“Suns’ Mason Plumlee dishes on NBPA’s partnership with Canyon Ranch, voting efforts and Suns’ championship potential (Exclusive)
As part of his efforts to help the Phoenix Suns with his rim protection and passing, reserve center Mason Plumlee spent part of his summer rehabbing an MCL injury in his left knee that sidelined him for 36 regular-season games last season with the LA Clippers.
Part of that entailed visiting Canyon Ranch Resort with former NBA player Cedric Ceballos to help build a program to elevate physical, mental and spiritual strength both for athletes and for the general public.
The National Basketball Players Association and Canyon Ranch recently partnered to create a so-called “NBPA Peak Performance” program, a four-day curated experience that includes access to more than 35 daily classes, lectures and demos.
Mason Plumlee interview (Exclusive)
Mason Plumlee, the NBPA’s Secretary Treasurer, spoke to Sportskeeda about the NBPA’s recent partnership with Canyon Ranch, his assessment of the Suns’ strong start and the NBPA’s voting initiatives leading into Tuesday’s presidential election.
Editor’s note: The following one-on-one conversation with Mason Plumlee has been edited and condensed.
Can you walk me through what the NBPA’s partnership with Canyon Ranch entails?
Mason Plumlee: “The union partnered with Canyon Ranch because they wanted to offer an athlete-inspired wellness retreat. So, Cedric Ceballos and I worked with them to point to the program that they could offer that reflects how we’re treated as athletes.
"They have so much more above and beyond that. But if you want to know how we treat nutrition, how we rehab and how we treat our bodies and get with physical therapists, this is a packaged program that can allow you to live as an athlete for a little bit.”
Why did Canyon Ranch seem to be the right fit for this?
Mason Plumlee: “There’s obviously the health and wellness focus. I think sometimes it can be just that. But Canyon Ranch also has some things that are performance-focused. They have a lot of doctors and specialists that speak to performance as much as rest and recovery. That’s what made it make sense.
"But for myself, my experience going there was you could get what we get at a practice facility, but the list of the things you can also do there is unbelievable. I ended up doing Tai Chi underwater. I did an aerial yoga class. They have over 200 activities. You would expect to get massage and spa treatment. But there is quite a bit of stuff outside of that that is also interesting.”
As far as your routine as a professional basketball player, what are the things you consider to be very important?
Mason Plumlee: “To me, a lot of the stuff they offer is interesting for the offseason. The longer you play, you’re always looking for ways to stay in shape and keep your body finely tuned without the constant pounding. At the end of the summer, I’m not just going to the outdoor concourse and playing pickup. I’m trying to keep my body right, stay flexible and arrive in training camp in a place where I feel like I’m ready for the journey of the season.
"To me, there are things that you can explore there. I met with a doctor, and they talked about my sleep habits and sleep patterns. I met with a nutritionist to check on things. You can do food sensitivity testing through your blood. Those are things, as an athlete, that we definitely take advantage of, but outside of performance, it’s healthy to have that added insight that you might not get from your general practitioner.”
What were the turning points in your career where you started to incorporate all of these things into your regimen?
Mason Plumlee: “You pick up things along the way throughout your career. But I came on a veteran team [with the Brooklyn Nets in 2013-14], and I was always impressed, especially as I’ve gotten older. I think there were five or six guys that were already over 35.
"In the NBA world, that is really old. So with guys like Jason Terry, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Joe Johnson, you wondered what led to their longevity in the league. Their routines and their habits, I was certainly in tune and observing it then. Then as you get older in your career, you start applying it to yourself and making sure you can perform as you get older.”
With returning in the middle of the season [with the Clippers] after recovering from your MCL injury in your left knee, what did this offseason look like for you to address that?
Mason Plumlee: “Coming back in season is always tough. Then you get to the offseason, and it doesn’t feel as rushed. Then you’re trying to get full range of motion and make sure you stay on top of it. I had a really good lifting program. I felt great coming into training camp this fall.”
What are your early takeaways that explain the Suns’ strong start? (5-1 entering Monday’s game against Philadelphia).
Mason Plumlee: “It’s a really talented roster, as everybody knows. I think the style of play that we have and the way that we’re playing is something that can be really fun for us, and also dangerous for other teams. We play fast. We play free. We shoot early in the shot clock. We have a lot of guys that can go and get a bucket. Like you said, it’s early. So I try not to make a big deal. There is a lot of room to improve. But it’s nice to win while acknowledging that.”
You said in training camp interviews that one of the keys for you as a passer will be to know when and where guys will want to get their shots. What have you learned so far?
Mason Plumlee: “Still feeling it out. But a couple of these guys are so talented that it doesn’t really matter when or where you get it to them. They just rise up over people. But we’ve had guys really come out shooting the ball well. Ryan Dunn, Royce [O’Neale], Grayson [Allen] is going to come on for us. He’s obviously been in and out [with his injury]. But he was the best shooter in the league last year by percentage. So we have a lot of spacing. It’s going to be a fun year.”
Yeah, and you also have KD, Book and Beal. After being an opponent, what sticks out to you on what they’re like as teammates and leaders?
Mason Plumlee: “There’s so much that stands out. But when guys average what they have averaged in their league for their whole career, you just appreciate how many different ways they can do it (laughs). It’s also the level of difficulty of the shots that they hit, too. We don’t want to live in a world where they’re taking tough shots all the time. But knowing that they can bail you out sometimes on a bad possession or at the end of the shot clock, it shows they are a reason why they are who they are.”
Bud [Suns coach Mike Budenholzer] said recently that one of the major keys this season will be about being adaptable with both big and small lineups. Whether it’s Nurk [Jusuf Nurkić] or you in the big lineup or the team’s smaller lineups, what’s the key with adjusting through all of that?
Mason Plumlee: “It’s important. Like he said earlier in training camp, we’re going to have to be able to play big, small, with point guards, without point guards. I think he likes a lot of different looks. I think generally we have high IQ players. So the ability to adapt will come through experience. We’ll figure out ways to be effective through all the different lineups.”
When you come off the bench and are now part of a big lineup, what’s your approach with jumping into that?
Mason Plumlee: “You talked about me and Nurk. I think my approach coming off the bench is to sprint my minutes and play fast. I think at my position that I can really run the floor and flatten out the defense and then create separation going into screens. Just trying to bring some pace into the game when I come off the bench.”
Again, I know it’s early. But one of your most notable defending assignments has been Anthony Davis, both for who he is and that you’ve faced him twice already. The tracking data says he went 7-for-14 from the field when you defended him. What jumped out to you with both the challenges and the successes you had with defending him?
Mason Plumlee: “He’s had a hell of a start to the season. I think in one of the preseason [games], he came out and hit three or four 3s in the first quarter. He’s scoring the ball really well and [the Lakers] have obviously made a concerted effort to play through him this early in the season.
"To me, anytime you get a guy that is getting lots of shots, you just have to make each one tough and make him earn them. To me, he really scores well when he’s cleaning up offensive rebounds, dunking and catching lobs. So even though he can still do it, you prefer him taking a lot of midrange [shots].”
What do you think is the key in ensuring he takes more mid-range shots instead of letting him showcase his other strengths?
Mason Plumlee: “With [D’Angelo] Russell, a lot in the pick-and-roll, if you’re in a drop and you’re trying to play twos, sometimes he can get AD some easy ones. You try to hit him early on the glass so he’s not getting inside position. He’s an All-Star. He’s going to score. But you just try to make it tough and keep him out on the floor instead of being in and around the basket.”
Looking at your decision to sign with Phoenix during free agency, you said in your initial interview that the Suns’ brass were very convincing and you found the roster to be very exciting. What left you convinced after you talked to management about this fit?
Mason Plumlee: “As a free agent, you have to be self-aware with where you’re at in your career and where you fit. As you get older, it’s about being on a win-now team. So to me, you just look at what they’re paying in payroll. Then you look at the guys that they’ve gotten. It’s clear that they’re committed to winning now.
"Everybody that is an NBA fan knows that is not the case with all of the teams. So to me, that was a good starting point. Then you look at the roster and the talent. You believe in the group that they put together. To me, that’s why I wanted to sign here.”
Aside from the obvious health and some of the keys that you already hit on, what else do you think will determine the Suns’ title chances in a crowded Western Conference?
Mason Plumlee: “Obviously health, but what you spoke to earlier on if we can come together in different looks on the team with different lineups. What’s our commitment to the defensive end? How well do we rebound the ball? It’s a long season. Teams go through different things. I feel like every team that I’ve been on in my career has experienced different challenges.
"But when those come, how do you meet them and how do you attack them? Do you come out into the playoffs better off because of those challenges? We both said at the top of the call that five games in we’re not claiming too much. We just want to keep getting better. But to me, playing your best basketball when it matters most is really important.”
How does the NBAPA’s voting initiatives this year compare to what you all oversaw in 2020 considering that coincided with playing in the bubble during the pandemic?
Mason Plumlee: “Now, players and teams are able to get out in the community more. It’s in complement to the social media outreach and the spoken reach. So I think that’s a good thing. Obviously, the last election cycle, we were all in the bubble during COVID.”
The Suns are one of the teams that are using their arena as a polling site. What’s your expectation on what that does?
Mason Plumlee: “It’s nice to have a designated area that a lot of people know. Not that everybody is a sports fan. But every little thing can be a barrier, whether you expect it to be or not. But if when you say the Footprint Center will be a voting site, hopefully people have already gone to it for a concert or a game. So it’s easy to fine and people are able to get out and vote.”
LeBron [James] and some others have shared their endorsement. What impact do you think that makes?
Mason Plumlee: "I think a huge impact. Our generation of athletes have established that we’re not just athletes. It’s more prevalent for guys to speak up. It’s healthy for our fanbase and our star players. It’s a good thing."
What’s your overall expectation with what the union’s voting initiatives will accomplish?
Mason Plumlee: “We’re role models in our communities. People look to see what we’re doing and if we’re taking action aside from just shouting our policy or support out into the world. So I think taking action and voting is super important.”
Mark Medina is an NBA insider for Sportskeeda. Follow him on X, Instagram, Facebook and Threads.