The arrival of 2024 is destined to be an extraordinary year for NBA fans, because in the new year, there will be more games, more excitement, and more surprises and surprises.
At the beginning of the new year, the competition of the teams did not stop because of the New Year's Eve, and the competition was still intense.
On January 2, Beijing time, the NBA regular season ushered in a key battle, with the Suns hosting the Trail Blazers, and this is also a battle for the top spot in the West.
In this campaign, although the Suns adjusted the main lineup due to injury problems, they still relied on the efforts of the whole team to finally lead all the way, and finally defeated the Trail Blazers 109-88, winning 4 consecutive victories, and the Trail Blazers also suffered two consecutive defeats.
It is worth mentioning that Beal broke out in this game, scoring 21 points alone and becoming the scoring champion of the Suns, while the performance of the Trail Blazers was also a surprise, and there was an embarrassing scene of the whole team's poor hand under the basket.
1. Competition review:
The Suns undoubtedly have a certain advantage in this game, because although their thigh Durant left the court due to injury, Beal can still play, while the Trail Blazers are the most affected by injuries, and the overall strength of the team has declined.
In the first quarter of the game, the Trail Blazers' shooting percentage was significantly higher than that of the Suns, especially in scoring under the basket, which almost formed a one-sided situation, while the Suns frequently made mistakes on the offensive end, resulting in a wide range of points.
In the second quarter of the game, the Suns seemed to have found an offensive feeling, especially Beal, who exploded in this quarter and almost single-handedly led the team to chase points, while the Trail Blazers fell into an offensive bottleneck, and the team's hand felt a significant decline.
Coming back from halftime, Beal's hot form remained unaffected, and his performance on the offensive end became more and more impressive, while the Trail Blazers had an embarrassing three-point iron, and this situation lasted for a long time, causing the game to almost lose suspense.
Although in the final quarter of the game, the Trail Blazers tried to close the gap through consecutive attacks by Walker and Murray, but the Suns still stabilized the situation and firmly grasped the fruits of the game.
Throughout the game, the Suns performed significantly better than the Trail Blazers on the offensive end, occupying a certain advantage in both shooting percentage and rebounding grabbing, and they also controlled the number of turnovers well, and also did a very good job in team cooperation, which led to such a beautiful score.
And if you want to find the reason for the Trail Blazers' loss, it must be the poor hand under the basket, and the team's three-point shooting is even more surprising, almost one after another, how can such a performance win the game?
2. Player data:
On the Suns' side, Beal deservedly became the leading scorer of the game, with 21 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist, while Booker, who was fighting under the basket, was in a slippery state in this game, he only scored 10 points, but he had an excellent performance in rebounds and assists.
Allen had 12 points and four assists, while Metu's all-around performance helped the team a lot, with 14 points and five rebounds, while Nurkic played an eye-catching game inside, scoring a team-high 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
On the Trail Blazers' side, although Henderson scored 17 points, 3 assists and 6 rebounds in the whole game, he was the team's leading scorer, but his performance was not effectively supplemented by other players, although Grant scored 15 points, Brogdon also had 10 points and 5 assists, but the team's offensive firepower still seemed a little thin.
And the Trail Blazers' three-point shooting is even more problematic, the team shot 28 times, and only 6 hits, such a poor shooting rate is very difficult to win even in NBA games.
3. Behind the game:
The Suns were able to achieve such a brilliant victory in this game, of course, without the efforts of the whole team, especially Beal, who stepped up in the absence of Durant due to injury, took on the responsibility of scoring, and was able to find a shooting sensation in time, which brought a lot of heat to the team.
Although the Trail Blazers fell into the quagmire of defeat in the game, fans also saw some problems, especially the protection and offensive means under the basket, and hoped that the team could make adjustments as soon as possible and find a tactical play that suits the whole team, so as to get out of the shadow of defeat.
The victory in this game is of great significance to the Suns, not only did they win four in a row, but they also managed to shake off the Rockets, Lakers and Warriors who were chasing behind them, and jumped to the top of the Western Conference in one fell swoop, becoming one of the biggest dark horses of the season.
The Trail Blazers suffered two consecutive defeats and temporarily ranked second to last in the West, and the team cannot get carried away because of the winning streak, nor can it be frustrated and discouraged because of the losing streak, but must learn from the experience of each game, find the crux of the problem, and make adjustments as soon as possible to meet the challenges of the next games.
Epilogue:
There will always be winners and losers in everything, and each team will have its own advantages and disadvantages in the game, and it is normal to encounter good times and bad times, and the key is how to look at and deal with such situations.