Big upset!The Suns' Big Three scored 59 points and were reversed by a fish belly!Smart broke out, Bane 23+5
On January 8, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued, and the Suns sat at home to face the Grizzlies. Previously, the Suns had a 19-16 record and ranked eighth in the West. Although the team is a triumvirate configuration, in the first half of this season, most of them were led by single giants or double giants. From the initial Durant struggling alone, to Durant Booker taking the shift for more than 1 month, and then after Beal's return, Durant suffered a hamstring injury, and it was difficult for the team to stay healthy. In addition, the Suns have a record of only 5 wins and 8 losses when facing teams with a winning percentage of more than 5 percent this season, and this performance is hardly comparable to teams such as the Clippers, Timberwolves, and Thunder, and it is not as good as the Rockets. However, after Beal returned this time, he felt hot and had scored 20+ points in 4 consecutive games, but the team still lacked tandem points.
The Suns received good news before the game, Durant finally ushered in his return after missing three games due to a hamstring injury, according to Vogel's remarks, Durant has a time limit, and the team does not want to overdraft him in the regular season. The Grizzlies previously finished 13th in the West with a 12-23 record, and with Morant suspended for 25 games, they will have a hard time getting a playoff ticket this season. However, in the last game, the Grizzlies still easily beat the Lakers, and like the Heat, they were bullied by other giants in the West, so they found their way back to the Lakers. What is more surprising is that Morant is suspended in the game against the Suns, so the pressure on the Suns today is not great. Grizzlies starters: Smart + Bane + Kennard + Diarman + Jaren Jackson.
Suns starters: Booker + Beal + Allen + Durant + Nurkic. At the beginning of the game, the Suns entered the state early, Nurkic hit a hook shot, Booker jumped, Durant accelerated a dunk, and Nurkic continued to score on the second offense. After playing more than 3 minutes, the Grizzlies relied on Smart to stop the bleeding with three points, Beal fed Allen with three points, and Durant fed Nurkic with Pipe. In the middle of the game, the Grizzlies relied on Vince Williams and Smart's singles to catch up with the score, Beal made a kill, Durant forced a mid-range shot with a three-man package, Booker made a pull-up jump shot, and Allen and Booker continued to score three points, and the Suns instantly opened the difference. Smart's three-pointer and Zaire Williams' layup at the end of the quarter stopped the bleeding, and the first quarter ended with the Suns leading the Grizzlies 32-26.
Back in the second quarter, Jackson and Aldama rained three-pointers, Smart's three-point shot bounced, and the Grizzlies overtook a wave of 11-3! Beal ate Smart alone, Jackson hit a 3-point success, Kennard continued to add three points, and the Grizzlies gradually opened up the difference! In the middle of the period, Durant fed Diop to hit a three-pointer, and his own consecutive shots scored, leading a wave of 8-0 climax! In the second half, Nurkic and Vince Williams hit three-pointers, Kennard and Booker hit three-pointers, Allen and Nurkic blossomed inside and outside at the end of the quarter, and Durant hit a three-point jumper! At halftime, the Suns led the Grizzlies 63-58. Durant had 11 points, Booker had 14 points and five assists, Nurkic had 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Allen had 11 points.
Grizzlies Jackson had 18 points, Smart 11 and Vince 10. At the beginning of the second half, Beal made a strong layup, Durant turned over to the middle distance, Bane and Kennard responded with 7 points, and at the critical moment, Durant fed Allen three points to stop the bleeding! Booker made consecutive jump shots, but Smart did not miss the shot, Kennard's three-point shot was also accurate, and the Suns were never able to open the difference. Beal's dunk and Durant's mid-range shot stabilized the situation, Bane continued to hit three points, Smart singled Booker and hit 100 shots! In the second half, Eubanks and Okogie led the team to open up the difference, and the Grizzlies offense was directly dumb! At the end of the third quarter, the Suns led the Grizzlies 97-86. In the fourth quarter, Vince made a layup, Zaire Williams hit three points, Jackson shot inside and outside, plus Vince's three points, the Grizzlies overtook 13-1!
In the middle of the period, Durant scored consecutive jumpers to stop the bleeding, Smart threw in three points, and Nurkic made a tough rebound! At the decisive moment, Jackson faced Nurkic to complete 2+1, Bill Booker scored 4 points in a row, and Durant hit the middle shot! In the last 2 minutes, Bane hit three points, Jackson made a layup, and the Suns hit iron in consecutive empty positions! Booker made one of two free throws, and Bane hit consecutive free throws! Finally, the Suns lost to the Grizzlies 115-121! After this game, the Suns were also surpassed by the Rockets and fell out of the top eight in the West!
Grizzlies statistics, Smart 25 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 steals, Bane 23 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, Jaren Jackson 28 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists, Vince Williams 19 points and 9 rebounds. Sun data, Durant 23 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, Beal 12 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, Booker 24 points and 8 assists, Nurkic 18 points, 19 rebounds and 5 assists, Allen 16 points, 3 assists and 2 blocks, the Suns just can't grasp the empty three-point opportunity, and the big three are on the court at the same time, which seems to occupy a lot of space.