2 weeks Ago By Connor Moreno, Burn City Sports
PHOENIX — The Phoenix Suns might have been given the final nail in the coffin after Kevin Durant left their 148-109 blowout loss to the Houston Rockets early with a brutal left ankle injury. Durant played just 22 minutes before rolling his ankle over Jabari Smith Jr. with six minutes left of the third quarter and had to be helped to the locker room.
He was one of three Suns to score in double figures, led by Devin Booker with 28 points on 12-of-17 shooting. Monte Morris scored 10 points in garbage time. After a semi-competitive first quarter, the Rockets blew Phoenix out of the water behind 33 points from Jalen Green, who scored 32 of those in the second and third quarters.
This Durant injury may be the culmination of what has been a disastrous Phoenix season as it is now 35-40 and 1.5 games behind the Sacramento Kings for the final spot in the Western Conference play-in. Kevin Durant exits game with ankle injury in 3rd quarter Of the worst things that could possibly happen throughout this last stretch of the season, Kevin Durant going down like he did in the third quarter may be the worst.
With 6:57 left in the period, Durant drove in on Jabari Smith and rolled his left ankle outwards and stayed on the floor for a good while before being helped to the locker room. Houston took its largest lead of the game, 41, in the period and Durant’s injury was the final blow to the game. The Rockets entered the final quarter up 112-73.
Durant played just 22 minutes and finished with 11 points and eight rebounds — still the only other Sun besides Devin Booker to reach double figures through three quarters. Booker had 28 points on 12-of-17 shooting. Jalen Green erupted for 17 of his game-high 33 points in the third quarter.
The Suns didn’t stand a chance with Houston having five players in double figures and completely outclassing every matchup through 36 minutes. Rockets take off, Suns set in 2nd quarter It wouldn’t be a Phoenix game if it didn’t nearly implode after having a half-decent start against a good team. Houston outscored the Suns 46-25 in the second quarter to take a commanding 78-49 lead into halftime.
One of the few bright sides for Phoenix was Devin Booker remaining consistent in the half, finishing with 20 points on 9-of-11 shooting. Kevin Durant followed him with 11 points and that’s about all Phoenix got ahead of halftime. Not a single other Sun scored over five points in the first 24 minutes.
Dillon Brooks was ejected for an altercation with Durant midway through the quarter. He finished with eight points in 11 minutes. Houston didn’t miss a beat, though.
Four Rockets scored in double figures, led by Amen Thompson with 14 points, seven rebounds (five offensive) and seven assists while being a plus-23 in 15 minutes. Jalen Green also had 14, scoring 13 of those in the second quarter. Booker finds his footing in 1st quarter After scoring his first points with three minutes left in the third quarter of their loss to the Timberwolves on Friday, Devin Booker regained his footing early against the Rockets, scoring seven points on 3-of-4 shooting through his first eight minutes of the first quarter.
Houston had the edge over Phoenix, 32-24. Booker’s seven led all Suns scorers but Kevin Durant followed closely behind him with six points. Phoenix got off to a bit of a slow start and allowed the Rockets to jump out to an early eight-point lead until Phoenix rallied back.
Amen Thompson, who left the game for a few minutes after re-aggravating his ankle on an offensive possession, led the Rockets alongside Dillon Brooks with eight points each. Houston had eight players notch a point in the first quarter compared to just six on Phoenix’s side. Injury report Bradley Beal remains the only player on Phoenix’s injury report out with a left hamstring strain.
This was his seventh consecutive game out. Coach Mike Budenholzer noted that he has taken big steps, competing in 5-on-5 in practice and progressing well. For Houston, Reed Sheppard (right thumb avulsion fracture) came into the game questionable but was later upgraded to available.
Tari Eason was the only other Rocket on the active roster listed on the injury report. Eason was listed out due to left lower leg injury management. This article first appeared on Burn City Sports and was syndicated with permission.
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