Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns welcomed Bradley Beal to the lineup with a win over the Charlotte Hornets. Booker and Durant filled the box score as the Suns held off the shorthanded Hornets 133-119. Phoenix has now won back-to-back games for the first time since early to mid-November, when they had a seven-game winning run.
The Suns needed “KD” and Booker to have big nights to prevent the Hornets from pulling off an upset. Charlotte was without LaMelo Ball and Gordon Hayward but kept Phoenix within sight throughout the game.
Fans on social media reacted to the unexpectedly tight game despite Durant and Booker’s superb performances:
“They almost let the hornets come back not moved”
The slumping Hornets have the worst defensive rating in the NBA. They were also playing the second night of a back-to-back set. And yet, Phoenix couldn’t decisively pull away from them. Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Jusuf Nurkic put up impressive numbers but Charlotte stayed within striking distance.
Terry Rozier put up 42 points on 14-of-22 shooting, including 8-of-12 from behind the arc. Rookie Brandon Miller also stepped up big. He had 20 points and hit 6-of-10 attempts from deep. They just couldn’t string together enough stops to come away with the upset.
Phoenix Suns’ turnovers helped keep Charlotte Hornets in the game despite Kevin Durant and Devin Booker’s big nights
The Phoenix Suns shot 18-of-30 (60%) from behind the arc. Kevin Durant and Devin Booker were humming. Jusuf Nurkic had his way against the Charlotte Hornets’ undermanned frontline. The Suns also had a 23-8 advantage in free throws. On most nights, they would have blown away their opponents.
Turnovers, however, allowed the Hornets to keep up with the Suns. Phoenix coughed up the ball 15 times compared to Charlotte’s six. They were also sometimes lackluster on the defensive end. One could easily argue that they played down to the level of the Hornets.
The Suns got away with it on Friday night. They may not be so lucky against elite opponents. Phoenix is in the bottom five in the NBA in errors with 15.1 per game. It’s an area that they have to significantly clean up.
Phoenix is 5-8 after running off seven straight wins. Bradley Beal has returned and the Suns could finally have their Big Three available consistently. They just have to figure out how to limit their turnovers to transform into the legit title contenders that many thought they would be.
