Phoenix Suns fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder without their leader, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, on Friday night, 128-103. The Suns beat the No. 1 seed in the West, the Denver Nuggets, on Wednesday but were unable to play the same way against the Thunder.
After the game, Kevin Durant spoke with AZCentral's Duane Rankin about the challenges the young Thunder present. OKC's average age in its starting lineup including Gilgeous-Alexander is 22.8 years.
“They've got great talent here, guys that love to play ball,” Durant said. “They're not too involved with the extra stuff outside of the game. I think that's what we (Durant played with the Thunder from 2008 to 2016) had as a group when we were here. They got a coach that understands them and understands the game.”
Oklahoma City forced 14 Suns turnovers and limited them to just 44.8 percent shooting. The Thunder are one of the best teams at scoring on the fastbreak, and they shot 56.3 percent overall in the win.
“They got versatility up and down their roster,” Durant added, via Rankin. “…All that stuff, that trial and error, is only going to benefit this group.
“Our 1-on-1 defense wasn't as good as it should've been. They got around us a lot.”
Durant, who is in his 16th season, used to play on the Thunder with Russell Westbrook and James Harden, who each won MVP awards. Durant was named the NBA's Most Valuable Player in 2014 with the Thunder.
Unfortunately for Durant, he was booed by the Thunder crowd upon his return. He stunned fans nationally when he left OKC in summer 2016 to join the Golden State Warriors following their 73-win season.
“It's hard to not hear how people react to when your name is called,” Durant said. “I understand the dynamics, what being a fan means and what I meant to this city.
“This is their experience. Before, I guess I tried to tell them how to act towards me.”
Durant in 2023-24 with the Suns has been the team's best two-way player and scorer. He is averaging the fourth-most points (2.7.6) in the NBA and 2.2 stocks (0.9 steals and 1.3 blocks) combined. The two-time champion is scoring at an incredibly efficient rating, shooting 53 percent from the field and 42.5 percent from three.
Phoenix coach Frank Vogel agreed with Durant about the effectiveness of the Thunder.
“This is a tough matchup for us,” he said, via Rankin. “These guys are young, fast, athletic and they shoot the hell out of it and they defend. We haven't figured out the blueprint on how to beat these guys yet.”
The Suns suffered what Vogel called an “embarrassing” loss to the Thunder. Phoenix over the weekend also fell short against the 17-win San Antonio Spurs without their best player, Victor Wembanyama.
“We all got to own it and we all got to be better and we all got to handle success better,” Vogel said.
The Suns rank No.7 in the West and are 1 1/2 games behind the Dallas Mavericks to stay out of the play-in round.
“I wouldn't go that far to say it's not a good matchup,” said Durant. “…It was tough, but I like our chances against anybody regardless.”
Phoenix returns to the court Monday on the road to play the No. 5 seed, the New Orleans Pelicans. The game starts at 5 p.m. MT and is televised by Arizona's Family Sports.
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