On the morning of April 4, 2022, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued, and the Suns hosted the Thunder. As a result, the Thunder defeated the Suns 20-27, 32-26, 32-22, 33-21, 117-96 on aggregate. The Thunder's Sal, Wiggins, Pokushevsky and other 7 people blossomed and scored in double figures, while the Suns had 4 double-figures, but the performance of as many as 8 players on the court can be described as "dummy", of which Holliday and Round Hawk played 5 minutes without 1 point, and there were no assists and rebounds.
Currently, the Thunder are ranked 14th in the West with a record of 22 wins and 55 losses, and the Suns are ranked 1st in the West with 62 wins and 15 losses. In the last 5 meetings between the two teams, the Suns have maintained a complete victory, and the two teams are not a level at all in terms of strength. But it was such a team that ranked 14th in the West, and that had won just two of its last 18 games, today caused the Suns a huge problem.
The Suns also played more normally in the first quarter and have been in the lead position. But in the second quarter, Bridges played well, but he was also greatly limited. Instead, the Thunder's Sal and Pokushevsky suddenly "hung up", especially Pokushevsky, who showed a certain dominance under the basket. Some fans also lamented: It is really unimaginable, what to do before, if you played like this earlier, you would not have won only 2 wins in 18 games.
In the second half of the game, the Suns also had physical problems, doing well in 2-point short shooting, and the turnover rate was not as much as the Thunder. It's just that it doesn't play as well as you want on 3-pointers. The Thunder shot 41 points from three-pointers, made 17 shots, and scored 51 points on a three-pointer alone. The Suns shot 38 3-pointers and won 7, a gap that is very obvious.
Of course, the Suns seem to be relaxed in the state of the game, and full preparation for the playoffs has become the Suns' top priority. Therefore, practicing the new lineup and play style seems to have become the first choice of the Suns. It is precisely for this reason that the Thunder can play a high-quality offense.
The game also set two records, first, the Thunder ended the embarrassing history of being beaten by the Suns five times in a row; second, the Suns suffered two consecutive losses, which was the first time this season that the Suns had lost two straight.
Full-time scoring:
Thunder: Wiggins 17 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists, Pokushevsky 17 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists, Robbie 11 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists, Kreych 11 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists, Mallerden 9 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists, Waters 10 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals, Sal 24 points and 5 rebounds.
Suns: Bridges 18 points, 2 rebounds, Johnson 14 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, McGee 8 points, 5 rebounds, Shamet 10 points and 7 rebounds, Paul 11 points, 2 rebounds and 9 assists, Billon Bo 7 points and 6 rebounds, Craig 8 points and 3 assists, Payne 5 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, Wayne Wright 7 points, Payton 8 points and 2 assists.