Against both sides: Wizards vs. Suns
Nature of the game: NBA regular season
Venue: Tolkenstein Resort Stadium, home of the Suns
Competition time: 10:00 on December 17
The Wizards are currently in 7th place in the East with a 15-13 record in 28 regular-season games, averaging 105.8 points per game and 107.6 points conceded. The team challenged the Nuggets away from home in the last game, the Wizards were not efficient in the first quarter, and the defensive end could not limit Jokic's play, trailing the Nuggets by 7 points at 22-29, and the Wizards felt worse in the second quarter, scoring less than 20 points in a single quarter and already trailing by 18 points at the end of halftime. The Nuggets once expanded the point difference to more than thirty points, but then the Wizards took advantage of Jokic's chance to be sent off to play an offensive climax, winning the Nuggets by 15 points in the final quarter, but because the previous point difference was too large, the Wizards did not get the opportunity to rebound, and finally lost to the Nuggets 107-113.
The Wizards started the season with a 10-3 start, but the next 15 games were just 5-10, and in the last ten games, the team has a record of four wins and six losses, while the Wizards averaged 105.5 points in the last 10 games before the Game against the Nuggets, but conceded an average of 113.6 points per game. In addition, Kuzma, who has performed well this season, has gone into a health and safety protection agreement and has missed several games, Kuzma has averaged 13.4 points and grabbed 8.3 rebounds this season, hitting three points in key moments on many occasions, while Beal has been sluggish this season, averaging 30+ points per game last season and only 22.3 points this season.
The Suns are currently in second place in the West with a 21-5 record of 26 regular season games, averaging 110.8 points per game and 104.7 points conceded. The team challenged the Blazers away from home in the last game, and the Opening Suns took the lead in the lead, and then three consecutive three-pointers widened the point difference to double digits, and the Suns led by 11 points 32-21 in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Suns' offensive efficiency declined slightly, and the half-time lead was reduced to 6 points. Yi Bian fought again, and the Suns played a wave of 10-0 to extend the lead, but at the end of the quarter, the Suns failed to score for more than 4 minutes, and the score was also reversed. The rivalry between the two teams in the final quarter was white-hot, with Paul hitting a mid-range shot to drag the game into extra time. In overtime, Paul led the team to the lead, and Payne also took two free throws to take the game, and finally the Suns beat the Blazers 111-107 away.
The Suns' record of playing in key moments of the season (the last 5 minutes and the difference between 5 points) is 12-1, only lost to the Kings on October 28 this season, Booker continued to be absent due to a hamstring injury, but in the last game Ayton came back, personally scored 28 points and 13 rebounds, Paul is still the Suns' offensive master, and it is he who scores many points at key moments to lead the team to win. Overall, Booker's absence has not had as much impact on the Suns, a team that advocates team offense.
In this game, from the strength and lineup analysis of the two teams, the Suns in the home game have the advantage, both sides are teams with more offensive points, this encounter is very likely to stage a confrontation battle, and the Suns due to the presence of Paul and Ayton on the inside and outside, the key ball is much stronger than the Wizards. On the whole, this game is optimistic about the Suns home to repel the Wizards, and the winning point difference is expected to be within 6 points.
Both teams are expected to start:
Suns: Paul, Shamet, Bridges, Claude, Ayton;
Wizards: Bill, Pope, Dinwiddie, Avdia, Garford.