The Phoenix Suns (14-12) hosted the Golden State Warriors (13-14) in a big game for both sides.
The Suns sat in seventh, and the Warriors sat in eighth, both in a play-in spot, and only 1.5 games separated the two teams.
Phoenix was coming off a brutal loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, while Golden State was coming off a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Suns were still without Jalen Green (hamstring) while Grayson Allen (knee) was on Game-Time Decision.
As for the Warriors, they were without Al Horford (back) while Seth Curry (thigh) was on GTD.
The Suns had decent depth, alongside their usual stars such as Dillon Brooks and Devin Booker, who were both averaging more than 20 points per game.
“Dillon can play,” Suns head coach Jordan Ott said regarding Brooks. “It’s just always his competitive fire that we love and we appreciate. Especially in these games and he’s got history, with a playoff series (against Golden State), just his knowledge and IQ of who the Warriors are, we love having him out there.”
Phoenix also had center Mark Williams, who was averaging 13.3 PPG and 8.3 rebounds per game.
Golden State wasn’t a team to take lightly however, as key players such as forward Draymond Green and guard Jimmy Butler, were both experienced veterans in the league, still performing at a high level.
“He’s seen everything,” Ott said regarding Green. “He’s been through every single defensive coverage possible. He’ll see different coverages, but it’s just put on pressure when we can when that matchup is probably a smaller guy.”
Butler in particular averaged 19.1 PPG.
The biggest name on the roster though, was point guard Stephen Curry, who was coming off back-to-back 30+ point games, including 48 points against the Trail Blazers.
“Multiple things,” Ott said regarding containing Curry. “Ball pressure, because they run so many off the ball actions. Our communication, because they force you to make so many decisions against their offense, and we’re going to have to defend the entire clock. It’s going to force us to communicate at a high level.”
Curry had been averaging a whopping 29.6 PPG and was likely looking to try and close the gap between Golden State and Phoenix.
Off the bench, the Suns had Royce O’Neale and Collin Gillespie, while the Warriors had Buddy Hield, Brandin Podziemski, and Jonathan Kuminga, who led the team in rebounds with 6.3 RPG while averaging 12.4 PPG.
Unfortunately for Phoenix, Allen was ruled out before the game and wouldn’t play against Golden State.
“Grayson, we don’t think it’s anything serious,” Ott said. “We will continue to monitor it and see how it goes.”
O’Neale started in replacement of Allen.
Entering the second quarter, Golden State was leading, 29-26.
Booker didn’t have any points entering the second, but Brooks was on fire, having 13 points while going 3-for-4 from beyond the arc.
“His first half, offensively, really helped us,” Ott said. “We were in the mud. He was really good in the first half. His pressure really helped us.
Curry had been quiet so far, being held to five points, while Butler led the way with 11 points of his own.
After the first half, Golden State had a 53-46 lead.
Butler had 16 points, and many were coming at the rim after multiple screens, which led to easy buckets.
As for the Suns, Brooks hadn’t let up, scoring 20 points, but the rest of the team hadn’t matched that energy, with no one else scoring double digit points for the Suns.
“They’re a top five defense,” Ott said. “Even in the start of the third quarter, it wasn’t looking good. Thought we got back in it, they called a timeout, and we responded from their timeout, which I thought was big for us.”
Midway through the third, Brooks stopped Curry in his tracks without setting a screen, and the referees went to see if it was a hostile act.
Brooks had already picked up a technical foul, but the referees deemed it wasn’t a hostile act.
“There’s times of the game to be more aggressive than others,” Booker said. “Especially when you’re not in foul trouble. I think there’s a time where we can up the intensity and get away with a few fouls but other than that, we have the talent to play sound defense and we’ve shown that.”
Early in the third quarter, the Warriors took a 14-point lead, but after an 18-4 run by Phoenix, the game was tied at 66, and the Suns had the momentum.
Jordan Goodwin of the Suns drove to the basket to tie the game and drew a foul, but the Warriors challenged the call as they thought that Oso Ighodaro had committed an offensive foul on Butler, and the challenge was successful.
Entering the fourth quarter, it was anyone’s game, as Golden State led, but only by one.
“I’m sure it’s on the scout report that we’re going to play hard,” Booker said. “I think a couple of coaches postgame have had comments about it. We have a lot of talent over here, too. The games have been physical, but we have true hoopers over here. It’s a good combination to have both of those things.”
Both Brooks and Butler had 22 points, having been the stars of the game when it came to scoring.
Despite that, both Booker and Curry had become more affective, with Booker having 15 points, while Curry had 11 points.
Post had 10 rebounds, and with the game being close alongside a defensive battle, his rebounding was crucial for Golden State.
The big thing for Phoenix is that they had forced Golden State to drive into the paint or shoot from distance instead of screens into the paint, which allowed for easy rebounds and better offensive looks.
“It starts with the 16 steals,” Ott said. “Some nights on offense just aren’t great, so we got to find another way. I think our transitional offense was fueled by getting stops on the defensive end. Some nights it’s like that.”
Early in the fourth though, Gillespie went down and limped off the court with what looked like an ankle injury.
Gillespie went to the locker room, and his night looked to be over, but he rushed back onto the court a minute later and was subbed on.
With just five minutes left in the game, Phoenix held a two-point lead, and it was anyone’s game.
Late in the fourth, Phoenix was able to break away and take a 94-87 lead with 2 minutes left.
With 38 seconds left, the referees went to check if Brooks committed a hostile act on Curry after a jump shot.
After much deliberation, the referees gave Brooks a flagrant 1 foul, and the Warriors went to the line only down five.
“We’re not mad at Dillon,” Booker said. “We’re asking him to bring that energy, bring that fight every night. On the other hand, it can be controlled.”
Curry drained both free throws, before Golden State inbounded it to Butler, who drained a three-pointer.
In the span of five seconds, the game went from a five-point lead for the Suns, only for Golden State to tie up at 96-96.
Booker drilled a quick fadeaway two, before Curry was fouled and made both free-throws.
“We want a physical game,” Ott said. “We’re okay playing that style. That’s who we want to be about. That’s who they are, and it’s been a rallying cry for this group. How we play with that grit, that edge, that toughness; these guys have been through it. We’re only going to grow from this.”
With 21 seconds left and no shot clock left, Phoenix had the chance to win the game as they had the ball, with the game tied up at 98.
Brooks got the ball and missed the three, but Goodwin was fouled in the process. The question was if there was still time on the clock.
After reviewing the play, the referees said that the foul on Goodwin occurred with 0.4 seconds left on the clock, and Goodwin went to the line to give the Suns the lead, and possibly the win.
Goodwin missed his first, but made his second, and while the Warriors sent it long for an inbound, Phoenix read the play.
“Huge,” Ott said. “Great trust in Goody (Goodwin) to get in there and end the game. Love everything he’s about, what he brings every single day, his spirit really helps our group.”
Phoenix hung on, winning 99-98.
“I’ll never get used to it,” Booker said regarding the way the team won. “We talked about it, just channel it the right way. Sometimes the outcome isn’t the best, and these last two games have put us in tough spots. We learn from it.”
Booker finished strong with 25 points, and Brooks followed behind him with 24 points, and Ighodaro finished with 13 rebounds.
“Good players, superstars, they find a way,” Ott said regarding Booker’s strong finish. “No matter what. We have ultimate confidence in him; he has ultimate confidence in himself. It was a great second half and we needed it all of it.”
“He’s been working,” Booker said regarding Ighodaro. “He’s put the work in and it’s his time to show him. Little bit of a slow start, but I think he’s getting more and more comfortable every game.”
Butler finished with a 31-point showing, and Post ended with 11 rebounds.
As for Curry, he was held well by the defense, going 3-for-14 for 15 points.
The Suns jump to 15-12, while the Warriors fall to 13-15.
The two teams will face off again at Chase Center on Saturday night.
