2024-10-27 15:10:02
Suns forward Kevin Durant reacts after a shot against the Mavericks in the second half.
PHOENIX — The last time the Suns played an official game at Footprint Center, they stepped on a banana peel, losing four straight to Minnesota in the first round of the 2024 playoffs. Frank Vogel called it “disappointing” and “there’s no other way to put it.”
He was the head coach then. He isn’t now.
To say the Suns are now angling for bigger things would be understating the obvious. If it’s possible to have a sense of urgency in a home opener, well such was the case Saturday when the Suns seemed eager to set a tone for 2024-25.
Well, the first sign was ominous: Bradley Beal was out with a sore elbow for a team that dealt with injuries much of last season.
But at the end of the night, all was well after a thorough, if not dominant, defeat of the Mavericks.
Here are five takeaways from that 114-102 result and a home launch the Suns hope becomes commonplace.
1. Durant hits milestone
He didn’t need to drop 31 points to ensure his place among the all-time scorers in NBA history, but it did strengthen his credentials.
Kevin Durant’s team-high output propelled him past 29,000 points for his career. Only seven others have managed to crack that threshold, and Durant is still getting buckets.
He’s truly a scoring marvel, comfortable everywhere on the floor and not one dimensional in any way. At 36, Durant seemingly has two or three golden years left, maybe more because shooters traditionally are the last to fade away.
“It’s a tribute to a generational talent,” said Suns coach Mike Budenholzer. “He gets to great spots to be able to shoot and score against great defenses. He’s been doing it pretty much his entire career.”
Kevin Durant scores 31 points, surpasses 29,000 for his career.
2. Mavs glimpsing tougher road?
When Dallas reached the NBA Finals last season, it was rightly seen as a breakthrough for the franchise here in the Luka Dončić era. Kyrie Irving arrived to give him a co-star, the Mavs added frontline help at the trade deadline and found themselves playing in June.
But in another sense, the Mavs took advantage of health — their own good health and injuries suffered by other contenders, namely the team that beat them Saturday.
Devin Booker, Durant and Beal played together for exactly half of the 2023-24 regular season. The Suns were 26-15 record in those games. Had the three core stars stayed reasonably healthy, Phoenix would’ve won 50-plus games and enjoyed a more favorable playoff seeding and matchups.
And it’s not just the Suns; the Grizzlies also dealt with a rash of injuries and, despite winning 50-plus games in each of the previous two seasons, didn’t make the playoffs.
Assuming good health for all this season, the competition just got tougher for Dallas. And so did the Mavs’ chances of repeating as West champs.
3. With Beal out, Dunn flashes worth
Nothing to be worried about from the Suns’ standpoint; Beal dealt with a sore left elbow and decided to rest. Still, he missed 29 games last season, when a lack of depth proved costly for Phoenix.
With Beal out Saturday, Budenholzer decided to start a rookie — Ryan Dunn, the Suns’ first-round pick whose assignment was guarding Luka.
The cold facts? Dunn held Luka to 40 points.
But the truth went beyond numbers. Dunn was actually impressive, or as impressive as a rookie can get against the league scoring champion last season and MVP candidate.
The Suns traded down to get Dunn at No. 28. He’s 6-foot-8, came with defensive credentials and sparkled during the preseason. Ideally, he’ll supply what the Suns lost when they dealt Mikal Bridges — coincidentally for Durant.
“Great night for Ryan,” said Budenholzer. “That’s one of the top players in the league he went against. He gets the chance to go into the lab and learn from it. His defense and athleticism was a positive. His 3 in the fourth was huge. He’s shooting it with confidence.”
Dunn is valuable for the Suns in another way — financially. He’s a rookie on a cheap contract for a team with a bundle tied up in three players. It’s a challenge for such teams to add better players in trades, and free agency is out of the question.
Better to be able to draft and develop around Durant, Beal and Booker. Dunn, in that sense, is already an asset.
4. Bosnian Beast bounces back
Jusuf Nurkić looked shaky the previous night in L.A. against Anthony Davis, who did whatever he wanted to do in the Lakers’ comeback victory.
So Nurk needed another chance to make an early season impression — which he did, rather emphatically. Other than Durant, Nurk was the most impactful player on the floor for the Suns.
That he did it against the Mavs’ collection of big men made it more impressive. Nurkić had 18 points and 14 rebounds and there was little that Daniel Gafford, PJ Washington or Dereck Lively II could do to prevent it.
“He’s a great teammate and a competitor,” said Budenholzer. “He wanted to come back and have that positive impact for us, which he did.”
Nurkić said: “My goal was just to play better, help us win. That’s all that mattered.”
5. All good between Klay, Luka, Kyrie
The chemistry lesson is being aced, by all accounts and according to the one voice that matters.
Klay Thompson’s bond with Luka and Kyrie Irving was ideal from the start and getting smoother.
“That’s why I’m here,” he said. “A chance to be with great players and with a great organization.”
Thompson through two games appears a good fit: 11-for-22 shooting from deep and a 20-point average. There’s always a transitional stretch when key players are put together for a first time, but based on the small sample size so far, it’s almost as if they’ve been teammates for years.
“We can grow from this and be a lot better, and right now it’s really good,” Thompson said. “There’s so much room for improvement. I’m very encouraged with our trust with each other and what our potential can be.”
Credit Luka for this. As the resident MVP candidate and point guard, he has made Klay comfortable and studied to learn the shooter’s tendencies in a short time.
“He’s easy,” said Klay. “He’s great.”
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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