Carried by Devin Booker and Jalen Green, the Phoenix Suns thrashed the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Suns finally seem to be finding their rhythm at home. On Thursday evening, Phoenix secured a solid victory against the Clippers (115-102), carried by a sparkling Jalen Green in his first appearance in his new colours. Having arrived in exchange for Kevin Durant, the former Houston Rockets shooting guard did not take long to win over the fans: 29 points in 23 minutes, six three-pointers and contagious energy that completely changed the face of his team after the break.
By scoring nine of the Suns' first 11 points, Devin Booker and Jalen Green immediately set the tone, with promising complementarity.
On the other side, Bradley Beal was booed with every touch of the ball. Deprived of James Harden and Kawhi Leonard, the Clippers relied on Ivica Zubac, dominant in the paint, to respond to the Green-Booker duo.
With 10 points in the first quarter alone, the Croatian caused havoc on the offensive boards, but the depth of the Suns' squad and the 19 combined points from Booker and Green allowed the Suns to be ahead after 12 minutes (31-27). What followed was clearly less exciting with the Clippers seeking to slow the game, and who took control thanks to their big men. It was Brook Lopez who came to score in the paint (35-33), and the Clippers created their first lead of the match (47-40) thanks to a strong spell from the Jones Jr-Dunn duo. The Suns recalled Green, and immediately, it made the difference. Insufficient, however, to take the lead and at half-time, Nicolas Batum's teammates were in front: 51-48.
General view as Phoenix Suns Devin Booker against Los Angeles Clippers Cam Christi on a jump ball
Suns dominate after the break
After the break, it was night and day, and driven by Royce O'Neale, the Suns were much more aggressive and energetic. The defence was higher and more active, and within a minute, Phoenix had regained control. It was a one-sided third quarter and Jalen Green took the game into his own hands. Accurate from distance and aggressive towards the rim, he broke down the defence and made multiple trips to the line. It was he who found Booker for the three-pointer that gave a 10-point lead (67-57).
Three minutes later, it was Royce O'Neale's turn to hit from three-point range, and the Suns reached a 20-point lead. The Clippers were knocked out, and the Suns rolled out their basketball with very few turnovers. The gap stabilised, and Jordan Ott could give his players work. It was fluid basketball, and confidence did the rest.
Ryan Dunn scored with the foul, then served Green for another three-pointer. Grayson Allen got in on the act too, and with eight minutes remaining, the Clippers were down 25. A freezing temperature that launched a long and tedious garbage time. But in Phoenix, they celebrated a third victory in four matches.
Key takeaways
Jalen Green already adopted. For his debut with the Suns, he could not have imagined a better evening. In front of his new crowd, the former Rockets forward was excellent with 29 points in 23 minutes on 50 percent shooting. He brings that madness and spark that the Suns have been missing for two years.
Clippers come to a halt. With Nicolas Batum starting, the Clippers held on for a half before collapsing. Tyronn Lue tried hard to slow the game and move the action under the boards, but the defence exploded after the break. The perimeter defence was too slow to close out on opposing shooters. It is the third consecutive defeat for Zubac's partners.
Bradley Beal suffers. Booed during team introductions, then with every touch of the ball, he experienced a very poor evening, and he suffered from the comparison with his successor, Jalen Green. The former All-Star guard finished with five points on two of 14 shooting.
This article was originally published on Basket USA.
ID:585302:1false2false3false: from db desktop :LenBod:collect5488: