Game Day (Preseason): Suns (0-0) @ Lakers (0-0), Fri 10/03/25

[Shabazz]

Nice to see NHD contributing right away.

Oso's free throws... yikes!

Great energy so far.

NHD surprised with a pull up 3 in transition. Has a hitch in his shot and missed his next two but yeah he's been doing the little vet things as advertised

Yeah bummer on Oso and the FTs although the action at the line looks a little more fluid

The hitch was less of an issue than the fact that nearly every 3 he took was off balance. He was fading left or right when he didn’t need to be.

[Nodack]

So many new faces on the team. It’s going to be interesting.

Ayton with 1 point. He had a chance for a Domination dunk at one point. Shockingly he went for the finesse shot instead and blew it. I wonder if they think they can convert him into being a dominating post presence. Phoenix and Portland failed. He has skills. He just doesn’t like physicality. I think it will be interesting to see how Ayton reacts to two type A superstars force feeding him and demanding results.

Remember how explosive Jalen Green is. He has a hamstring issue? That can be a real ….. ask KJ. I hope it isn’t something that will rear its ugly face often. Sample size is one preseason game.

[ShelC]

Game Replay
https://nbaontv.com/nba-games-on-tv-tod ... er-17-2024

Postgame Quotes and Videos

Spoiler: show/hide

[Furlanfufi]

Ayton is so avert to contact that I bet he turn off vibration on the PS5 controller when he plays 2k

[Mori Chu]

One thing I forgot to say last night is, Austin Reaves has become such a punchable little twerp. He barrels into the defense, flails and flops on every play, trying to bait a whistle. And it often works. I really hate this guy.

[iLLmatic]

Booker looks like he’s about to start his revenge tour this year. Team looks 100x better than last year already. I know it’s preseason but the vibes are there.

[ShelC]

Initial thoughts - usual disclaimer of this being the first preseason against a team of Lakers 2nd and 3rd stringers.

Just going off this game it looks like Book, Allen, Brooks, Dunn, CG, Richards will be in the rotation. Throw in Green and Williams and that's your 8. Oso got the start but he might've just been a placholder to keep Richards in his spot as the main backup. The playmaking was there, good screener, did a good job on the boards but still not sure if he's a rotational player. Can't have him out there if he's going 1-6 from the FT line. If Williams and Richards are healthy and splitting time, Oso probably gets squeezed. But he's serviceable in some matchups in a backup role.

Royce and NHD both got some run in the 1st half with the main guys. They may been fighting for that 9-10 spot in the rotation. NHD looks closer to 6-6 but his length and quickness standout, really liked him on the boards. His shot is hitchy but he's not shy with it. Royce was gunning, maybe a bit too much and might be a heatcheck kind of guy if Book, Allen, Green, CG, Dunn and Brooks are healthy and getting their minutes.

Generally, we probably played harder and faster and more connected than at any point over the past 2 seasons. It was nice seeing the main guys be relentless, decisive, attacking in waves. We were aggressive defensively but also fouling a lot which needs to be addressed (Dunn and Oso with 5, Brooks with 4). Some fouls could've been due to fatigue from all the flying around and pressure defense. Like Book said, have to learn to find those stretches for pressure defense so guys don't pick up bad fouls. Other fouls were because of our switching or the PnR defense where smalls were forced to rotate onto bigs down low. I would be worried about guys wearing down over the course of a game/season playing at this pace unless we go 9-10 or even 11 guys consistently. But if we can maintain this kind of pace and defense, we'll wear the other teams out just with our energy and hustle. And we'll have to do that to make up for any talent gaps.

It was great seeing Book back in his role as the clear #1 option on offense. He wasn't hesitant, wasn't standing and watching or indecisive. He got his shots, got downhill, worked his midrange and only once that I saw had his typical TO walking the ball up near halfcourt and turned it over due pressure defense- I think Vanderbilt was on him. He just looked recharged and re-energized, I don't think we'll see the slow start to the season from him that we've seen in the past. This may even be a revenge tour type of season for him where he reestablishes his offensive reputation.

Nice ball and player movement offensively with the ball swinging around and guys cutting thru open lanes. We got a bunch of layups off cuts, Oso made some nice passes to guys like Allen and CG. Our 3pt shots typically came within the flow of the offense, especially with the starters who were 8-17. The past 2 years all the talk was "we need to shoot more 3s" but those shots have to be in rhythm within the offense. Can't chuck 3s to say you shot 40 of them.

The offense did get bogged down in the 2nd qtr when the shots weren't falling and that will be an issue during the season. Last night Book, Brooks and Allen were our only real offensive threats/shooters. CG has some offense but he's not scaring anyone. We were missing Green and we'll obviously be relying on him for offense. He can score as well as anyone so we'll need either him or Book on the court to take on the scoring load with the subs. But we're a very perimeter oriented team and will have to work for shots near the rim. But if Book or Green are off and Brooks, Allen, Royce are cold it's gonna be tough to win some games. We really need a bigger frontcourt scorer, a true 4, with reliable offense to offset the perimeter players. I'd assume that the FO sees that as well and why they're supposedly hot for Kuminga but I just don't think he's that guy.

You can see the vision tho and it's what some of us talked about last year- putting younger, longer, more athletic defensive players around Book. No egos, more hustle and activity. Less is more and we're closer to that pre-bubble/bubble team than people think.

[Superbone]

So nice to wake up to that package of clips, Shel. Thanks, man!

[Superbone]

One thing I forgot to say last night is, Austin Reaves has become such a punchable little twerp. He barrels into the defense, flails and flops on every play, trying to bait a whistle. And it often works. I really hate this guy.

It cracked me up when Tom Leander called him "Hillbilly Kobe". I hadn't heard that one before.

[Superbone]

Booker looks like he’s about to start his revenge tour this year. Team looks 100x better than last year already. I know it’s preseason but the vibes are there.

Yep. This is a team I can get behind. Such a breath of fresh air after what we endured the last couple seasons. Especially last season.

[Superbone]

Suns flash real identity in preseason opener, win vs. Lakers
By Kellan Olson
https://arizonasports.com/nba/phoenix-s ... n/3598002/

Through one preseason game, the Phoenix Suns accomplished their goal. They put a product on the floor their fans enjoyed and played a style that will be easy to get behind, no matter the win total the next seven months yield.

Clear intent and connectivity with that effort was all over a 103-81 win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday.

Phoenix’s goals on both ends of the floor were obvious, something not even a tandem of Benoit Blanc and Sherlock Holmes could uncover last season...

[TOO]

I really enjoyed the cutting and movement after watching last season of iso ball. Yes there will be lulls because there are only 2 guys who can reliably get their own shot, but it's a start.

[Superbone]

‘Sh*t Was Hilarious’ — Suns Fans React to Devin Booker’s 2-Word Diss of Lakers’ Deandre Ayton
https://www.profootballnetwork.com/nba/ ... teammates/

[Superbone]

Lakers scrubs didn't fare too well against our defense:

[TOO]

‘Sh*t Was Hilarious’ — Suns Fans React to Devin Booker’s 2-Word Diss of Lakers’ Deandre Ayton
https://www.profootballnetwork.com/nba/ ... teammates/

Devin Booker hates that dude and I'm here for it.