The Phoenix Suns' pumped in crowd noise dilemma

Can we talk about the Phoenix Suns? Yes, of course we can, this is a sports site covering Phoenix sports. After a great 8-1 start, the Suns are embattled in a rather rough 1-6 skid. Kevin Durant has gone down with injury. Bradley Beal is out too. Others like Jusuf Nurkić and Grayson Allen have missed time during this stretch too.

But the worst thing about the Suns right now may just be the Footprint Center. Not necessarily the building itself, but the experience within. Fair warning, I may actually be a 74-year-old trapped in a 24-year-old’s body, so forgive me ahead of time for my complaints.

Defense!

First off, we need to address the incessant, obviously fake and robotic “DEFENSE! *thud thud* DEFENSE!” chant reverberating off the walls. All the time. Every. Single. Possession.

It even happened on Monday night as Magic guard Anthony Black was attempting to dribble out the clock with less than 10 seconds left, a game all but over at this point. Footprint Center half empty, all anyone in the arena could hear was “DEFENSE! *thud thud* DEFENSE!” You can even hear it a bit on the broadcast too.

If there was ever a time in a basketball game where it would behoove you to stand around and not play defense, it would be this moment. Nobody was listening to the pre-recorded chant except the players on the court, because in a brain dead move, the Suns fouled Black and put him on the free throw line where he extended the lead.

Is there a legitimate reason to be doing this every time the Suns are on defense? This is a serious question. In my opinion, constantly having this inauthentic defense chant devalues the whole point of a natural defense chant, and in turn, discourages the crowd from chanting defense themselves. When was the last time you heard the Phoenix crowd, not the voice from above, the crowd, start chanting for the Suns to play some defense?

There is no issue I have with the defense chant itself. Really, I mean that. It’s about the frequency of this demand to urge the Suns to play DEFENSE. I can’t think of any other team who does this to the extent the Phoenix Suns do it. It’s an insult to the intelligence of the fans, telling them, “Hey, you don’t know how a basketball game works, here’s what to do.”

The DEFENSE chant is so bad there’s a pseudo-petition looking to end it too. People don’t like it, so why not get rid of it. People want to boo. They want to cheer, they want to heckle. Let them.

What? I can’t Hear You!

You walk into the Footprint Center, and the vibes seem immaculate. There’s a big open concourse, great views of the court, savory smells of food, music playing, it’s all a great time.

As you walk in, the music gets louder and louder, little by little. You’re soon wondering why you didn’t bring earplugs. As quick as that thought enters your head, the next one comes in as well. Why on earth should you need to bring earplugs to a basketball game? It’s not a NASCAR race after all.

Nobody can hear the person next to them over the music, and maybe that’s why the crowd seems so dull, and ultimately, disengaged with the game. Booker can hit a pull up trey, Durant can make a 17-footer right in someone’s face, Nurkić can set a bone shattering screen or rookies Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro can make an insane defensive play, but it makes no difference if I can’t cheer and talk about it with whoever I’m at the game with, all because I can’t hear them over the high hats and bass lines slicing open my eardrums. Is it too much to ask to be able to hear the person next to me?

To quote Obama, “let me be clear.” Rap music is not my favorite genre. It doesn’t always do it for me. That being said, I’ve got nothing against it, obviously. I know it’s the music of basketball, and it’s more than tolerable. If you’re at a basketball game, it is what you’re going to hear.

Now, imagine you are on a road trip. You’re driving from Phoenix to the Grand Canyon, a good 3.5 to 4-hour journey. If you’re a sicko who likes to show up to the game early to catch shootaround/pre-game workouts, this is how long you’ll be listening to the same genre of music, in this case rap.

Would you, on a road trip, listen to a playlist consisting of only the same genre of music, no matter what it is, the entire time? Of course not, you want some variety! The only reprieve Suns fans will get though, the only variety, is when they’ll play one (1) Dua Lipa or Chappell Roan song at a random spot in the third quarter.

To make this worse, it happens at all moments: timeouts, halftime, before the game, after the game, even while the players are actively on the court trying to hear each other over the music itself and the DEFENSE *thud thud* DEFENSE voice from the rafters.

A Reasonable Request

To say visiting the Footprint Center is an assault on the auditory senses would be an understatement. Instead of focusing on putting in a new, exclusive restaurant, perhaps Mat Ishbia should be more focused on creating an environment where the crowd can truly get together, a community of fans if you will, to cheer on a Phoenix Suns team that showcased when healthy this year, has the superstar names, likable role players, talented rookies and a legitimate shot at competing for a championship.

Fans who attended games during the Booker/Mikal Bridges/Cam Johnson days can attest to how different the atmosphere once was in the Footprint Center. They want to cheer, they want to heckle, but they can’t because of all the artificial noise. As a Suns community, let’s try to change that.