Inadvertently, the Phoenix Suns, which secured the hegemonic throne of the regular season, achieved another wave of 6 consecutive wins. With Chris Paul sidelined due to injury, the rest of the team's role players were able to stand on their own, helping the team win one game after another. The results prove once again that the Suns, as the first team to get a playoff ticket early this season, are not just an established point guard. Indeed, rather than giving Paul the status of savior, individuals prefer to call him a Catalyst for Phoenix, a catalyst for growth and progress for players.
This game, the Suns came to Denver again, away to challenge the Nuggets. Paul, who has been injured for a long time, finally ushered in a comeback, and at the beginning of the game, the two sides began a fierce score tug-of-war. Devin Booker played 12 minutes of the first quarter, with an efficient output of 5 of 7 shooting, and the stats of 17 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists did not work, and the two sides still drew 31-31. And in the second quarter of the showdown, the Nuggets, who played at home, still played their advantage. Despite Jokic's poor second quarter stats, Barton had 6 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists, Jeff Green had a key 8-point scoring credit, and Hylander, who delivered 9+2+2.
Because of the continuous efforts of the players on the team, the Nuggets took advantage of the trend to play a 37-35 score and get the initiative to lead by 2 points. The point difference between the two sides was officially established, and Devin Booker's 24-point contribution in the first half did not help to take the lead, which was really painful. However, after the easy side of the fight, the Suns can still play aggressive on the offensive end. In the third quarter, Jokic sent 8+2+2 statistics with multiple free throws, Gordon also contributed 10 points and 2 rebounds, and Morris, who handed over 9 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists.
Yes, the Nuggets tried to widen the gap between the two teams further, but Devin Booker didn't compromise. In the third quarter, he played a full 12 minutes of game time, with an efficient output of 6 of 9, delivered 19 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 3 steals and 1 block, played a 38-38 score, and rejected the Nuggets' widening point difference. Moreover, after entering the crucial final quarter of the showdown, the morale of the Suns' role players was finally infected by Devon Booker, and began a late but late counterattack.
In the fourth quarter of the competition, Devin Booker is not obsessed with scoring, but also can send 6 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists, connecting the team's overall offense, and Paul also sent 6+2+4 data. Thanks to the help of the two, the Suns scored 36-24 in one fell swoop and won the game with a score of 140-130. To be sure, after winning the game, the Suns also locked up their regular season record first in advance!
Devin Booker's performance in this game is undoubtedly the existence of MVP, playing nearly 39 minutes in a single game, giving away a comprehensive stat of 49 points, 4 rebounds and 10 assists, and in the process of challenging last season's regular season MVP Jokic, he was even cheered by fans shouting MVP on the court. Obviously, Devon Booker is no longer the naïve leader who only knows how to brush data, he has mastered the code to lead the team to win. At the same time, while scoring 49 points in a single game, Devin Booker also set a new scoring record this season! Paul, who returned from injury, was not allowed to play for a long time in this game, but he was still able to hand over 17 points, 4 rebounds and 13 assists.
When he does his job, he can also help the team relieve the pressure of scoring and take on the work of the defensive end. Seeing the Nuggets, who lost at home, Jokic did not have a bright triple-double stat, shooting 9-of-10 in a single game, sending 28 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. I have to admit that the Nuggets' performance in this game is indeed remarkable. In the absence of explosive stats contributions, Gordon also has 21 points and 6 rebounds, and Hylander, who has handed over 23 points! Their scoring contributions have eased the team's scoring pressure to a certain extent.