Suns general manager Steve Kerr doesn't believe that he needs to blow up the team and start from scratch in order to contend again.

"I don't think you blow up a team that's pretty good, that has a chance to be very good," Kerr said. "You try to improve that team. We have to make every effort to do so under some difficult circumstances."

Last offseason Kerr brought in coach Terry Porter for more of a defensive philosophy, but he didn't pan out and they regress further defensively.

"There was kind of hangover effect this year," Kerr said. "We've been a championship contender the last three or four years. We never got to the Finals but always felt like we had a chance. This year, we were hanging on to that hope. The reality was we were a good team but we weren't a title contender. I think that was hard for all us to accept - our players, coaches, those of us in management, our fans especially."