Will the Phoenix Suns Ever Get It Done?

The Phoenix Suns have made it to the playoffs four-straight seasons.

They have dominated the regular season by winning 50 games each year and playing at a high level.

But it's not what you do in the regular season—it's the postseason that counts.

And the Suns have not fared well in the playoffs.

If the Suns want to play the best teams and advance in the playoffs in the West, they have to beat the San Antonio Spurs first. The Suns always struggle to beat the Spurs. Every time these two teams play, the Suns are always finding a way to lose.

The Spurs have also knocked the Suns out of the postseason three times—although I think they have really only beat them two times, because the Suns got robbed when the league suspended Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw.

In that series, the Suns were finally playing the Spurs tough and were going to win the final two games of that series‚but it end up going the other way after Diaw and Stoudemire were suspended.

The next season the Suns acquired four-time champion and future Hall of Fame center Shaquille ONeal. ONeal was supposed to be the guy that got the Suns over the hump and claimed the NBA title.

The Suns ended up playing the Spurs once again. In the first game of the series, the Suns dominated the whole game but still let the Spurs hang in the game.  Tim Duncan shockingly ended up hitting a three-pointer to send the game into overtime, the Spurs ended up winning that game—and the series, 4-1. People thought, "Man, when will the Suns ever get over the hump and beat this guys?"

This season, the Suns traded away Raja Bell and Boris Diaw for guard Jason Richardson.  Richardson is a guy that can score the ball, and can win games in the fourth quarter.  The Suns think that this move will get them over the hump and help them make a deep run in the playoffs. 

If Richardson is not the answer, the Suns need to do something fast. The reason is Steve Nash looks like his days are behind him, along with Shaquille O'Neal and Grant Hill.

These guys are getting older by the day. If the Suns are going to make a run, it needs to be now.