In the last edition of Vinny’s View on Friday, we spent time outlining the ugliest loss of the year the night prior, a 105-103 clunker at the hands of the shorthanded Chicago Bulls.
Since then, the Suns have rebounded nicely. They held on for a win over New Orleans on Friday night and followed that up with a very sturdy 111-99 win over the previously red-hot Charlotte Hornets at Mortgage Matchup Center Sunday.
This time it was the Suns who were shorthanded, going into Sunday’s action without Dillon Brooks, Jordan Goodwin and Mark Williams. But on game day, the team also learned that Grayson Allen wouldn’t be available either. It didn’t matter for Phoenix, which played solid defense in the second half to slow down the high-flying Hornets. Charlotte came in averaging over 117 points per game over their last 20 contests in which they went 16-4.
Devin Booker had 30 points and 10 assists — the 23rd time he’s reached those statistical benchmarks in his career. Jalen Green had 20 of his 24 in the first half and Collin Gillespie continued his stellar play in games aired on NBC and Peacock, scoring 24 himself.
But let’s talk about the rookies. Rasheer Fleming continues to grow right in front of our eyes. The second-round pick scored a career-high 16 points on stellar 6-of-8 shooting and after a really rough night last week against Chicago, Khaman Maluach had another positive night with four points, a career-high nine rebounds and two emphatic blocked shots — the second of which preserved a 1-point Phoenix lead late in the third quarter.
Now, the Suns hit the road for the next six games — their first prolonged roadie since right after Christmas. As they start the trek in Milwaukee on Tuesday night, it looks like the Suns have returned to looking like the team this fan base fell in love with. And that’s reassuring with reinforcements returning from injury soon.
Suns' Rasheer Fleming...
Vince Marotta
While the injuries have continued to add up, we knew this Phoenix Suns basketball team well enough ...
Kellan Olson
rasheer fleming suns hornets career high 16 points win...
rasheer fleming suns hornets career high 16 points win...
Phoenix Suns center Khaman Maluach (10) against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half of...
Payne Moses
Grayson Allen Suns Hornets late out right knee injury...
Grayson Allen Suns Hornets late out right knee injury...
Suns Hornets game Peacock exclusive...
Payne Moses