Well, of course
The whole point of “Phoenix” is the rebirth, and if there was any question whether the Suns could compete for that eighth playoff spot with Amar’e Stoudemire out for the rest of the year, the answer came tonight: a 140-118 win over the Thunder, which gives Phoenix 422 points in its last three outings. Usually when you see numbers like that, you look around for the Washington Generals.
If there’s any consolation for OKC fans, it’s that the Thunder managed to pull within six points early in the fourth quarter, only to see Phoenix start peppering the bucket again. Leandro Barbosa hit 16 of 21 from the floor, including five treys, and four charity tosses, winding up with 41. Jerome Richardson added 34; Shaquille O’Neal was good for 22. Overall, the Suns shot 58.2 percent, and they pulled off 14 steals; Barbosa got six of them.
Still, Oklahoma City brought most of its A-game. Kevin Durant got 35, a smidgen above his average these days; six of the Thunder were in double figures, and Jeff Green got a double-double, with 10 points and 14 boards. (As usual, OKC dominated the glass, 47-40, including 19 offensive.) Nenad Krstić started at center, perhaps because of a perceived need for additional height. And the Thunder got just as many treys — twelve — as the Suns, and with one fewer attempt yet. Still, they shot only 45.8 percent, which you can’t do against a team that can score 140 on a semi-regular basis.
Neither of the New Guys got deployed tonight: we’ll see them later. (Side note: Both Malik Rose and Thabo Sefolosha will be wearing single digits; I’m wondering if OKC, at 14.6, has the Lowest Average Jersey Number. Elias Sports Bureau, where are you?)
Tomorrow night at Golden State, where there likely will be more big numbers.
