PHOENIX SUNS

Arizona Sports’ 2014 Phoenix Suns and NBA predictions

Oct 30, 2014, 4:13 PM | Updated: 4:13 pm

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The NBA season is upon us.

LeBron is back in Cleveland. The Spurs are together, but another year older and if you believe ESPN’s Henry Abbott, nobody wants to play with Kobe Bryant and the Lakers.

There is no such drama here in the Valley, where the Phoenix Suns enter the 2014-15 campaign with confidence and optimism that spilled over from last year’s surprising 48-win season.

The Eric Bledsoe contract saga is behind the organization, as the guard got a new five-year, $70 million deal from the Suns right before training camp. The NBA’s Most Improved Player, Goran Dragic, is back after participating for his native Slovenia in the FIBA World Cup in September.

Veteran sharpshooter Channing Frye is gone, but the Suns did bring in free agent point guard Isaiah Thomas and serviceable reserve forward Anthony Tolliver in the offseason and drafted wing scorer T.J. Warren and point guard Tyler Ennis in the first round.

When focusing solely on head coach Jeff Hornacek’s team, it all looks promising for a return to the playoffs after a four-season absence. The only problem is, the Western Conference is loaded…again.

We asked our staff at Arizona Sports to peer into the future, not only of the Suns, but the entire league, to predict what will happen over the course of the campaign.

Arizona Sports’ 2014-15 Phoenix Suns and NBA predictions

Franz Bickley Marotta Burns Gambo
Suns wins? 46 43 48 45 47
Playoffs? Seed? Yes, 8th No No No No
Leading scorer? Dragic Bledsoe Dragic Bledsoe Bledsoe
Leading Rebounder? Markieff Tucker Plumlee Tucker Plumlee
Leader in assists? Dragic Bledsoe Dragic Dragic Dragic
Will Green be traded? No Yes Yes Yes No
Bledsoe games played? 75 75 65 68 78
NBA Finals Thunder over Bulls Cavaliers over Spurs Spurs over Bulls Cavaliers over Warriors Clippers over Bulls
MVP Derrick Rose, Bulls LeBron James, Cavaliers LeBron James, Cavaliers LeBron James, Cavaliers Chris Paul, Clippers
Rookie of the Year Jabari Parker, Bucks Nerlens Noel, 76ers Jabari Parker, Bucks Jabari Parker, Bucks Jabari Parker, Bucks
Coach of the Year Derek Fisher, Knicks David Blatt, Cavaliers Tom Thibodeau, Bulls Steve Kerr, Warriors Doc Rivers, Clippers
Def. Player of the Year Anthony Davis, Pelicans Joakim Noah, Bulls Serge Ibaka, Thunder Dwight Howard, Rockets Joakim Noah, Bulls

Bloom Grialou Green Gibberman Zinsmeister
Suns wins? 54 45 49 50 46
Playoffs? Seed? Yes, 6th Yes, 7th Yes, 7th Yes, 8th No
Leading scorer? Dragic Thomas Bledsoe Bledsoe Bledsoe
Leading Rebounder? Plumlee Plumlee Tucker Markieff Plumlee
Leader in assists? Bledsoe Bledsoe Dragic Bledsoe Dragic
Will Green be traded? Yes No Yes Yes No
Bledsoe games played? 75 80 65 75 71
NBA Finals Clippers over Cavaliers Clippers over Bulls Cavaliers over Thunder Spurs over Cavaliers Cavaliers over Spurs
MVP LeBron James, Cavaliers Chris Paul, Clippers LeBron James, Cavaliers Blake Griffin, Clippers LeBron James, Cavaliers
Rookie of the Year Jabari Parker, Bucks Jabari Parker, Bucks Jabari Parker, Bucks Jabari Parker, Bucks Nerlens Noel, 76ers
Coach of the Year Doc Rivers, Clippers Tom Thibodeau, Bulls Mike Malone, Kings Scott Brooks, Thunder Gregg Popovich, Spurs
Def. Player of the Year Anthony Davis, Pelicans Joakim Noah, Bulls Anthony Davis, Pelicans Dwight Howard, Rockets Serge Ibaka, Thunder

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