Suns set to host Bucks in showdown
Phoenix finding ways to win through injuries and players out under NBA health and safety protocols epitomizes playing through a season of unknown.
Having depth has enabled the Suns (14-9) to do that better than most.
“Still got to get the job done,” Suns center Deandre Ayton said. “It don’t matter. Whether I’m missing. You saw a perfect example when I was suspended (25 games last season). The show must go on no matter who’s there. The show has to go on. We still have to come and compete. Can’t feel sorry for ourselves. We know what we have to do.”
While the NBA tries to have a season outside of a bubble environment amid the COVID-19 pandemic with a compacted 72-game schedule, Phoenix has won five of its last six games after Monday night’s 119-113 win over Cleveland without Chris Paul, who sat with a sore hamstring.
In the second of a back-to-back, Devin Booker scored a season-high 36 points, Mikal Bridges posted 22 and E’Twaun Moore, who didn’t play at the start of the season, added a season-high 17 starting for Paul as his performance further validates Phoenix’s depth.
“You can easily make a lot of excuses,” Moore said. “The group of guys we got, Coach Monty (Williams) stay on us and we’re always on edge. No matter who’s playing, we go out there to win every game.”
Paul is one of five players who missed Monday’s game, with Jae Crowder (foot), Abdel Nader (ankle), Cameron Payne (foot) and Dario Saric (ankle) the other four.
The Suns still managed to win as they shot 52.2% from the field, going 11-of-24 from 3, scored 60 points in the paint and had only 11 turnovers even with Paul sidelined.
“I don’t think you’re ever ready for five rotational guys to be out, but I think your player development program becomes so important because of situations like this,” Williams said.
The Suns likely will have to leaning on that depth all season. They’re cool with that right now. “Everybody is ready,” Booker said. “Everybody is a professional. You don’t see anybody crying about minutes. Everybody is coming in with their head down every day to work. That’s the culture here.”
“We like to compete,” Ayton added. “We love it. We’ve just got to take it one game at a time. Just got to keep doing what we do. Play together and just keep this energy and spirit up.”
The Suns will continue their sevengame homestand with a limited number
keep
of fans (1,500) Wednesday against Milwaukee. Here’s a look back at their win Monday over the Cavaliers and ahead to the 8 p.m. showdown on ESPN against two-time reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks (16-8), winners of their last five games.
Reestablishing themselves
Entering last season’s playoffs with the NBA’s best record for a second straight year only to fall short again of reaching the finals with a two-time MVP left Milwaukee once again looking like underachievers.
Then when Antetokounmpo didn’t immediately sign a supermax extension of $228 million, the Bucks were a crossroads that could’ve gone a number of directions.
He finally allowed them to exhale by agreeing to the deal just two weeks before this NBA shortened season began.
The Bucks felt confident the moves they made, highlighted by trading for point guard Jrue Holiday, could help convince Antetokounmpo to commit, but they could now move forward with their main man ready to continue his quest for a ring in Milwaukee.
The Bucks started the season shaky, though.
They opened 5-4 with lopsided losses at New York and to Utah. They’ve since won 11 of their last 15 as they’re coming off a 125-112 win Monday night at Denver without Holiday, who sat under the league’s health and safety protocols.
“You always have to be prepared and thinking about what you can do if somebody isn’t ready to go,” Bucks coach
Mike Budenholzer said. “Just proud of the guys. It’s a good win on the road against a really good team.”
Antetokounmpo finished with 30 points and nine rebounds while fellow All-Star Khris Middleton went for 29 points, 12 assists, eight rebounds and three steals.
‘We want to protect this place’
The Suns won’t likely face Holiday, but have the task of handling Antetokounmpo, who didn’t play in what was the last home game Phoenix played before fans last season on March 8, 2020, upsetting the Bucks before the season was suspended.
Milwaukee will ultimately be judged by how they fare in the postseason, but Phoenix is trying to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2010.
The Suns see this seven-game homestand as an opportunity to help that cause.
“We want to protect this place, especially that we got the fans in here now,” Booker said. “There’s some energy in there now in the building. Think we’re at a crucial part of the season where we have to lock in more than ever now and do our work earlier instead of trying to make up games towards the end of the year.”
Player of Monday’s win: Devin Booker
He came out super aggressive. Booker wasn’t playing around.
Had an eager rookie in Cleveland’s Isaac Okoro trying to be physical with him, but Booker accepted the challenge to score 17 of his 36 points in the first quarter in helping Phoenix lead by six after one and set the tone for the remainder of the game.
“I had to go at him a little bit,” Booker said.
Booker was a problem the Cavaliers couldn’t handle as he scored 10 in the fourth to help close out Cleveland.
“(Isaac Okoro) did a really good job on him,” Cavs guard Darius Garland said “We tried to do everything we could to stop him, but he just had a really good game. He was making a lot of tough shots.”
Booker led the charge, but he did get some help.
Bridges utilized what right now is a nearly unguardable shot in the lane to shoot 8-of-10 from the field.
Ayton posted his 15th double-double of the season with 15 points and 16 rebounds to go along with three blocks
Cam Johnson hit two huge 3s in the fourth after going 0-for-6 from deep with the second one giving Phoenix the lead for good, 114-113, with 2:04 left.