, most notably, the construction of an overinflated roster built on the backs of young lottery picks flipped for All-Stars. That vision has unraveled.

James Jones is gone. Brian Gregory now holds the reins.

If Ryan McDonough gave us #TheTimeline, it appears Gregory is ushering in #TheAlignment.

And he has no choice. The Suns are, for the time being, stuck.

Bradley Beal is still here, along with his contract. He remains a talented player with flashes of brilliance, but his presence represents a reality the team can’t escape…not yet. He’ll have an opportunity to show what he can do next season, but he’ll be doing it on a roster that, as of now, is clunky. Awkward. Lacking positional versatility. The fit doesn’t make sense, and that applies not just to Beal, but to much of the team.

This is going to take time. Course correction isn’t immediate. It’s gradual. Deliberate. And Gregory, who embraced the fact that he said the word “aligned” 23 times in his introductory press conference, seems to understand that. His job now is to bring a sense of cohesion. Structure. Vision.

Because let’s be honest, structure is exactly what the Suns have lacked.

For the past two seasons, this franchise has operated recklessly. The direction has felt aimless, like a disengaged parent hoping money could solve a child’s deeper issues. The solution? Just spend. Max out. Buy hope. So that’s what the Suns did. They threw money at the problem, hoping oversized paychecks would buy chemistry, happiness, and wins.

But none of that materialized.

What this team has lacked isn’t talent. It’s foundation. It’s culture. And that’s where #TheAlignment begins.

I look at what the Suns have done this offseason, and I’m encouraged. Brian Gregory’s opening remarks weren’t just empty platitudes. Well done is better than well said, and so far, Gregory has done what he said. His approach feels intentional. Measured. Aligned.

Still, the current roster paints a sobering picture. As of today, the Suns project to be a bottom-third team in the Western Conference. Nearly every team around them has gotten better. Phoenix, meanwhile, stands in a field of blooming sunflowers, trying to figure out who they are.

And you know what? That’s okay.

If rediscovering yourself is what it takes to build something real, something sustainable, then that’s the path you take. You can’t keep doing the same thing and expecting different results. The definition of insanity, right?

So now, the Suns enter a period where competitiveness will be valued, even if it doesn’t show up in the win column. A period where development — not just of players, but of purpose — takes precedence. A period where culture is no longer an afterthought, but the blueprint. Accountability matters. Fit matters. Identity matters.

Leadership is no longer just filling roster spots. They’re trying to build something with intention.

They’ve entered #TheAlignment.

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