Fanning the Flames: Doing the Bare Minimum

(s/o if you *get* the title of this episode.)The Phoenix Suns are off to a surprising 9-6 start, and have won 8 of their last 10. The is playing with more fire than we saw at any point last season, and they look like they’re having a heck of a lot of fun doing it. We dive into the team’s hot start, the driving force(s) behind it, whether it’s sustainable, and more… on a brand new Fanning the Flames!Tap in.

Suns are 1-0 and so are we. Dan, Paul, and Justin break down the start of the season.

The 2025-26 NBA Season is upon us and the Phoenix Suns are coming in with a new coach, a new front office, and a mostly-new roster. Which new player are we excited about?Who is going to take the “next step”?Will this team be better than last year’s?All that, and more, on a (gasp) new Fanning the Flames.Make sure to follow Paul (@DervishOfWhirl), Dan (@danduarte1), Justin (@SoSaysJ), and the pod (@FanTheFlamesNBA) on Twitter. 

The Phoenix Suns, as expected, finally dealt Kevin Durant, sending him to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the 10th pick in this year’s NBA Draft, and five 2nd round picks.Dan and Justin check in to give their reactions to the trade and their expectations for the team moving forward.

The Phoenix Suns hired Brian Gregory to serve as their new General Manager. He is a longtime college basketball coach who is relatively new to the NBA, so who is Brian Gregory? We are joined by one of his former players, Luke Hendrick, who shares some insight into the new GM. Spoiler alert: the phrase “home run hire” is used.Also, Paul, Dan and I yell at each other a lot.

Why has Mike Budenholzer not been fired? Will the Diamondbacks be good? At least the season is almost over…

There is plenty of blame to go around for the Phoenix Suns’ failures this season. Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Mike Budenholzer shoulder much of that load, but who’s truly at fault for this disastrous season?

Paul and Justin try to find something nice to say about the Phoenix Suns, discuss who’s to blame for the team underachieving, and find some Zen about the season.

A couple weeks back, Paul said the Phoenix Suns had to go 6-2 over their next 8 games. Well, the Suns did that, but does it matter?On this episode of Fanning the Flames, all three of us (gasp!) discuss whether the Suns’ 6-2 stretch has moved the needle at all, the impact of Nick Richards so far, and what the Suns’ Big 3 will look like after the trade deadline.Oh… and Paul is particularly spicy - that’s worth the watch standing alone.

Paul and Justin dispose the Suns trading for Nick Richards, Devin Booker‘s resurgence, and what the future holds for Nurk.