After a hugely disappointing 2024-25 season in which the Phoenix Suns missed the playoffs under former championship head coach Mike Budenholzer (the team’s third coach in as many seasons) despite having Devin Booker and Kevin Durant on the roster, the Suns hit the reset button.
KD was traded again in a blockbuster deal, sending him to the Houston Rockets. From there, first-year head coach Jordan Ott placed an emphasis on building a culture in Phoenix. With fresh faces like Dillon Brooks and Mark Williams in tow, he has done just that.
The Suns have defied all odds this season en route to a 19-14 record entering the new year – good for No. 7 in the Western Conference.
They work every night, compete and play hard, endearing them to the diehard fans watching a team in the midst of a rebuild.
As we look back to 2025 as the new year dawns, here’s a look at some of the stats that helped define Phoenix as they defied the odds and put themselves in the playoff mix.
10.7 steals per game
The most impressive turnaround for the Suns came on the defensive end. Entering 2026, the Suns as a team were averaging 10.7 steals per game, which is the best mark in basketball ahead of the reigning champions and defensive juggernaut Oklahoma City Thunder.
To put that in perspective, the Suns roster last season averaged 7.2 steals per game. That put them second to last in the NBA with the Boston Celtics.
A remarkable turnaround indeed.
Royce O’Neale’s 95 three-pointers in 33 games
Despite the Suns breaking the team franchise record for three-pointers made in a season for five consecutive years dating back to 2020-2021, the individual Suns franchise record for three points made in a single campaign has stood for two decades.
Quentin “Q” Richardson set the standard with 226 treys during the first “Run and Gun” Suns season of 2004-05. Richardson’s lone season was spent in a Suns uniform before being traded to the New York Knicks.
That record could eventually fall in 2026.
Royce O’Neale has converted 95 triples in 33 games played through 2025. He’s making them at a career high of 42.4%. That puts O’Neale just outside the top 20 shooters in the league in 3-point efficiency.
If he stays healthy (and isn’t traded before the deadline), O’Neale has a real shot at Q’s franchise record.
He is on pace for 236 long-distance marks, which would surpass Richardson’s score by 10.
114.6 defensive rating
Moving back from offense to the defensive side of the ball, the Suns’ defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) of 114.6 slots Phoenix No. 12 in the league.
That’s a huge improvement from last season, when the Suns ranked 28th in the league with a defensive rating of 119.3.
With a rim protector like Williams on the back lines and a defensive pest like Brooks setting the standard, the Suns made quite a leap defensively in 2025.
Devin Booker is shooting 30.1% from three-point range
While the team’s three-point shooting and that of O’Neale and Grayson Allen (when healthy) were encouraging, the D-Book mark of 30.1% from beyond the arc sticks out for all the wrong reasons.
That efficiency, or lack thereof, from a distance is easily the four-time All-Star’s career worst. Book shot a career-best 38.3% in 2021-2022 and 2017-2018, but even his career average of 35.2% from long range would be welcome compared to his consistent failures from distance this year.
Here’s hoping for a 3-point hot streak in 2026 for Book.
Collin Gillespie is shooting 54.7% on catch-and-shoot 3s
From a minus 3-point shooting stat to a high note, Gillespie makes up for Booker’s long-range shortcomings in 2025 with video game-esque catch-and-shoot figures.
Gillespie has converted more than half of his catch-and-shoot opportunities this season (3.5 per game).
That’s the best percentage in all of basketball for boys who have played at least 10 games and attempted at least two catch-and-shoot triples per game – ahead of stars like Anthony Edwards for the Minnesota Timberwolves (51.6%) and Aaron Gordon of the Denver Nuggets (51.3%).
Funnily enough, Suns center Mark Williams has a better percentage on catch-and-shoot 3s than Gillespie… at 100%… on his only attempt from beyond the arc.
The Suns’ first half of the season was in many ways defined by three-point shooting and defense. Let’s hope this trend continues in 2026.
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