After their disappointing loss in Philadelphia, the Suns arrived in Minneapolis with the firm intention of bouncing back against Wolves in the midst of a crisis, with four defeats in their last five games. But Phoenix also arrived without its starting point guard, Chris Paul, or its starting winger, Cameron Johnson.
It was not a problem with Mikal Bridges who took control of operations from the start of the match, scoring 13 of his 31 points (best score of his season) in the first quarter. Knowing that Devin Booker also managed a very complete game, with 32 points and 10 assists (a season record), Phoenix sailed calmly towards victory on the floor of Minny (129-117).
The return to business of Rudy Gobert (25 points, 11 rebounds, 3 blocks) will not have changed anything! The Wolves still bit the dust, after a slow start to the match, marked in particular by the faults quickly accumulated by Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns.
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
– The Suns have resources. Without two of their holders, in a bad patch and again on the move, the Suns did not hesitate. They relied on their replacements, trusting in the collective strength of the group. And the least we can say is that Phoenix has the resource when we see the performance of Cam Payne, promoted to the lead, who provided 23 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds, plus Landry Shamet who is came off the bench to plant 16 points in 19 minutes, at a very good 5/7 on shots. “That’s what makes us strong: playing the right style of basketball,” underlined Devin Booker after the victory. “We have a lot of talented players in the team, even when we don’t have our entire squad. We have good players who don’t always have the chance to be in the rotation. Everyone is taking advantage of their opportunities right now. »
– Minnesota loses too many balls. Not too bad of a start last night with Phoenix missing 7 of their first 10 shots, Wolves gradually cracked the scoreboard against the rise of Mikal Bridges and the Suns, but mostly shot themselves in the foot by accumulating the lost balls (and the faults inside). With 19 turnovers, which led to 32 points for the Suns, Minnesota again betrayed a glaring lack of game funds and collective cohesion. “The stray bullets killed us, that’s clear”, regretted Chris Finch. “They made us pay for every lost ball and they also broke our momentum every time. We also didn’t have a sense of urgency in the first quarter. »
– Lost Wolves! We knew that the massive exchange that brought Rudy Gobert from Utah was going to take time to be properly digested… But this start to the season for Minnesota is starting to seriously worry, with a fifth defeat in six games conceded tonight! Worse still, Chris Finch’s men seem lost on the pitch, not really knowing what to do, both in defense and in attack. Witness this surreal scene where D’Angelo Russell does not realize that the action has resumed when he had to come into play, leaving his little comrades to defend at 4-on-5… before, inevitably, taking a outnumbered basket!
TOPS/FLOPS
✅ Mikal Bridges. Received 5/5 on shots with 13 points scored in the first quarter, Mikal Bridges launched his team which was pedaling a little in sauerkraut at the start of the match. Better still, he finished strong, adding 10 points in the last quarter to reach 31 points, his best score of the season, along with 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals for a monster rating of 40!
✅ Devin Booker. Without Chris Paul by his side in rear-wheel drive, Devin Booker handled his responsibilities perfectly, turning more to a creative role. Result of the races, he finished in double-double with 32 points and 10 assists. And victory at the end!
✅ The Payne-Shamet duo. Recently on the bench in civilian clothes, Cameron Payne did well to find the floors as soon as possible. Because he perfectly assured the interim without Chris Paul last night. With 23 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds, he took on the role of starter without worry, leaving the way open for Landry Shamet to explode offensively off the bench, with a very effective 16 points in less than 19 minutes of play.
⛔️ Karl Anthony Towns. Anthony Edwards is not bad either in his genre at 4/12 but the small game of KAT, the local All-Star, at 11 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists confirms the poor form of Wolves as a whole. Slowed down by mistakes, Karl-Anthony Towns did not weigh at all in this match. His association with Rudy Gobert is even beginning to cause serious concern as Wolves still do not find concrete solutions and continue to sink in the standings…
THE FOLLOWING
Phoenix (8-3) : next game in Orlando on Friday.
Minnesota (5-7) : trip to Memphis on Friday.
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