Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton (22) shoots while Sacramento Kings goalie Tyrese Haliburton (0) defends himself in the first half of an NBA basketball game on Thursday, April 15, 2021, in Phoenix. (Photo by AP / Matt York)
PHOENIX – Phoenix Suns are a great team. This is the foundation. It’s right in front of you.
But if you take a closer look, you’ll see that there are extra layers and backing pieces added to that foundation during the second half of the season. It’s a crucial element for competitors in the last two months, continuing to improve before the games that really matter start.
The biggest addition the Suns could have made was an improved Deandre Ayton and that’s what they’ve achieved in recent weeks, including Thursday’s 122-114 victory over the Sacramento Kings, where Ayton was finally the difference.
Ayton had 10 of his 26 points and four of his 10 rebounds in the fourth quarter and didn’t even check in until it was 4:57. With Sacramento down four at the time, Ayton scored on an alley-oop pass from Devin Booker, an offensive comeback two possessions later and two free throws two more possessions later.
That had Phoenix leading by eight with 2:36 left, and the Kings decided that the only other potential response to Ayton was small. The next trip down to the Suns, Ayton took another longing for the Suns to throw free throws. With a seven-point lead and less than two minutes to go from there, Phoenix headed for Ayton in the post, and Ayton delivered a jumper that effectively ended the game.
“I was really happy that DA would be the guy on the field,” said head coach Monty Williams.
The Kings stayed in the game most of the night, thanks to a below-average defensive night for Phoenix and good photos throughout. Sacramento’s defense was awful in some stages, and the Suns shot 55.8% at night to counter the Kings’ 55.1%, with 14 points tripled for each team. In a way, it felt like another game in which the Suns played both down and up to their competition.
While Ayton was doing this offensively, he and the defense got key stops to keep Kings at bay while the big guy ended the game at the other end.
“We just eliminated a victory,” Williams said. “We’ll look at this at the end of the season – it won’t say pretty bad win or bad win, it’ll just say win and I’m glad I got it.”
Ayton were 10 out of 11 on the field, checking those boxes to be active on the offensive glass and doing his defensive part as an anchor. Booker added 23 points, while it was another strong night for the bank, with 42 points overall. Jevon Carter led the way with 13 points, while a starter Chris Paul gave 11 assists to go with 13 points.
Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox (27 points) and Buddy Hield (24) combined for 51 points.
To return to the topic of a team’s evolution in the regular season, here’s what Paul had to say when asked, given the postseason, what it means for Ayton to have moments like Thursday, when he was the “guy” on the stretch. :
“I think it’s great for all of us. These games right here build trust and build trust, “Paul said.” That’s what the playoffs are all about. Sometimes you’re going to a play or you’re going to a guy (and) he could make or miss a shot. , but one thing about that is trust.
“It’s trustworthy and when you have such games from all the guys on our team, you trust right now, so when you get to those moments, you live with what’s going on.”
Here’s what Ayton had to say when asked about building that trust lately:
“After the match, I’m in the locker room,” I whispered [Paul] And I gave him a dap – I said, “He appreciates you trusting me, my G,” Ayton said. “Just trust me, knowing that your teammate believes in you. (Paul said) Take your time. [Paul] he taught me extensively just to be prepared.
“As I start to go down, the teams start to adapt and adapt, starting to double, so he just wants me to take my time in such long stretches and see the game. Sometimes I just fight with the clock instead of trying to score every time. Learning only the aspects of the game and what is important and what to look for in difficult times. ”
Imagine a Suns team in the postseason that can head to Ayton on the stretch, if needed. This is a thought that will make the Suns fans salivate while it can be an amazing and disturbing development for the rest of the league.