Rapid Recap: Suns blast Blazers, 119-74 in final round of preseason
Photo by Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports
The Phoenix Suns took care of business as always on Wednesday afternoon as they blasted the Portland Trail Blazers with a final score of 119-74 in their final preseason game.
The Suns lead by 21 at halftime, then by 40 midway through the fourth quarter. However Chris Paul did not play in the game, but Devin Booker finally made his return scoring 17 points in 18 first-half minutes. Deandre Ayton chipped in 8 points and 11 rebounds in the 15 first-half minutes of his own.
The Suns bench players took the second half by storm, blowing the Blazers off the floor. Four different bench players had over 10 points, while Elfrid Payton came close to a triple double (8/9/8 with 4 steals) as Payne’s backup without looking like he was forcing anything. The Suns fans gave the team a standing ovation as the clock struck zero with a Suns win, 119-74.
Cameron Payne got the start in place of Chris Paul, his start since putting up 29 points, 9 assists and 0 turnovers to help the Suns win game 2 of the Western Conference Finals. Devin Booker missed a three on the Suns first possession, followed by a Suns steal and a Mikal Bridges side-step three. 13 of the game’s first 17 shots were threes, and that doesn’t include both Jae Crowder and C.J. McCollum launching with a toe on the line. So if you really think about it, it’s really 15 of the first 17.
After half a quarter, just as Devin Booker drains his first three of the final preseason game, (1 of 3) the Blazers called a first timeout down 15-6 because they simply couldn’t make a bucket. Both teams were living on wide open shots but the Blazers just couldn’t convert like the Suns did. For all the misses, the Suns ball movement has been top notch all game. There was quick, defensive passing leading to wide open shots they’re just not draining.
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Suns are still up 23-11 after one.
Moving into the half, the Suns were up 44-31 no longer allowing the Blazers to get any open shots but still struggling to make all the open ones they were getting themselves with really pretty passing. Deandre Ayton approached a double-double by halftime (8 points, 11 rebounds), while Booker drained 17 points on 10 shots and the Suns built the lead to 52-35 to force another Blazers timeout.
Suns up 59-38 at halftime. Ayton and McGee combined for 18 points, 15 rebounds, and 2 steals while guarding the rim incredibly well. Suns shooting percentage was up at 49 and Blazer’s was down 27%. Blazers are playing their regulars such as Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum, Jusuf Nurkic, Robert Covington and Normal Powell all played over 15 minutes in the half. The Suns played without Chris Paul, but otherwise playing a regular rotation with Elfrid Payton getting extra minutes.
The Blazers came out with a more focused mind in the second half getting some points on the board and got a catch-and-shoot three from RoCo, then an offensive rebound put-back from Damian Lillard. But of course, that didn’t matter to the Suns as the score went up to 87-50, then after the three quarters, the game was Suns up 93-60 leading into the fourth, then took the lead at 108-68 with five minutes left.
The Phoenix Suns leave preseason 3-1, Portland Trail Blazers 0-3.
