Devin Booker scored 43 points on 17-of-25 shooting, and the Suns took care of a short-handed Golden State team in the home opener, 131-122.
Was it pretty? No. Was it needed? Very much. You’ll take wins however you get them in the NBA, even if there is plenty to clean up.
Phoenix shot 58.1% from the field, assisted on 33 of its 50 made baskets and outscored the Warriors 27-7 in transition. Golden State, playing without Stephen Curry, Brandin Podzemski, Draymond Green, and others, hung around with 26
second-chance points and 17 threes.
Booker finished with 43 points on 17-of-25 shooting (2-of-7 from three, 7-of-8 at the line), 7 rebounds, 7 assists and a block in 36 minutes. Miles Bridges added 16 points on 6-of-11 and 7 rebounds. Dillon Brooks had 15 points and 5 assists. Collin Gillespie scored 11 with 9 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals, and led the team at +16. Luke Kennard went 3-of-5 from deep for 11 points and a +15. Man Man posted 9 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks.
De’Anthony Melton led Golden State with 25 points on 8-of-13 shooting, 4-of-8 from three and 5-of-5 at the line, plus 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Yaxel Lendeborg had 23 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists and went 5-of-10 from deep. Brandon Williams scored 20, 8 of them at the line, and Graham Ike added 12 points and 9 rebounds, five on the offensive glass.
Game Flow
First Half
The Warriors opened up with an 11-4 lead behind a pair of triples from rookie Yaxel Lendeborg.
Devin Booker scored 6 of the first 8 points for Phoenix. Jordan Ott saw enough after a 13-8 Warriors lead and called the first timeout of the game at the 7:57 mark.
As soon as Jordan Goodwin checked in, good things happened. He stole the ball from De’Anthony Melton and dished it ahead to Devin Booker, leading to a wide-open bucket to make it 16-15, Phoenix. Timeout Warriors.
Golden State went on a 7-0 run immediately after that, with Phoenix’s second unit struggling to get an offensive flow.
The Suns shot 1-of-12 from three in the quarter. Luke Kennard hit the only one. Everyone else went 0-for-10 from deep, and Jalen Green opened 0-of-3 from the field.
The glass was the bigger problem. Golden State won the boards 19-12 and grabbed seven offensive rebounds. Phoenix had five defensive rebounds total. Santos, Ike, and Charles Bassey each pulled down two on the offensive end.
Devin Booker carried the offense with 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting, all from inside the arc. Golden State led after the first quarter, 25-22.
Miles Bridges started the second quarter as the five, with the Suns going to small-ball early.
While he (Bridges) did initially provide some solid minutes, the Suns continued to get killed on the glass and struggled from deep. Miles Bridges led the push with 8 points on 3-of-4 shooting, including 2-of-2 from three. Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green added 5 apiece, and Green got his first three of the night to drop after an 0-of-3 opening quarter.
Devin Booker added 9 more points on 3-of-5 shooting and got to the line for the first time, going 3-of-4. The bench delivered in short bursts. Ryan Dunn made his only shot, a three, and was a +6 in 5:45. Man Man was a +6 in under three minutes of second-quarter run.
Golden State hung around at the line and on the glass. The Warriors went 6-of-8 from the stripe in the quarter as the Suns were whistled for eight fouls.
Booker leads all scorers at the half with 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting, 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Yaxel Lendeborg paces the Warriors with 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting and 3-of-5 from deep.
Phoenix led at halftime, 57-54.
Second Half
The second half started with much more energy from Phoenix, opening on a 14-7 push. And just as they pushed it to a 10-point lead, Golden State came fighting right back to tie it up.
Collin Gillespie started to get it going, pouring in 9 points in 3 minutes. After a scoreless first half, he went 3-of-3 with two threes for 9 points in the quarter and was a +8 in his stint.
Phoenix couldn’t miss. The Suns shot 16-of-20 (80%) from the field in the third quarter and 6-of-8 from three. Golden State hung around with their three-point shooting.
Devin Booker played all 12 minutes and didn’t miss a shot: 6-of-6 from the field, 2-of-2 from deep and 3-of-3 at the line for 17 points. He had 36 points on 14-of-20 shooting and 7 assists through three quarters.
After three, Phoenix led 102-92.
Luke Kennard did his damage from the corner of the bench. He hit 2-of-3 from three in the fourth for 6 points and finished 4-of-6 from the field.
Golden State won the quarter 30-29 by going back to the glass. The Warriors grabbed five offensive rebounds in the fourth, three by Lendeborg, and finished with a 26-9 edge in second-chance points.
Phoenix looked a bit more comfortable, with the ball zipping around as it should.
Golden State wouldn’t go away, but the Suns held firm control throughout the final 20 minutes of the game. Booker dropped 43, setting a franchise record in a home opener, and the Suns secured their first win of the season. It wasn’t pretty, but it was a win.
Up Next
The Suns head to Oklahoma City to face the Thunder squad that swept them in the playoffs a season ago.
