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When factoring in the unrelenting injury issues the Philadelphia 76ers endured, it is easy to say that the Phoenix Suns were unequivocally the biggest disappointment in the NBA this season. In addition to colossal embarrassment, that title comes with expected changes this offseason.
The organization evaluated the state of things during the second half of the 2024-25 campaign, and the results were likely as inexplicable as they were frightening.
However, one question that will pop up after the obvious one– how did a Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal-led team perform so poorly?– why did the Suns not give Bol Bol more opportunities to prove himself.
After receiving a bigger role in February, the 25-year-old center flashed some of the potential that had inspired Shaquille O'Neal to compare him to Victor Wembanyama. He averaged 12.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks in 20.9 minutes per game while shooting 54.1 percent from the field and 37.9 percent from 3-point range during the month.
Bol's role diminished in March, however, and was practically nonexistent in the final two weeks of the season. Phoenix confusingly chose not to get a clearer look at a forthcoming free agent who was showing promise. Fans might now know why.
Bol Bol might have turned off Suns HC Mike Budenholzer
“His last day in the rotation was March 12,” senior NBA insider Chris Haynes said on Friday. “The Suns were playing the [Houston] Rockets when Steven Adams and Mason Plumlee got into that altercation, a little scuffle on the ground. Players start to run and pull other players off. Bol, in the background, is shooting layups. He didn't run to the incident.
“League sources told me Coach [Mike] Budenholzer was irate when he saw that, when he saw that Bol did not run to the defense of his teammate. Bol, after being in the rotation for over a month, was out of the rotation for the remainder of the season.”
Sources: On Haynes Briefs show, how Phoenix intends to avoid star-chasing for defensive toughness, how potential coaches can prepare, how next coach could factor into Kevin Durant's future, and why Bol Bol lost his spot in rotation. #haynesbriefs
Full EP: https://t.co/cdC3fAc7RE pic.twitter.com/eJeUPrgnLl
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) April 18, 2025
There is an unwritten code among athletes that urges them to spring into action when one of their own is embroiled in a heated altercation. Escalating the situation is discouraged, but coaches expect team unity.
It is one thing to avoid the scrum, but engaging in another activity off to the side could send bad optics to the locker room. Even so, a one-on-one conversation should have sent a strong enough message.
It is obviously unknown if the now-fired Mike Budenholzer slashed the former NBA lottery pick's playing time because of his seemingly indifferent reaction, but the timing is interesting.
It should be noted that the Sudanese-American big man was in the midst of a shooting slump at this point, falling below 35 percent from the floor in three of his last five contests (including versus Houston).
The hits keep on coming for Suns
Whatever the reason may be, Bol Bol did not get to enjoy a full-blown breakthrough right before entering the open market.
And that is particularly a shame, since Kevin Durant extolled the man's work ethic less than two weeks before the Rockets brawl. The Suns could have gathered more information on the 7-foot-3 talent. Instead, they allowed him to waste away on the bench in what turned out to be a meaningless season.
You might have to throw yet another L in the column for Phoenix.
