Every shot seemed to be falling for a handful of players on the Phoenix Suns’ roster from top to bottom in Saturday night’s win against the Orlando Magic.
Phoenix defeated Orlando 132-105 in front of the home crowd thriving on every made basket.
Guard Devin Booker led the way for Phoenix with 26 points, five assists and five rebounds. Along with Booker, eight other Suns made it to double-digit scoring totals.
“Just being selfless,” Booker said. “Getting the best available shot. Might sound like a broken record but that’s just how this team plays.”
Booker, who averages 8.9 points in the first quarter, continued his fast start with seven points as the Suns scored 36 points in the quarter.
Guard Chris Paul also made his mark on the first quarter by dishing out six assists before checking out. A few of those assists came off of lobs to other Suns that energized the crowd.
As for Orlando, their high volume rate of shooting three-pointers garnered 26 points with a three-point percentage of 36%. Every player on the Magic’s starting five is capable of shooting from deep and it was on display. More than half of the field goals attempted by the Magic were threes.
Phoenix held a 10 point lead going into the second half and quickly expanded it. The Suns went on a run that put the Magic in a deep 21-point deficit in the middle of the second quarter, but they kept battling back.
Orlando picked up momentum after guard Jalen Suggs missed a second free throw and center Wendell Carter Jr. grabbed the offensive rebound and made the basket and got the foul. Carter Jr. then made the free throw to complete the 3-point play. Following that play, the Magic went on its own 12-5 run to cut the game to a more manageable 67-53 in favor of the Suns.
The Suns ended the half shooting 51% from the field, 40% from three and 100% from the free-throw line.
Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams credits the team’s patience to get good shot selection for the conversion rate.
“The ability, the will to turn down a decent shot, a good shot, for a great shot. That’s who we are,” Williams said. “That’s our DNA and that’s what we have to be if we want to do something really really special, which we all believe we can.”
Phoenix went on to record a season-high 40 assists and finished with an efficient 52% from the field and 44% from downtown.
Booker had an even hotter third quarter as he scored 16 points in the third quarter to effectively put the Magic in the rearview mirror as he and the Suns took a commanding 100-78 lead.
By the fourth quarter, more Suns got minutes and more players reached double-digit points. Forwards Cameron Johnson and Torrey Craig along with guards Elfried Payton and Aaron Holiday all made it into double-digit points coming off the bench as Phoenix comfortably closed out the game.
Saturday’s win also marked the return of forward Torrey Craig and the debut of guard Aaron Holiday.
Craig, who played with the Suns last season during its NBA Finals run was a name many Suns fans wanted back in the purple and orange. After checking in during the first quarter he received a resounding ovation from the fans.
“I think it’s a special time for everyone,” Craig said. “For the players, to the city, organization, so just them welcoming me back man. It means a lot. It really does. So that was a pretty pretty cool moment.”
In addition to the fans, other Suns were excited to be playing alongside Craig again. Paul, Booker, and Jae Crowder all hopped on a group FaceTime with Craig to personally welcome him back to the team after the trade.
“It felt like (Craig) didn’t leave at all you know, he’s right in here,” Booker said. “The vibes are great. You know, I’m happy to have him back.”
The comfortable win also helped Williams manage the player’s minutes. He noted that after the road trip where the team won three of the four games against Eastern Conference opponents and then played in a Finals rematch against the Milwaukee Bucks, the team was feeling the effects but pushed through it.
Now the team has two days off before their games next week on Tuesday and Wednesday in a back-to-back set against a resilient L.A. Clippers and hardworking Houston Rockets team.
“We certainly need to take advantage of these two days. So it is a good feeling to get the win and have the minute totals that we have and then have a chance to have two days off from a game,” Williams said. “So we’re gonna try to do our best to get our guys recovered and fresh and hopefully they can fill their cup in the next couple of days.”
