It was just a three-game week for the Phoenix Suns, but the team had an opportunity to go undefeated during it, and it looked like they were on track to do so, until they blew a double-digit fourth quarter lead to the Toronto Raptors on Friday. That being said, it was a strong week for the Suns, as Jalen Green and Devin Booker continue to find a rhythm playing next to each other.
Here are the main questions for Week 21 we want your thoughts on:
Fourth Quarter Meltdown in Canada
Up as much as 10 in the fourth quarter, Phoenix had a chance
to extend its win streak to five, but could not get it done late, allowing Toronto to score 36 points on 64% shooting from the field in the fourth quarter. If the Suns had won, they would have been just a half-game back of the fifth and sixth spots in the Western Conference. Instead, they remain a game and a half out and are still slotted in the play-in.
The Suns were coming off a back-to-back, in which they won by 15 against the Indiana Pacers but had to play Devin Booker and other key players late into the game to secure the win. Any game where a team has to travel internationally puts them at a disadvantage, and even more so on a back-to-back, and the Raptors were the more rested team, but what do you attribute most to the Suns’ fourth quarter meltdown?
The Jalen Green/Devin Booker Dynamic
Jalen Green and Devin Booker are both hitting their stride in the final fifth of the season. In March, Booker is averaging his most points in a month since October and shooting 42% from deep, while Green has crept his season shooting percentage all the way up to 40% for the season after a rough 12 games to start his season, doing so on the most shots per game. The two are averaging a combined 55 points per game, and both are averaging at least 25.
While the two have been dominant and it’s led to wins, for the Suns to have a chance to make a real playoff run, they’re going to need more balance (look at the team’s 2022-2023 playoff campaign). Only one other Suns’ starter is averaging over 10 points per game in March, and it’s Collin Gillespie, who just had his first zero-point game of his season. When Green or Booker don’t have it going (like they didn’t down the stretch against the Raptors), Phoenix needs to create more consistent opportunities for others to contribute so the team can stay offensively competent.
How can the Suns find more balance in their offense around Jalen Green and Devin Booker?
Ryan Dunn’s Benching
Ryan Dunn received his first benching for an entire game this season. The second-year forward did not play against the Raptors, as Jordan Ott favored rookie Rasheer Fleming and recent signing Haywood Highsmith over him in the reserve forward spots. Before his benching, Dunn was averaging 3 points in 14 minutes per game, shooting 30% from three. Teams tend to leave Dunn open when he shoots.
Overall, Dunn’s minutes have decreased as Fleming has improved, and Highsmith and Amir Coffey were acquired. Fleming has become a reliable three-point shooter for the Suns, while Highsmith and Coffey attract more gravity from defenses.
What does Ryan Dunn’s future look like in Phoenix, especially with another young player’s ascension? Could he be a trade candidate in the offseason?
On the Suns’ Plate This Week
Phoenix heads to Boston to face the Celtics tonight, and Minnesota to face the Timberwolves tomorrow. Then they’ll have a short break before they face the Spurs on Thursday to end their road trip. Once they get back to Phoenix, they’ll have their third back-to-back in 11 days, when they host the Bucks on Saturday and the Raptors on Sunday.
