The Phoenix Suns have won their last few games, and they’ve done it without Dillon Brooks. Despite the start to the season seeming like the answer to all their defensive problems, the team has been moving in the right direction while both he and Jalen Green have been sidelined through injury.
Currently, the Suns rank 12th in defensive rating (113.7) — after ranking 29th just a few weeks ago — while ranking in the top 10 in transition defense. Ryan Dunn’s stellar performance against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs was a big boost, but it feels like we’ve been here before with the second year moving forward.
Brooks will be blamed for every defensive mistake when he returns.
It seems inevitable then that when Brooks is finally ready to return, the Suns will take a defensive dive. This won’t even all be his fault either, as Dunn may have to go to the bench to regain his starting spot. With Green now also able to make his debut – although we’ve been saying that for a while – there will undoubtedly be an imbalance with the starting group.
Suns injury report vs. Warriors:
Jalen Green (right hamstring injury) OUT
Dillon Brooks (core strain) OUT
Ryan Dunn (left knee bruise) PROBABLY
Isaiah Livers (right hip contusion) Doubtful #Sunbathing pic.twitter.com/6RgWGP4i7X— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 4, 2025
So while the combination of Green and Devin Booker will lead to higher offensive output – if you combine them both with Brooks minus Dunn – there will be a skid defensively. When that happens, it will be easy to once again point to Brooks’ inclusion as the reason why the Suns are allowing more points, because this is how they started the season.
But it’s much more nuanced than that, and fans should remember that Brooks also played several minutes with Oso Ighodaro before he went down. Ighodaro now comes off the bench and in his place, Mark Williams – a true centre-forward – has been one of the standout players compared to expectations early in the campaign.
Collin Gillespie also continues to go from strength to strength, and while he isn’t known for his defensive abilities, he has improved even in the short time since Brooks has been unavailable. What also doesn’t help matters is the fact that the 29-year-old was trying to make the most field goals at the start of the season, and this can’t continue alongside the inevitable drop in defensive numbers.
The Suns need Dillon Brooks to be the best version of himself this season, and while that means starting and ending games, the way he plays and how he is perceived both need to change. He’s a different kind of defender than Ryan Dunn, and any lapse in defense can’t be entirely attributed to him. Only that will be the case, which is why his groin injury happened at the worst possible time.
#Suns #put #Dillon #Brooks #impossible #position #succeed