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Suns catch fire with 15 consecutive songs, making for a spirited comeback

Posted on by Larry
Suns catch fire with 15 consecutive songs, making for a spirited comeback

Once the Phoenix Suns figure out how to stop being who they once were, they have the potential to terrorize the NBA. The struggle to make that a reality And fighting through that battle was on display again in a 125-119 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

Phoenix trailed by 18 at halftime during a terrible performance through two quarters, especially defensively. The Suns’ offensive flow was brutal, producing just eight assists, while the defensive warts were everywhere.

And then they just didn’t miss.

Devin Booker and Kevin Durant faced a pair of shots early in the third quarter, which wasn’t so much a shock as a lifeline if the Suns could get some stops. They came and Phoenix took its first chance to regain momentum, making 15 straight shots in a nine-minute span, including a 30-10 run to tie the game in the late third.

This was greatly helped by a shot to the face from Clippers guard Norman Powell that forced him to the bench after being on fire, a rhythm he was never able to regain later in the game. Their offense completely fell apart on the second night of a back-to-back, with James Harden losing the ball and consistency getting to the basket after being fantastic to start the game.

The Phoenix bank answered the call again. Ryan Dunn and Royce O’Neale were outstanding during an outstanding game that continued into the fourth quarter. And while Grayson Allen went 1-for-8, he made a handful of key plays with five rebounds, three assists and four steals.

Booker hit a pair of threes in the span of two minutes midway through the fourth quarter to put the Suns up six, giving them a decent cushion before crunch time. With less than a minute left, with LA down just three, Durant brought it up before Tyus Jones arrived to start the game.

He received a screen from Booker to counter all the Clippers’ recent doubles and switches, and Booker on the short throw found O’Neale for his fifth 3 of the night and the dagger.

Booker scored a season-high 40 points on 11-of-18 shooting with eight assists and two turnovers. Phoenix is ​​going to hit a whole different gear once he and Durant are consistently the best players on the court, because this is a dramatically deeper team compared to last year. Durant had those kinds of outings on Saturday and was damn good on Monday as well. It pays to have two of the best in the world, you know.

Dunn played some game-changing defense in that sector of the third quarter when things started to turn around, scoring 16 points. He broke 15-plus just twice in 65 games at Virginia. Dunn missed his first two three-point attempts before attempting the next three, a remarkable turnaround in his confidence compared to college.

O’Neale’s plus-minus wizardry came to a bizarre halt (-7) on the night he scored a career-high (!) 21 points after putting up 31 points in his first four games. I don’t know what the precedent is for players trying to win under ten shots in a Sixth Man of the Year winning game, but he’ll at least be in the running if he keeps this up.

Before the heroics, it was Phoenix’s second straight game with a terrible start, and this time there was no immediate recovery. The Suns trailed 37-20 after one quarter.

Phoenix’s turnover, which had more to do with a mental error by LA’s high-pressure ball defense and less to do with the defenders actually ripping the ball out, set a bad tone early, as did the immense lack of paint touches by drivers. Without Bradley Beal (right wrist sprain), the Suns could quickly fall into a lull as it depends on short rolls from the screen setters or cuts to account for the ball coming over the edge. When Phoenix’s offense cooks, it’s when the ball movement is fluid, and that usually starts when the ballhandlers are screaming downhill.

The Clippers did this much, much more through Harden and Kevin Porter Jr., which made a significant difference. It’s clear as day when Harden plays without brain fog and real intentions. This was the first night of a young season when we saw the Suns’ lack of ball ability catch up with them defensively. So if the process is a mess offensively and the Suns can’t generate stops to help improve it, then you’re down 19 early in the second quarter.

Booker did the Booker thing and took us back to the days of 2016-2019 when he single-handedly tried to bring Phoenix back from a big deficit at one point in the game. A 13-5 spurt brought Phoenix within nine before more problems arose defensively. The Suns inexcusably continued to give Powell room to get off his jumper, sometimes on the ball and sometimes off. Powell’s second straight 3 takes the ball out in the middle of the second quarter, forcing Budenholzer to call his third timeout of the half, and he did so with a lot of visible frustration. The mistakes alone justified Powell entering the night with 26 points per night.

Jusuf Nurkic had another brutal start, to the point where Budenholzer opted to use Oso Ighodaro over him in the second quarter. LA responded by nurturing Ivica Zubac, perhaps the most underrated center in the NBA right now. He averaged 22.6 points and 14 rebounds per game in his first three games this year before having an off night on Wednesday. Zubac rebounded with 22 points and 12 rebounds and his effort in the second half of the second quarter had the Clippers up 18 at the half.

Phoenix clearly wasn’t fully focused in this one out of the gates. LA was able to start the game with two out-of-bounds plays that required virtually no dribbling to get two buckets, and also got a free shot on the rim of a Suns make. It became more apparent on the glass, where the Clippers had 12 offensive rebounds in the first two quarters alone. Point to the desired size. Sure, it kind of is. But only a little. The Suns didn’t respect their shortcomings enough with their level of commitment and paid the price.

Nurkic did start the third quarter and was present for the most important points of the fourth quarter. With LA itself becoming small, Nurkic did not finish the match, but he played better in the second half, albeit not enough to make up for another very difficult start.

This remains a tough matchup for Durant, who once again struggled with turnovers. The Clippers had great awareness when they died once to watch out for errant passes. Durant would take the pressure off and get under him and into his handle as usual. His four giveaways weren’t nuclear, but again posed a problem for the offense. Durant made up for it by battling defensively, especially in the second half. He finished with 18 points (7-for-14), five rebounds, four assists, a steal and two blocks.

Jones was rock solid with 11 assists and one turnover to go with seven points in 33 minutes. Good things happened when he ran the offense.

Beal missed his second game in the last three due to a right wrist sprain. He’s great as an all-rounder and hasn’t been used much in the three games he’s played, but it’s crucial for Beal to find a four-to-six week clean break relatively early in the season. He must find a rhythm and flow, not only in his role, but also in that of his teammates. This was much more the problem for him last year, not his level of play.

Beal’s wrist injury is minor by all accounts, but going from a good result on Monday 90 minutes before tip to being ruled out on Thursday 30 minutes (as he did on Saturday) isn’t encouraging for Beal. Again, even something as whiny that only costs a game here, or a game there, is a major hindrance.

Powell finished with 23 points, while it was a triple-double for Harden: 25 points, 10 rebounds, 13 assists, two steals, two blocks and six turnovers on 8-of-19 shooting.