Can the Suns take advantage of yet another opponent without a key player and get another much needed win? So far, they've failed to do so despite many opportunities...Let's hope they can change that with a quality win tonight.

Let's go!

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Tonight the Phoenix Suns will take on the Atlanta Hawks at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia at 5:30 PM MST.

The Phoenix Suns are coming off of a home win against the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday night to improve their record to 9-14. The Suns have been struggling to find the right mix of players in their starting line-up and off the bench, specifically at the shooting guard position. After Michael Redd's impressive return to an NBA starting line-up while filling in for the injured Jared Dudley, and his first start for the Suns in which he scored an impressive 17 points on Saturday, the Suns will go back to Dudley in the starting lineup but will likely give increased minutes to Redd tonight as well.

The Atlanta Hawks are coming off two straight losses in large part to the absence of a reliable post player since the injuries to both Al Horford and now Jason Collins as well. The Hawks are currently sitting at 16-8 on the season and will be looking to avoid their third straight loss tonight. They have also lost their last three consecutive games against the Suns, and will be looking to snap that losing streak as well.

Read on after the jump for an analysis of what to look for from each team tonight.

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We all are very certain that Steve Nash and Marcin Gortat are stirring the flat, decaffeinated soda beverage that are the Phoenix Suns. Without the two, there is a very good chance this team could be 1-22 or 2-21, which could be good as far as draft positioning goes, but would kill us true fans hoping for a reason to watch this team this season.

The Suns have constructed a roster of one year deals in order to free up the Benjamins for this coming off-season. However, the Suns may not have much to spend on players other than Steve Nash. This puts the Suns in a position to make a big transaction and hopefully grab 2-3 players that can make a difference.

But I want to focus on the parts we have now. Who will be holdovers from this 2012 squad next season? That is, who will survive the trade deadline, waivers, or a sacking (as it applies to coaches). Blast off:

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This week's NBA Power Rankings are out and as you might expect, the Phoenix Suns are nowhere to be found in the top 5 or the top 20 for that matter. Sitting atop the NBA world is the Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, Oklahoma City Thunder or Indiana Pacers, depending who's Power Rankings you favor and how far below the very top spot you want to look.

Here's what Tom Ziller at SB Nation has for the Suns in his NBA Power Rankings:

NBA Power Rankings: What You Missed Before The Super Bowl - SBNation.com
The Suns have basically no shot at the playoffs, so the Steve Nash trade conversation will only heat up as the weeks wear on. Marcin Gortat, however, is a real keeper, and Michael Redd lives!

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The Super Bowl really should be a national holiday. People are getting together with friends and having a good time as opposed to say, President's Day where we do nothing together or that Thanksgiving holiday were we are forced to gather with family who we may or may not like. The Super Bowl, however, is just one giant party with the people you want to be with.

If you're like me, you were at a 2012 Super Bowl party with both hardcore and casual NFL fans watching the game, less than casual fans (aka the women folk for the most part) watching the commercials, and preteen girls and old men watching Madonna do her thing.

Then again, the commercials during the Super Bowl are pretty cool.

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The Phoenix Suns have gotten off to a rough start this season. Sitting 12th in the Western Conference with a 9-14 record during a condensed, shortened season, there is little hope for a playoff berth barring a dramatic change in the Suns' level of play. As this harsh reality became more and more evident with each passing game, many fans on this blog, in order to maintain their sanity, began to take part in a favorite past-time of fans of struggling professional sports teams everywhere: looking ahead to the future.

There has already been plenty of discussion regarding free agency as the Suns have positioned themselves to be major players on the market. Now it is time to take a look at another way to add talent to the roster: the 2012 NBA Draft.

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It shouldn't be so difficult to defeat the league's worst team at home, especially when said team is missing their top three scorers. But there were our Suns trailing the Bobcats 54-44 in the 3rd quarter tonight before the bench came in to save the day, and the Suns escaped total embarrassment by pulling out a 95-89 win.

Michael Redd got the start in place of the injured (thigh bruise) Jared Dudley. Dudley looked quite dapper in his suit on the bench and Redd looked impressive himself, leading the Suns with 17 points behind 4-7 3-point shooting.

The Suns also received excellent production from their two centers as Marcin Gortat put up yet another double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Robin Lopez was the player of the game during the decisive 4th quarter. Lopez ended up with 13 points and 6 rebounds in 20 minutes of play, in what was his best performance since the season opener almost a month and a half ago.

My mom always taught me never to look a gift horse in the mouth, and a win is a win. But, to beat this team when they're shorthanded, well....a win is a win.

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Winning isn't everything, but the will to win is everything.

~Vince Lombardi

The Suns are without Jared Dudley (thigh bruise) for tonight's game. Here's what Gentry had to say about the state of things:

Phoenix Suns Vs. Charlotte Bobcats: TV Schedule, Lineups And No Jared Dudley - SB Nation Arizona
Coach Alvin Gentry's biggest concern right now is the team's energy level and inconsistent effort.

"I am more concerned about the overall energy level as anything. To me that's the most important thing. We've just had too much of a discrepancy and that area right there is something we've got to get back and be consistent with, competing and playing hard night in and night out," Gentry said before the game.