The Suns defeated the Eastern dark horses, Durant 29+6, Brunson scored 50 points and 9 assists, and Beal retired injured
The NBA regular season continues with the Suns hosting the Knicks. The Suns previously had a 13-11 record and finished 10th in the West. The Suns were in a complicated situation, with Durant averaging 30.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game in 20 games, Booker averaging 28 points and 8 assists per game in 15 games, and Beal averaging 16.4 points, 4 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 5 games. The Suns originally traded Beal to relieve the pressure on Durant and Booker to lead the team in the regular season, but they didn't expect it to backfire and get a sick name. The key Beal's efficiency is too low, with an offensive efficiency of 101, a defensive efficiency of 116.5, and a net efficiency value of -15.5, ranking 270th in the league, and 276 people in the league! Even if Beal insists on playing, in his current state, it is also a burden for the Suns.
The Knicks previously had a 13-10 record, ranked fifth in the East, and were in the top 10 in the league in offensive and defensive efficiency, and the team's starting center, Mitchell Robinson, underwent left ankle surgery and needed to be out for at least 8-10 weeks (re-evaluated). However, the overall output of the Knicks is relatively stable, Brunson averages 25+6 per game, Randle averages 22+10+5 per game, Barrett averages 19 points per game, the team has no obvious shortcomings, but to tell the truth, it's no problem to get playoff tickets, but the ceiling is the level of the second round. Before the game, the Suns announced that Gordon would continue to miss due to right calf soreness, and Okogie would not be able to play, and the Suns would start with: Booker + Beal + Allen + Durant + Nurkic, and the Knicks would start Brunson + DiVincenzo + Barrett + Randle + Himms.
In the opening game, Brunson and Randle hit consecutive jumpers, Nurkic hooked his hand to stop the bleeding, Simms and DiVincenzo blossomed more, and the Knicks took the initiative early. Booker forced a strong attack to make a kill, Beal broke through for a rebound, and DiVincenzo immediately responded with a three-pointer. There was an accident on the court in the middle of the game: when Beal was shooting three points, he stepped on DiVincenzo on the ground, and the slow motion showed that DiVincenzo's left heel position was just cushioned to Beal's right ankle, 90 degrees deformed! Allen stopped the bleeding with three points at the end of the quarter, Durant finally scored on a throw, Nurkic continued to score with three points, and the Suns trailed the Knicks 30-31 after the first quarter.
Back in the second quarter, Grimes and Quickley led the Knicks to score, and Booker hit consecutive singles, and the two sides fell into a tug-of-war. In the middle of the period, Brunson broke through for a rebound, Hart threw himself and grabbed it, and the Knicks maintained a 3-5 point lead. But in the second half of the Suns, Durant first assisted Nurkic to eat cakes, and then chased a three-pointer to tie the score, after Randle stopped the bleeding with three points, Durant hit another three-point in the bottom corner! At the end of the quarter, Brunson and Durant scored 11 points in four rounds, and there was no missing serve! After that, Allen and Little also rained three-pointers, and at the end of the half, the Suns overtook the Knicks 68-63. Durant scored 17 points in the half, Booker had 14 points and seven assists, and the Knicks Big Three scored 41 points in the half.
At the beginning of the second half, Booker and Durant scored consecutive singles, Brunson hit three points one after another, and Randle continued to play on the list. Booker's three-pointer stopped the bleeding in time, Nurkic was very efficient, and with Durant and Goodwin blossoming inside and out, the Suns once opened up a 10-point lead. But in the second half, Brunson continued to rain three-pointers, Randle glided for a layup + breakthrough throw, and the Knicks easily caught up with the score. At the end of the quarter, Quickley led the Knicks to continue to narrow the difference, and after the third quarter, the Knicks trailed the Suns 97-99, and Brunson scored 19 points in a single quarter in the third quarter!
In the fourth quarter, Barrett and Grimes led the team to overtake, Eubanks dunked to stop the bleeding, and Quickley and Grimes' three-point rain stopped the Clippers again! Both teams scored free throws in the middle of the game, but the Knicks had a lot of points with the ball, and Brunson and Barrett led the team to open a 10-point difference. At the decisive moment, Brunson scored a quick layup, and then made two consecutive three-pointers, and the Suns' defense was useless! Durant threw a drop in the bucket, and then Harden and Randle scored 4 points in a row to directly kill the suspense of the game! In the end, the Suns upset 122-139 at home to defeat the Knicks, Knicks data, Brunson 50 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists and 5 steals, Randle 23 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists, Barrett 21 points and 3 assists, Quickley 10 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists.
Suns statistics, Booker 28 points and 9 assists, Durant 29 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists, Nurkic 21 points and 12 rebounds, Allen 13 points. Beal is really the biggest hidden danger of the Suns, and the continuous injuries have really smashed the Suns. Booker's hand is average, Durant has the most physical consumption, and the key is that except for Durant, Booker and Nurkic, everyone else has almost no scoring performance. And on the defensive end, the Suns have nothing to do with Brunson!