| Team: | Phoenix Suns |
| End Year: | 2022 |
| Divisionwin: | yes |
| Wins: | 64 |
| Losses: | 18 |
| Division: | Pacific |
| Division Place: | 1 |
| Conf Place: | 1 |
| Coach: | Monty Williams |
| Gm: | James Jones |
| Owners: | Robert Sarver |
| Arena: | Footprint Center |
| Television: | Bally Sports Arizona |
| Radio: | KTAR |
| Playoffs: | Conference Semifinals (lost to Mavericks 3–4) |
| Bbr Team: | PHO |
The 2021–22 Phoenix Suns season was their 54th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as well as their 29th season at the currently named Footprint Center, their first full season under that name after taking over the naming rights to the previously named Phoenix Suns Arena on July 16, 2021, during the 2021 NBA Finals.[1] [2]
The Suns entered the season as the defending Western Conference champions and were attempting to return to the NBA Finals for the second consecutive year.[3] On March 24, with a win over the Denver Nuggets, the Phoenix Suns clinched the #1 spot in the Western Conference and the league for the first time since 2005.[4] With the Suns 63rd win over the Los Angeles Lakers on April 5 (which, coincidentally, also eliminated the Lakers from playoff/play-in contention), the Suns set a franchise record for most wins in a season, surpassing the 1992–93 and 2004–05 teams with 62.[5]
In the playoffs, the Suns defeated the New Orleans Pelicans in six games in the first round,[6] but were then upset by the 4th-seeded Dallas Mavericks in the conference semifinals, where they lost in seven games, becoming the third team to have 64 or more wins and not reach the conference finals after the 2006–07 Dallas Mavericks and 2015–16 San Antonio Spurs.[7]
See main article: 2021 NBA draft.
The Suns agreed to trade their 29th pick and Jevon Carter to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Landry Shamet.[8]See main article: List of 2021–22 NBA season transactions. For this season, free agency began over a month later than it usually does, starting on August 2, 2021, at 6:00 P.M. EST instead of by June 30 or July 1 like in previous free agency periods due to the aftermath of the 2019–20 NBA season suspension affecting some of the timing for a few things with this season's offseason period. However, instead of starting the free agency period to something like July 31 akin to last season's free agency period starting two days after the last season's draft back on November 20, 2020, free agency began on the proper five days off before free agency begins. Furthermore, official signings were made four days after the starting free agency period (which in this case began on August 6, 2021, instead of by late November like last season), which was on schedule for the five day moratorium period the NBA holds. For this season, the Suns had (starting with the most expensive players downward) E'Twaun Moore, Langston Galloway, Cameron Payne, Abdel Nader, Frank Kaminsky III, and Torrey Craig all entering free agency this year due to all of them signing (or agreeing to) their veteran's minimum salaries for their respective deals last season. In addition to them, superstar point guard Chris Paul also declined his player's option that would have allowed him to get $44,211,146 in the final season of his massive contract he first signed back when he was with the Houston Rockets in 2018, though he's expected to receive a 3-year deal worth $90 million with the Suns in free agency. Not only that, in addition to all of these players, Ty-Shon Alexander's two-way contract was projected to go into its second year with Phoenix, which initially left them only one likely open two-way contract for the season earlier on.
On August 2, the Suns agreed to new deals for not just back-up point guard Cameron Payne, but also All-Star point guard Chris Paul, both of which became official by August 6.[9] [10] With Payne, his new deal gave him a three-year contract that's worth a total of $19 million, with his third year only guaranteeing him $2 million out of $6,500,000 that would be received there. However, with Chris Paul, his new contract allows him to receive a partially guaranteed four-year deal that would fully grant him up to $120 million, though only his first two years are fully guaranteed, with his third year being partially guaranteed (half of his salary is fully guaranteed for that season) and his final season in that deal being non-guaranteed. Not only that, but they also agreed to sign Denver Nuggets center JaVale McGee (who was also a part of Team U.S.A. for the 2020 Summer Olympics alongside Devin Booker) to a one-year deal for $5 million, though his agreement on August 2 was made official on August 16 instead.[11] However, the Suns also lost Torrey Craig to the Indiana Pacers on August 2, with Craig agreeing to sign a two-year deal worth $10 million for Indiana, which was made official by August 20. A day after that, the Suns also re-signed Abdel Nader to a two-year deal worth $4,200,000 (second year being a team option), with his signing also being official on August 6.[12] On August 5, Frank Kaminsky III agreed to another one-year deal worth his veteran's minimum to return to Phoenix, with former Suns point guard Elfrid Payton agreeing to a one-year deal worth his own veteran's minimum to reunite with the Suns, albeit as a third-string point guard this time around. Kaminsky's deal was made official by August 9,[13] while Payton's was completed a day later.[14]
On August 26, the Suns announced that they had officially waived Ty-Shon Alexander from his second year of his two-way contract he had signed from his previous season with the team.[15] On September 7, the Suns confirmed that they replaced Alexander's spot with that of former Washington Wizards (and technically San Antonio Spurs) player Chandler Hutchison as a two-way contract player for this season only due to it being his last eligible year for such a contract, with Ty-Shon Alexander confirmed to join the Segafredo Virtus Bologna in Italy later on that same day.[16] [17] The next day, E'Twaun Moore agreed to a one-year deal to return to the Orlando Magic after last playing with Orlando from 2012 to 2014. On September 22, Chasson Randle was confirmed to be a training camp signing for the Suns that's looking to gain a spot on the roster properly in October, which was made official on September 26.[18] However, Randle was officially waived after their preseason ended on October 16. Then, on September 24, Langston Galloway was confirmed to sign a training camp deal with the Golden State Warriors, though he was waived from the Warriors on October 9. With regards to rookie scale contract extensions, Mikal Bridges was given a 4-year, $90 million extension with the Suns on October 17,[19] while Landry Shamet was given a 4-year, $43 million extension with Phoenix a day later.[20] However, Deandre Ayton failed to get a contract extension of his own before the deadline passed, making him a restricted free agent entering next season. On October 22, the Suns filled their second two-way contract with small power forward Ish Wainright, a Ugandan-American that previously last played for the SIG Strasbourg in France before signing a non-guaranteed contract with the Toronto Raptors in the preseason.[21]
During the 2021 NBA Finals run on July 12, assistant coach Willie Green agreed to become the new head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans to enter this season.[22] [23] On July 25, the Suns agreed to hire Minnesota Timberwolves assistant coach Bryan Gates as a replacement to Willie Green going forward entering this season.[24] On August 7, the Suns officially announced not just the promotion of Kevin Young to Willie Green's former position of associate head coach and the confirmed hiring of Bryan Gates, but also hired former NBA and NBA G League Ignite player Jarrett Jack and Oklahoma City Thunder player development coach Steve Scalzi to initially round out the rest of the coaching staff.[25] On August 22, player development coach Riccardo Fois officially left his position with the Suns to become an assistant coach for the University of Arizona's Wildcats men's basketball team.[26] [27] Finally, on September 24, the Suns confirmed that both Riccardo Fois and Ben Strong left their positions as player development coaches for the team, being replaced by the Suns' assistant video coordinator Corey Vinson and the Portland Trail Blazers' video coordinator and player development coach Jamal Gross as a combination of video coordinator and player development coaches for the team.[28] Not only that, but Fort Wayne Mad Ants assistant coach Michael Ruffin was confirmed to be the official assistant coach replacement for Steve Blake, with Jarrett Jack joining Steve Scalzi as player development assistant coaches going into this season.[29]
On July 24, Jeff Bower had a mutual agreement with the Suns to officially leave his position as Vice President of Basketball Operations for them going forward.[30] With Larry Fitzgerald confirmed to not be playing in the NFL for at least the majority of the 2021 Arizona Cardinals season, it is presumed likely that Fitzgerald will be given a much greater role with the Suns franchise going into this season under Robert Sarver's ownership group. However, a report from Jordan Schultz on October 22, 2021, suggested that ESPN was going to release a major exposé piece on majority team owner Robert Sarver with regards to rampant racism, sexism, and misogyny involved with him on the team both on and off the court throughout his entire tenure as team owner. While Sarver and other front office members explicitly denied any problems in mind there before the report's release,[31] the actual report on Sarver was released on November 4, detailing all the problems involved with the majority of his time there.[32] While Sarver and a majority of team personnel released public statements on their official website in response to the allegations at hand,[33] [34] [35] [36] [37] the NBA began their investigations on the team's executive conduct the same day ESPN's report was released.[38]
| style= width="55%" | Player | style= width="55%" | 2021–22 Salary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Devin Booker | $31,650,600 | |||
| Chris Paul | $30,800,000 | |||
| Deandre Ayton | $12,632,950 | |||
| Jae Crowder | $9,720,900 | |||
| Dario Šarić | $8,510,000 | |||
| Cameron Payne | $6,500,000 | |||
| Mikal Bridges | $5,557,725 | |||
| JaVale McGee | $5,000,000 | |||
| Jalen Smith | $4,458,000 | |||
| Cameron Johnson | $4,437,000 | |||
| Landry Shamet | $3,768,342 | |||
| Elfrid Payton | $2,389,641 | |||
| Frank Kaminsky III | $2,239,544 | |||
| Abdel Nader | $2,000,000 | |||
| Chandler Hutchison | $462,629< | --(Was initially set to be $84,414 this season before the COVID-19 pandemic forced some changes into the collective bargaining agreement for this season, including an increase in pay and time spent in the NBA for two-way contracts last season. The salary for two-way contracts this season increased to half of a rookie's scaled minimum contract for this season, which is $925,258 for rookies on a minimum deal.)--> | ||
| Ish Wainright | $462,629< | --(Was initially set to be $84,414 this season before the COVID-19 pandemic forced some changes into the collective bargaining agreement for this season, including an increase in pay and time spent in the NBA for two-way contracts last season. The salary for two-way contracts this season increased to half of a rookie's scaled minimum contract for this season, which is $925,258 for rookies on a minimum deal.)--> | ||
| style= width="50%" | Total | style= width="50%" align="right" | $129,664,702 |
After dealing with some changes to the preseason format for last season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NBA made sure to get their preseason period back into its proper starting point in early October going from this season onward, which includes a healthy number of preseason games to start things out there.[41] While the Suns were still playing in the 2021 NBA playoffs, the Los Angeles Lakers revealed their preseason schedule on June 29, which included a match with the Suns at home on October 6 and a road match in Los Angeles on October 10.[42] Not only that, but on August 17, the Portland Trail Blazers revealed in their preseason schedule that the Suns would play at home against Portland on October 13, with them both revealing they were their final, respective preseason opponents this time around.[43] Then on August 19, the Sacramento Kings revealed they were the first opponent the Suns will have in the preseason with a road game in Sacramento to start things out there.[44] The Phoenix Suns later revealed those four games of theirs were officially their preseason schedule on August 25.[45]
Before the start of their preseason period, Devin Booker was confirmed to be infected with COVID-19 despite getting the COVID-19 vaccine earlier in the previous season alongside the rest of the team playing there. Despite being able to return to practice early, Booker was held out for at least the majority of the preseason period, returning to play for only the final preseason game. Not only that, but the Suns' home games had to be moved to earlier times than originally scheduled due to the team focusing on their matches as doubleheader matches, with the Phoenix Mercury being considered the main events due to them competing in the 2021 WNBA Playoffs against the Las Vegas Aces and Chicago Sky after the Suns' respective matches against the Lakers and Trail Blazers on October 6 & 13. While their first and last preseason games on October 4 & 13 did not air on TV this season, the Suns had their preseason matches against the Lakers air on NBA TV and ESPN respectively for their October 6 & 10 games. After struggling against the Kings to start the preseason, Phoenix won both of their matches against the Lakers (even blowing the Lakers out 123–94 in their second match) before blowing out the Trail Blazers in a 119–74 win at home, finishing the preseason with a 3–1 record.|- style="background:#fcc;"| 1| October 4| @ Sacramento| | Shamet, Smith (13)| Jalen Smith (11)| Cameron Payne (7)| Golden 1 Center
17,583| 0–1|- style="background:#cfc;"| 2| October 6| L.A. Lakers| | Mikal Bridges (15)| Deandre Ayton (11)| Chris Paul (11)| Footprint Center
12,434| 1–1|- style="background:#cfc;"| 3| October 10| @ L.A. Lakers| | Chris Paul (15)| Ayton, McGee, Smith (9)| Cameron Payne (7)| Staples Center
13,844| 2–1|- style="background:#cfc;"| 4| October 13| Portland| | Devin Booker (17)| Deandre Ayton (11)| Elfrid Payton (9)| Footprint Center
9,772| 3–1
|- style="background:#fcc;"| 1| October 20| Denver| | Mikal Bridges (16)| Crowder, McGee (8)| Chris Paul (10)| Footprint Center
16,074| 0–1|- style="background:#cfc;"| 2| October 22| @ L.A. Lakers| | Chris Paul (23)| Deandre Ayton (15)| Chris Paul (14)| Staples Center
18,997| 1–1|- style="background:#fcc;"| 3| October 23| @ Portland| | Devin Booker (21)| Frank Kaminsky III (5)| Chris Paul (11)| Moda Center
18,558| 1–2|- style="background:#fcc;"| 4| October 27| Sacramento| | Devin Booker (31)| Deandre Ayton (21)| Booker, Paul (8)| Footprint Center
14,678| 1–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 5| October 30| Cleveland| | Devin Booker (27)| Deandre Ayton (12)| Chris Paul (10)| Footprint Center
14,516| 2–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 6| November 2| New Orleans| | Mikal Bridges (22)| Booker, Crowder (8)| Chris Paul (18)| Footprint Center
14,323| 3–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 7| November 4| Houston| | Devin Booker (27)| Deandre Ayton (11)| Chris Paul (13)| Footprint Center
15,058| 4–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 8| November 6| Atlanta| | Devin Booker (38)| Jae Crowder (8)| Chris Paul (13)| Footprint Center
15,412| 5–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 9| November 8| @ Sacramento| | Cameron Payne (24)| Devin Booker (9)| Devin Booker (6)| Golden 1 Center
13,566| 6–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 10| November 10| Portland| | Frank Kaminsky (31)| Booker, McGee (8)| Chris Paul (7)| Footprint Center
15,672| 7–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 11| November 12| @ Memphis| | Booker, Crowder (17)| Cameron Johnson (7)| Chris Paul (12)| FedExForum
15,886| 8–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 12| November 14| @ Houston| | Devin Booker (26)| Javale McGee (14)| Devin Booker (6)| Toyota Center
16,088| 9–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 13| November 15| @ Minnesota| | Devin Booker (29)| Deandre Ayton (12)| Chris Paul (8)| Target Center
16,279| 10–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 14| November 17| Dallas| | Devin Booker (24)| Deandre Ayton (13)| Chris Paul (14)| Footprint Center
18,055| 11-3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 15| November 19| Dallas| | Booker, Bridges (19)| Deandre Ayton (17)| Chris Paul (14)| Footprint Center
17,071| 12–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 16| November 21| Denver| | Cameron Johnson (22)| Deandre Ayton (8)| Chris Paul (10)| Footprint Center
16,072| 13–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 17| November 22| @ San Antonio| | Devin Booker (23)| Deandre Ayton (14)| Landry Shamet (5)| AT&T Center
14,715| 14–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 18| November 24| @ Cleveland| | Devin Booker (35)| JaVale McGee (12)| Chris Paul (12)| Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
18,055| 15–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 19| November 26| @ New York| | Devin Booker (32)| Deandre Ayton (13)| Chris Paul (10)| Madison Square Garden
19,812| 16–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 20| November 27| @ Brooklyn| | Devin Booker (30)| JaVale McGee (10)| Chris Paul (11)| Barclays Center
18,071| 17–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 21| November 30| Golden State| | Deandre Ayton (24)| Deandre Ayton (11)| Chris Paul (5)| Footprint Center
17,071| 18–3|- style="background:#cfc;"| 22| December 2| Detroit| | Johnson, Payne (19)| Deandre Ayton (12)| Chris Paul (12)| Footprint Center
16,081| 19–3|- style="background:#fcc;"| 23| December 3| @ Golden State| | Deandre Ayton (23)| JaVale McGee (7)| Chris Paul (8)| Chase Center
18,064| 19–4|- style="background:#cfc;"| 24| December 6| San Antonio| | Chris Paul (21)| Ayton, Bridges (9)| Chris Paul (10)| Footprint Center
15,292| 20–4|- style="background:#cfc;"| 25| December 10| Boston| | JaVale McGee (21)| JaVale McGee (15)| Chris Paul (12)| Footprint Center
17,071| 21–4|- style="background:#fcc;"| 26| December 13| @ L.A. Clippers| | Cameron Johnson (17)| JaVale McGee (13)| Chris Paul (8)| Staples Center
17,909| 21–5|- style="background:#cfc;"| 27| December 14| @ Portland| | Deandre Ayton (28)| Deandre Ayton (13)| Chris Paul (14)| Moda Center
16,184| 22–5|- style="background:#cfc;"| 28| December 16| Washington| | JaVale McGee (17)| Deandre Ayton (10)| Cameron Johnson (5)| Footprint Center
16,177| 23–5|- style="background:#cfc;"| 29| December 19| Charlotte| | JaVale McGee (19)| Deandre Ayton (15)| Chris Paul (9)| Footprint Center
17,071| 24–5|- style="background:#cfc;"| 30| December 21| @ L.A. Lakers| | Devin Booker (24)| Deandre Ayton (11)| Chris Paul (9)| Staples Center
18,997| 25–5|- style="background:#cfc;"| 31| December 23| Oklahoma City| | Devin Booker (30)| Deandre Ayton (12)| Booker, Paul (7)| Footprint Center
17,071| 26–5|- style="background:#fcc;"| 32| December 25| Golden State| | Chris Paul (21)| Ayton. McGee (7)| Chris Paul (8)| Footprint Center
17,071| 26–6|- style="background:#fcc;"| 33| December 27| Memphis| | Devin Booker (30)| Jalen Smith (9)| Chris Paul (13)| Footprint Center
17,071| 26–7|- style="background:#cfc;"| 34| December 29| Oklahoma City| | Devin Booker (38)| Jalen Smith (14)| Cameron Payne (7)| Footprint Center
17,071| 27–7|- style="background:#fcc;"| 35| December 31| @ Boston| | Devin Booker (22)| Jalen Smith (7) | Chris Paul (8)| TD Garden
19,156| 27–8|- style="background:#cfc;"| 36| January 2| @ Charlotte| | Devin Booker (24)| Jalen Smith (12) | Chris Paul (16)| Spectrum Center
19,088| 28–8|- style="background:#cfc;"| 37| January 4| @ New Orleans| | Devin Booker (33)| Devin Booker (9)| Chris Paul (15)| Smoothie King Center
15,158| 29–8|- style="background:#cfc;"| 38| January 6| L.A. Clippers| | Cameron Johnson (24)| Jalen Smith (14)| Chris Paul (10)| Footprint Center
17,071| 30–8|- style="background:#fcc;"| 39| January 8| Miami| | Devin Booker (26)| Deandre Ayton (8)| Chris Paul (7)| Footprint Center
17,071| 30–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 40| January 11| @ Toronto| | Jae Crowder (19)| Deandre Ayton (9)| Chris Paul (12)| Scotiabank Arena
0| 31–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 41| January 14| @ Indiana| | Devin Booker (35)| Ayton, Smith (12)| Chris Paul (9)| Gainbridge Fieldhouse
14,019| 32–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 42| January 16| @ Detroit| | Devin Booker (30)| Jae Crowder (11)| Chris Paul (6)| Little Caesars Arena
18,178| 33–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 43| January 17| @ San Antonio| | Devin Booker (48)| Bismack Biyombo (14)| Chris Paul (12)| AT&T Center
10,422| 34–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 44| January 20| @ Dallas| | Devin Booker (28)| Mikal Bridges (8)| Chris Paul (11)| American Airlines Center
19,584| 35–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 45| January 22| Indiana| | Mikal Bridges (23) | Bismack Biyombo (13)| Chris Paul (16)| Footprint Center
17,071| 36–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 46| January 24| Utah| | Devin Booker (33)| Bismack Biyombo (13)| Chris Paul (14)| Footprint Center
17,071| 37–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 47| January 26| @ Utah| | Devin Booker (43)| Devin Booker (12)| Chris Paul (5)| Vivint Arena
18,306| 38–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 48| January 28| Minnesota| | Devin Booker (29)| Bismack Biyombo (12)| Chris Paul (14)| Footprint Center
17,071| 39–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 49| January 30| San Antonio| | Devin Booker (28) | Bismack Biyombo (11)| Chris Paul (19)| Footprint Center
17,071| 40–9|- style="background:#cfc;"| 50| February 1| Brooklyn| | Devin Booker (35) | Mikal Bridges (8)| Chris Paul (14)| Footprint Center
17,071| 41–9|- style="background:#fcc;"| 51| February 3| @ Atlanta| | Devin Booker (32)| Deandre Ayton (9)| Chris Paul (12)| State Farm Arena
16,958| 41–10|- style="background:#cfc;"| 52| February 5| @ Washington| | Deandre Ayton (20)| Deandre Ayton (16)| Chris Paul (9)| Capital One Arena
18,058| 42–10|- style="background:#cfc;"| 53| February 7| @ Chicago| | Devin Booker (38)| Jae Crowder (10)| Chris Paul (11) | United Center
20,615| 43–10|- style="background:#cfc;"| 54| February 8| @ Philadelphia| | Devin Booker (35)| Jae Crowder (14)| Chris Paul (12)| Wells Fargo Center
20,720| 44-10|- style="background:#cfc;"| 55| February 10| Milwaukee| | Deandre Ayton (27)| Crowder, Johnson (8)| Chris Paul (19)| Footprint Center
17,071| 45–10|- style="background:#cfc;"| 56| February 12| Orlando| | Devin Booker (26)| Deandre Ayton (10) | Chris Paul (15)| Footprint Center
17,071| 46–10|- style="background:#cfc;"| 57| February 15| L.A. Clippers| | Devin Booker (26)| Deandre Ayton (12) | Chris Paul (14)| Footprint Center
17,071| 47–10|- style="background:#cfc;"| 58| February 16| Houston| | Devin Booker (24)| Deandre Ayton (9)| Devin Booker (8)| Footprint Center
17,071| 48–10|- align="center"|colspan="9" bgcolor="#bbcaff"|All-Star Game|- style="background:#cfc;"| 59| February 24| @ Oklahoma City| | Devin Booker (25)| Ayton, McGee (8)| Devin Booker (12)| Paycom Center
14,176| 49–10|- style="background:#fcc;"| 60| February 25| New Orleans| | Devin Booker (30)| Torrey Craig (11)| Mikal Bridges (6)| Footprint Center
17,071| 49–11|- style="background:#fcc;"| 61| February 27| Utah| | Devin Booker (30)| Ayton, Booker, McGee (7)| Devin Booker (7)| Footprint Center
17,071| 49–12|- style="background:#cfc;"| 62| March 2| Portland| | Cameron Johnson (20)| JaVale McGee (9)| Aaron Holiday (9)| Footprint Center
17,071| 50–12|- style="background:#cfc;"| 63| March 4| New York| | Cameron Johnson (38)| Jae Crowder (7)| Cameron Payne (16)| Footprint Center
17,071| 51–12|- style="background:#fcc;"| 64| March 6| @ Milwaukee| | Deandre Ayton (30)| Deandre Ayton (8)| Cameron Payne (8)| Fiserv Forum
17,495| 51–13|- style="background:#cfc;"| 65| March 8| @ Orlando| | Ayton, Shamet (21)| Deandre Ayton (19)| Cameron Payne (12)| Amway Center
14,024| 52–13|- style="background:#cfc;"| 66| March 9| @ Miami| | Devin Booker (23)| JaVale McGee (15)| Cameron Payne (10)| FTX Arena
19,600| 53–13|- style="background:#fcc;"| 67| March 11| Toronto| | Cameron Payne (24)| JaVale McGee (8)| Devin Booker (7)| Footprint Center
17,071| 53–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 68| March 13| L.A. Lakers| | Devin Booker (30)| Deandre Ayton (16)| Cameron Payne (11)| Footprint Center
17,071| 54–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 69| March 15| @ New Orleans| | Devin Booker (27)| Holiday, McGee (6)| Booker, Payne (8)| Smoothie King Center
16,789| 55–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 70| March 16| @ Houston| | Devin Booker (36)| Torrey Craig (14)| Cameron Payne (11)| Toyota Center
18,055| 56–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 71| March 18| Chicago| | Devin Booker (28)| Deandre Ayton (12)| Cameron Payne (7)| Footprint Center
17,071| 57–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 72| March 20| @ Sacramento| | Devin Booker (31)| Ayton, Craig (10)| Aaron Holiday (7)| Golden 1 Center
17,583| 58–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 73| March 23| @ Minnesota| | Deandre Ayton (35)| Deandre Ayton (14)| Cameron Payne (9)| Target Center
17,136| 59–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 74| March 24| @ Denver| | Devin Booker (49)| Deandre Ayton (7)| Chris Paul (13)| Ball Arena
19,520| 60–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 75| March 27| Philadelphia| | Devin Booker (35)| Deandre Ayton (12)| Chris Paul (14)| Footprint Center
17,071| 61–14|- style="background:#cfc;"| 76| March 30| @ Golden State| | Booker, Bridges (22)| Deandre Ayton (16)| Chris Paul (8)| Chase Center
18,064| 62–14|- style="background:#fcc;"| 77| April 1| @ Memphis| | Devin Booker (41)| Ayton, McGee (12)| Chris Paul (11)| FedExForum
17,794| 62–15|- style="background:#fcc;"| 78| April 3| @ Oklahoma City| | Mikal Bridges (18)| Landry Shamet (7)| Chris Paul (9)| Paycom Center
17,078| 62–16|- style="background:#cfc;"| 79| April 5| L.A. Lakers| | Devin Booker (32)| Deandre Ayton (13) | Chris Paul (12)| Footprint Center
17,071| 63–16|- style="background:#fcc;"| 80| April 6| @ L.A. Clippers| | Ish Wainright (20)| Bismack Biyombo (12)| Aaron Holiday (7)| Staples Center
19,068| 63–17|- style="background:#cfc;"| 81| April 8| @ Utah| | Devin Booker (33)| Deandre Ayton (10) | Chris Paul (16)| Vivint Arena
18,306 | 64–17|- style="background:#fcc;"| 82| April 10| Sacramento| | Landry Shamet (27)| JaVale McGee (13)| Holiday, Shamet, Lundberg (5)| Footprint Center
17,071| 64–18
For the second straight year in a row, the Suns were in the NBA Playoffs after previously experiencing a decade-long drought from it that started back in the 2010–11 season. It is their first time they reached the Playoffs in back-to-back seasons since the Seven Seconds Or Less era from around the 2004–05 season until the 2007–08 season. The NBA also continued utilizing the play-in tournament set-up that first began in the 2020 NBA Bubble, with this season also being the second one in a row where the play-in tournament has the seventh and eighth best teams in each conference compete for the seventh seed in each conference and the ninth and tenth seeds compete for a shot at the eighth seed for each conference instead.[46] However, this is the first full-length season that will feature the same play-in tournament experiment from the previous season at hand.[47]
|- style="background:#cfc;"| 1| April 17| New Orleans| | Chris Paul (30)| Deandre Ayton (9)| Chris Paul (10)| Footprint Center
17,071| 1–0|- style="background:#fcc;"| 2| April 19| New Orleans| | Devin Booker (31)| Deandre Ayton (9)| Chris Paul (14)| Footprint Center
17,071| 1–1|- style="background:#cfc;"| 3| April 22| @ New Orleans| | Ayton, Paul (28)| Deandre Ayton (17)| Chris Paul (14)| Smoothie King Center
18,962| 2–1|- style="background:#fcc;"| 4| April 24| @ New Orleans| | Deandre Ayton (23)| Deandre Ayton (8)| Chris Paul (11)| Smoothie King Center
18,962| 2–2|- style="background:#cfc;"| 5| April 26| New Orleans| | Mikal Bridges (31)| Deandre Ayton (10)| Chris Paul (11)| Footprint Center
17,071| 3–2|- style="background:#cfc;"| 6| April 28| @ New Orleans| | Chris Paul (33)| Deandre Ayton (7)| Chris Paul (8)| Smoothie King Center
18,710| 4–2|- style="background:#cfc;"| 1| May 2| Dallas| | Deandre Ayton (25)| Devin Booker (9)| Devin Booker (8)| Footprint Center
17,071| 1–0|- style="background:#cfc;"| 2| May 4| Dallas| | Devin Booker (30)| Jae Crowder (7)| Chris Paul (8)| Footprint Center
17,071| 2–0|- style="background:#fcc;"| 3| May 6| @ Dallas| |Jae Crowder (19)|Deandre Ayton (11)|Devin Booker (8)| American Airlines Center
20,077| 2–1|- style="background:#fcc;"| 4| May 8| @ Dallas| |Devin Booker (35)|Deandre Ayton (11)| Booker Paul (7)| American Airlines Center
20,610| 2–2|- style="background:#cfc;"| 5| May 10| Dallas| |Devin Booker (28)|Deandre Ayton (9)|Chris Paul (10)| Footprint Center
17,071| 3–2|- style="background:#fcc;"| 6| May 12| @ Dallas||Deandre Ayton (21)|Deandre Ayton (11)|Mikal Bridges (5)| American Airlines Center
20,777| 3–3|- style="background:#fcc;"| 7| May 15| Dallas||Cameron Johnson (12)|Javale McGee (6)|Chris Paul (4)| Footprint Center
17,071| 3–4
| Player | Duration | Reason(s) for missed time< | --Do not include players who did not play due to the coach's decision or were forced upon the inactive list. However, in case reports of COVID-19 still continue on for some reason, please include any players that might have caught the COVID-19 virus if the infection occurred during this regular season and/or were quarantining at the time. Also, depending on how long an assignment is held and who potentially is going to whatever NBA G League team is assigned to them this season, include that player as a potential entry if he's not a two-way contract.--> | Games missed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start | End | ||||
| Dario Šarić | July 6, 2021 | Unknown | Tore the ACL in his right knee during Game 1 of the 2021 NBA Finals. | ?? | |
| Cameron Payne | October 23, 2021 | November 6, 2021 | Right hamstring strain during the road Lakers game. | 5 | |
| Deandre Ayton | November 2, 2021 | November 4, 2021 | Right leg contusion during the home Cavaliers game. | 1 | |
| Deandre Ayton | November 6, 2021 | Unknown | Lower right leg bruise during the home Rockets game. | ? | |
|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 82 || 82 || 34.8 || .534 || .369 || .834 || 4.2 || 2.3 || 1.2 || .4 || 14.2|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 74 || 17 || 15.8 || .629 || .222 || .699 || 6.7 || .6 || .3 || 1.1 || 9.2|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 69 || 14 || 20.8 || .394 || .368 || .840 || 1.8 || 1.6 || .4 || .1 || 8.3|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 68 || 68 || 34.5 || .466 || .383 || .868 || 5.0 || 4.8 || 1.1 || .4 || 26.8|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 67 || 67 || 28.1 || .399 || .348 || .789 || 5.3 || 1.9 || 1.4 || .4 || 9.4|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 66 || 16 || 26.2 || .460 || .425 || .860 || 4.1 || 1.5 || .9 || .2 || 12.5|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 65 || 65 || 32.9 || .493 || .317 || .837 || 4.4 || 10.8 || 1.9 || .3 || 14.7|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 58 || 58 || 29.5 || .634 || .368 || .746 || 10.2 || 1.4 || .7 || .7 || 17.2|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 58 || 12 || 22.0 || .409 || .336 || .843 || 3.0 || 4.9 || .7 || .3 || 10.8|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 50 || 1 || 11.0 || .383 || .222 || .375 || 1.8 || 2.0 || .5 || .1 || 3.0|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 45 || 0 || 8.0 || .394 || .322 || .583 || 1.2 || .3 || .4 || .1 || 2.4|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 36 || 3 || 14.1 || .593 || || .535 || 4.6 || .6 || .3 || .7 || 5.8|- | style="text-align:left;"|†| 29 || 4 || 13.2 || .460 || .231 || .769 || 4.8 || .2 || .2 || .6 || 6.0|- | style="text-align:left;"|†| 27 || 2 || 20.8 || .450 || .323 || .706 || 4.3 || 1.2 || .8 || .6 || 6.9|- | style="text-align:left;"|†| 22 || 1 || 16.3 || .411 || .444 || .939 || 2.5 || 3.4 || .8 || .0 || 6.8|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 14 || 0 || 10.4 || .343 || .286 || .600 || 1.9 || .5 || .6 || .3 || 2.4|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 9 || 0 || 20.1 || .545 || .333 || .900 || 4.6 || 1.4 || .9 || .8 || 10.6|- | style="text-align:left;"|†| 6 || 0 || 5.8 || .357 || .333 || || 1.2 || .3 || .0 || .0 || 2.2|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 6 || 0 || 3.7 || .500 || || 1.000 || .8 || .3 || .0 || .0 || .7|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 4 || 0 || 11.0 || .263 || .375 || || 1.8 || 2.8 || .8 || .0 || 3.3|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 3 || 0 || 6.0 || .000 || || || 5.0 || .7 || .3 || .0 || .0|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 2 || 0 || 4.0 || .000 || .000 || || .5 || .5 || 1.0 || .0 || .0|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 2 || 0 || 3.5 || .333 || .000 || 1.000 || 2.0 || .0 || .5 || .0 || 3.0|}
|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 13 || 13 || 38.5 || .478 || .394 || .933 || 4.7 || 2.8 || 1.1 || 1.0 || 13.3|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 13 || 13 || 34.5 || .561 || .388 || .946 || 4.2 || 8.3 || 1.5 || .2 || 17.5|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 13 || 13 || 30.5 || .640 || .500 || .636 || 8.9 || 1.7 || .4 || .8 || 17.9|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 13 || 13 || 29.5 || .400 || .302 || .731 || 4.7 || 2.4 || 1.0 || .5 || 9.4|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 13 || 3 || 24.6 || .465 || .373 || .813 || 3.5 || 1.5 || .4 || .1 || 10.8|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 13 || 0 || 13.2 || .297 || .167 || .833 || 1.5 || 2.1 || .5 || .1 || 4.2|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 12 || 0 || 16.0 || .396 || .346 || .714 || 1.7 || 1.3 || .5 || .0 || 4.3|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 12 || 0 || 11.1 || .700 || .000 || .846 || 4.0 || .6 || .3 || .4 || 6.8|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 10 || 10 || 36.6 || .451 || .431 || .887 || 4.8 || 4.4 || .5 || .4 || 23.3|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 9 || 0 || 9.6 || .647 || || .500 || 2.1 || .6 || .1 || .2 || 2.8|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 9 || 0 || 7.7 || .364 || .300 || .500 || 1.7 || .6 || .4 || .2 || 2.2|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 7 || 0 || 3.7 || .417 || .500 || || 1.6 || .1 || .1 || .1 || 1.9|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 6 || 0 || 3.3 || .571 || .714 || .000 || .5 || 1.5 || .5 || .2 || 3.5|- | style="text-align:left;"|| 2 || 0 || 4.0 || .667 || || || .0 || 1.5 || .0 || .0 || 2.0|}
See main article: List of 2021–22 NBA season transactions.
| July 29, 2021 | To Phoenix Suns Landry Shamet | To Brooklyn Nets Jevon Carter Draft rights to #29 pick Day'Ron Sharpe | |
| February 10, 2022 | To Phoenix Suns Torrey Craig Cash Considerations | To Indiana Pacers Jalen Smith 2022 second round pick | |
| February 10, 2022 | To Phoenix Suns Aaron Holiday | To Washington Wizards Cash Considerations |
| Player | Signed | Date | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Paul | Signed 4-year partially guaranteed deal worth $120 Million | August 6, 2021 | |||||
| Cameron Payne | Signed 3-year partially guaranteed deal worth $19 Million | August 6, 2021 | |||||
| Abdel Nader | Signed 2-year partially guaranteed deal worth $4,200,000 (Officially gained only $2,000,000 through this season.) | August 6, 2021 | |||||
| Frank Kaminsky III | Signed 1-year deal worth $2,239,544 | August 9, 2021 | |||||
| Mikal Bridges | Signed 4-year contract extension worth $90 Million | October 17, 2021 | |||||
| Landry Shamet | Signed 4-year partially guaranteed contract extension worth $43 Million | October 18, 2021 | - style="text-align: center" | Torrey Craig | Signed 2-year deal worth $10 Million | February 10, 2022--> |
| Player | Signed | Former team(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elfrid Payton | Signed 1-year deal worth $2,389,641 | New York Knicks | |
| JaVale McGee | Signed 1-year deal worth $5 Million | Denver Nuggets | |
| Chandler Hutchison | Signed a two-way contract worth $462,629 | San Antonio Spurs / Washington Wizards | |
| Ishmail Wainright | Signed a two-way contract worth $462,629 |  SIG Strasbourg /  Toronto Raptors | |
| Emanuel Terry | Signed a 10-day contract under COVID-19 hardship rules | Stockton Kings | |
| M.J. Walker | Signed a 10-day contract under COVID-19 hardship rules | Westchester Knicks | |
| Paris Bass | Signed two 10-day contracts under COVID-19 hardship rules | South Bay Lakers | |
| Bismack Biyombo | Signed 10-day / 1-year contract worth $1,366,392 | Charlotte Hornets | |
| Justin Jackson | Signed two 10-day contracts under COVID-19/injury hardship rules worth $205,662 | Boston Celtics / Texas Legends | |
| Gabriel Lundberg | Signed two-way contract worth $462,629 |  PBC CSKA Moscow |