The Phoenix Suns struggled against the Denver Nuggets in the 2023 NBA playoffs. The Suns lost all three of its away games against the Nuggets in the series.
Tuesday, the new-look Suns with Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal and Grayson Allen defeated the Nuggets, 117-107, in overtime. Phoenix improved to 36-26 while Denver is now 42-20.
The Suns led by as many as 22 before the Nuggets closed the gap. Denver cut the Suns' lead to nine points by the end of the third quarter and even had the game in its grasp after Jamal Murray made a mid-range shot to give it a 102-99 lead with 45.1 seconds left.
Then, Kevin Durant happened. The 35-year-old superstar hit a game-tying three-pointer that ultimately sent the game to overtime.
KEVIN DURANT WITH A CLUTCH TRIPLE TO TIE IT š„
ā ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 6, 2024
Durant finished with 35 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two blocks. He finished with eight of the Suns' 15 points in overtime while guard Bradley Beal had five.
Here are five takeaways from the Suns' win.
Grayson Allen flamethrower
Allen, who leads the NBA in three-point percentage, was struggling to find a rhythm post-All-Star Game. But the Suns' sharpshooter was electric in the Tuesday primetime game, making his first eight three-point attempts.
"They all felt good leaving my hands."
Grayson Allen on eight 3s in #Suns win at defending NBA champion Denver.
"Huge win. Anytime you can come in here short handed. You get in a close game down the stretch where your lungs are starting to burn a little bit more than usual." pic.twitter.com/0uLWFqCBhT
ā Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) March 6, 2024
Allen had 28 points and ultimately finished with an 8-of-12 mark from beyond the arc.
Stifling defense
In the second quarter, the Nuggets recorded five of their 14 turnovers. Miraculously, Phoenix held Denver without a field goal for over six minutes.
The Nuggets' offense with center Nikola Jokic is incredibly smart. Denver has built its team with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Michael Porter Jr. to shoot off kicks from the 6-foot-11 big. Forward Aaron Gordon is a lob threat, so two-man actions with him and Jokic are nearly impossible to try and stop.
The Suns deployed a 1-2-2 zone defense that forced perimeter shots and took away Denver's ball movement and assisting. Phoenix held Denver to 107 points and a 42.7 field-goal percentage.
No Booker, no problem
Suns guard Devin Booker missed his second straight game with a right ankle sprain. Without him, Phoenix made 15 three-pointers and assisted 32 of their 42 field goals.
Booker, who is in his ninth season, is averaging a team-best 6.9 assists. Phoenix played with pace and tempo, which is something it needs to do to beat the Nuggets.
Each Suns starter finished with at least four assists. Royce O'Neale, Jusuf Nurkic and Beal each had six.
Frank Vogel's star of the game
Nurkic in his first year in Phoenix has been arguably the team's best player according to role. Nurkic on Sunday against the Oklahoma City Thunder recorded a franchise-high 31 rebounds in a game, which is indicative of how important he is.
Tuesday, he played great defense on Nuggets' Nikola Jokic, who shot just 8-of-18 and had five assists, which is over four below his average for the season. Head coach Frank Vogel was certainly impressed by Nurkic's performance, via Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic.
āHe was spectacular on both sides of the ball,ā Vogel said of Nurkic. āTook four shots and was our best offensive player.
Nurkic, who played with Jokic with the Nuggets from 2014-2017, had seven points, 12 rebounds and six assists.
Stars close
The Suns' fourth-quarter woes continued, as Denver outscored them 21-12. Phoenix hasĀ been outscored by 199 points in fourth quarters, the worst mark in the NBA.
However, the Suns had an excellent overtime in which Durant and Beal combined for 13 of its 15 points to win. Durant finished with eight, while Beal had five in the overtime period. Durant was 3-of-3 from the field in the extra period.
Despite the fourth-quarter woes, the Suns in overtime this season are 3-0 with a plus-14 difference.
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