After missing out on the NBA playoffs last season, the 2011-2012 schedule for the Phoenix Suns will not make it any easier for them to make the playoffs this year. The NBA lockout has ended and players back at training camp as of Dec. 9. The Suns have only seventeen days to get their roster intact, form some sort of team chemistry, and get ready for opening day on Dec. 26. This year, the NBA season has reduced their game schedule from 82 games down to 66 games, which makes every game even that much more important.
The Suns preseason will consist of a two-game set against the Denver Nuggets. Starting off on Dec. 20, the Suns will play at the Pepsi Center in Denver, CO. Two days later, the Suns will play on their home court at US Airways Center to end their preseason.
Following the preseason, the Suns will have three days off before starting the season with a home game against the New Orleans Hornets on Dec. 26. The Suns will play two home games followed by two away games to end December. All four of their first games will be against teams that made the playoffs last year.
In January, things do not get any easier for the Suns. They will be playing an equal amount of home and away games, but mid-month will go on a nine-day road trip to San Antonio, Chicago, New York, Boston, and Dallas, with a home game the next night after they return to Phoenix. The Suns longest home series during the month is two games. Out of the sixteen games scheduled in the month, eleven of them will be against teams that made the playoffs last year, and eight are against Western Conference playoff teams.
February gets a little easier for the Suns, but they will be playing eight of their fourteen games on the road. They have a three-game road trip against Sacramento, Golden State, and Denver, and will follow that up with a home game against Atlanta the night after they return. The games against Golden State, Denver, and Atlanta mark the Suns first of two back-to-back-to-back series they will play this season. Only six of the fourteen games during the month are against playoff teams from last year, and the Suns will end February with three home games in a row.
The Suns will be the busiest in March, starting with three home games, which will end a six game home stand that will be their longest of the season. They will be playing seventeen games in the month, with ten of them at home. They will play their second back-to-back-to-back series March 14-16, at home against Utah, at the Clippers, and back at home against Detroit. The Suns will have a four game home stand during the month, and also play a four game series on the road. Only seven of the seventeen Suns games in March will be against playoff teams from last season.
To end the season, the Suns schedule gets more difficult. They will play seven of their fifteen games at home in April. They will have a three game road series, followed two days later by a four game road series against Minnesota, Memphis, Houston, and San Antonio. Following their four game road series, they will have a four game home stand against Portland, Oklahoma City, the Clippers, and Denver. In April, the Suns will play nine Western Conference playoff teams from last year to close out the final month of the season.
Overall, the Suns will play 66 games in 122 days. They will play 37 games against playoff teams from last year, which means they will only have 29 games against non-playoff teams. Nine of those 37 games are against Eastern Conference playoff teams, and seven of the nine will be on the road. Out of the 28 games against Western Conference playoff teams, fifteen will be played at home, while thirteen will be on the road. Considering the Suns lackluster 40-42 record last year, it’s going to be a long road back to the playoffs for the Suns this season.
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