Just a handful of days remain until the 2026-27 Phoenix Suns open up training camp. 

The Sept. 29 date to begin the ramp-up to preseason play is a significant one, as the Suns are seeking to return to the playoffs after missing out during the 2024-25 season.

While reasons run abound in owning an optimistic outlook in the year ahead, there are concurrent reasonings to enter the campaign with skepticism. 

Several key players on Phoenix's roster missed extended time in 2025-26. This includes guard Jalen Green, who participated in a career-low 32 games, as well as Dillon Brooks, who missed 18 straight games during the crux of the season with a broken hand.

While it shouldn't be the assumption that the same happens during this campaign, the early returns aren't promising either. 

There's no definitive timetable on the return to action for center Mark Williams, who is now recovering from a torn labrum suffered within the last two weeks. 

It's challenging to reconcile bad news that comes to light before the season even begins, and it's reasonable to hold reservations about the roster being able to hold-up over the rigors of a full season.

One of the major cruxes in the argument that Phoenix sees regression this season is that the team has a strong probability to experience shooting regression.

Phoenix did a quality job of supplementing the losses of Royce O'Neale and Grayson Allen with signing Luke Kennard. However, Kennard is a low-volume shooter from beyond the arc. 

The Suns' starting lineup is also historically a marginally above-average shooting unit, but it takes much projection to expect a key contributor such as Brooks to reach his previous marks from three-point range.

Phoenix finished 10th in defensive rating and sixth in points per game allowed (111.1) in 2025-26. 

While these numbers did a lot of heavy lifting last season, bringing forward Miles Bridges into the fold is creating room for the defense to experience growing pains early in the season. 

In extension, there is a chance that the center rotation of third-year Oso Ighodaro and second-year Khaman Maluach do not rebound to the level that Williams does on the defensive side of the ball. This could result in more second-chance points and drawing out Phoenix's defensive reps.

There's no doubt that the Suns are far from a perfect team. Even through this, there are several reasons to believe in their upward trajectory moving into the October 21 season opener.