Some nights, the mountain in front of you feels too steep to climb. Sunday night was one of those nights for the Suns against the Clippers.
Yes, they have competed well without Devin Booker and Jalen Green
this season. That part is real. But against this matchup, rhythm never arrived. The midrange game fell apart as they went 12-of-47 (25.5%) from two. Turnovers did not turn into points (18 Clipper turnovers resulted in just 13 Suns’ points). And the size disadvantage, which at times teased the idea of swinging the game, never actually did. The Clippers saw it, smelled it, and went straight to the paint. Over and over. Relentless. Punishing.
That is the contrast the league offers sometimes. Effort without reward. Fight without flow. The Suns showed up. They worked. But execution never caught up, and the mountain never moved.
Nights like this happen in the NBA. Not every climb is meant to be conquered. Sometimes the lesson is simply knowing when the slope was too sharp, even if you kept putting one foot in front of the other.
Bright Side Baller Season Standings
Climb that ladder, D. Brooks! With his 27 points in an impressive win against the Cavs, Dillon Brooks has now chalked up 8 Bright Side Ballers on the year, tying him with Collin Gillespie.
I don’t know much. But I do know that I did not see this coming from Brooks. Simply unreal.
Bright Side Baller Nominees
Game 50 against the Clips. Here are your nominees:
Grayson Allen
23 points (7-of-21, 4-of-13 3PT), 1 rebound, 8 assists, 2 steals, 0 turnovers, -3 +/-
Dillon Brooks
22 points (7-of-20, 4-of-6 3PT), 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 0 steals, 0 turnovers, -1 +/-
Jordan Goodwin
12 points (4-of-9, 4-of-7 3PT), 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 0 turnovers, -6 +/-
Collin Gillespie
12 points (4-of-13, 4-of-10 3PT), 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 0 turnovers, -15 +/-
Royce O’Neale
9 points (3-of-8, 3-of-8 3PT), 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 0 steals, 1 turnover, -4 +/-
Mark Williams
7 points (3-of-6), 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block, 1 turnover, -1 +/-
Who gets it?
