When the Phoenix Suns beat the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night, 121-117, a casual observer might not notice the team’s subtle yet tectonic shift from ‘playoff hangover’ to ‘locked in’.
For the 12 months from the start of the Bubble in July 2020 to the end of the NBA Finals in July 2021, the Suns were locked in. Every game, every quarter, every play. They had something to prove on a nightly basis, becoming only the third team in NBA history to rise from one of the two worst teams in the league to one of the two best.