The Phoenix Suns begin the 2026-27 season against the Portland Trail Blazers, but this opener already carries a little extra baggage. It is not just a fresh start. It is a rematch of the April 14 play-in game a season ago, when Portland beat Phoenix 114-110 and sent the Suns into the 8th seed route that shaped the rest of their postseason path.
That history matters because it gives this game a clearer edge than a normal opening-night matchup. Phoenix did get past the Golden State Warriors in its second play-in game last season, but the Suns were then swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round. So while the record resets to 0-0 tonight, the memory of how last year ended is still part of the conversation.
For Portland, the rematch comes with a different look. The Trail Blazers are introducing a new mix that includes Ja Morant and Damian Lillard, which changes the shape of the matchup before the ball is even tipped. That kind of roster change usually does not solve everything overnight, but it does make early-season evaluation much trickier. The identity is still forming, and that means the opener is as much about fit as it is about result.
Avdija remains the key reference point
The player who most clearly ties the two versions of this matchup together is Deni Avdija. In last season’s meeting, he was the problem Phoenix failed to solve, finishing with 41 points and 12 assists. That was not just a big scoring night. It was a complete offensive performance that showed how much damage he could do when Portland put the ball in his hands and let him drive the game.
His last season usage rate of 28.5% tells the same story: Portland was already willing to lean on him heavily. The interesting wrinkle now is that he is expected to play a different off-ball role this season, which changes both the workload and the way he fits alongside the new pieces around him. That does not make him less important. It just means the Trail Blazers may ask him to impact the game in a different way.
That is what makes this opener worth watching beyond the final score. Phoenix is trying to turn a difficult ending into a cleaner beginning, while Portland is testing how its new roster pieces work in a real game setting. The last meeting was decided by a narrow margin and by Avdija’s control of the action. This one will say something about whether the Suns have a better answer now, and whether the Trail Blazers can carry last season’s individual production into a more balanced team structure.
It is only Game 1, and the standings are still blank at 0-0. But for a matchup that already has a recent playoff-level memory attached to it, Suns vs Trail Blazers feels like more than an opening-night formality.
