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Jalen Green takes Phoenix across Play-In finish line, Suns face Thunder in NBA Playoffs

Eliav Gabay

Courtesy: Suns

Courtesy: Suns

The 2026 Phoenix Suns will officially be remembered as an NBA Playoff team and deservedly so.

We watched a young coach, rising stars, role players, and the collective unit all surpass preseason expectations by a country mile.

“Truly that group in the locker room that’s been special all year, and special again the last three or four days,” head coach Jordan Ott said. “Overcoming the disappointment and then coming out and playing that hard against a team that has every solution in the book and to guard like that for 48 minutes, sometimes it just comes down to toughness.”

The defense and fiery nature this team boasts was evident from the season opener.

Called a “Guru” by Devin Booker, Ott was a steady boat all year.

The group trusts Ott. He’s a film junkie and relatable Hoop Head.

He’s consistently clear on his coaching philosophy and aspects of emphasis like winning the possession battle.

According to Suns team writer Shane Young, the Suns ranked top five in Field Goal Attempt Margin (1st), Steals Per Game (1st), Opponent Turnover Rate (2nd), and Offensive Rebound Rate (4th) in the regular season.

“Jordan Ott has done a phenomenal job as a young coach who took over a really difficult situation,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said. “Those guys competed all year long, they’ve earned this and they earned it tonight.”

He continues to develop players like Collin Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin, who have become crucial pieces in a rotation of guys that understand their roles.

Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale stepped up in several moments throughout the season when injuries struck. Mark Williams and Oso Ighodaro held down the paint and rookie Khaman Maluach got experience contributing down the stretch.

While I always considered him a valuable piece to a team, Dillon Brooks took a leap I did not expect when they acquired him in the Kevin Durant deal.

Brooks led the team in scoring 21 times during the regular season. Jumping from 14 to 20 points per game is impressive, doing it while taking five more shots a game and still improving his field goal percentage is outstanding growth.

Booker kept being the assassin that he is to the tune of 26 points per game and his fifth NBA All-Star nod.

That brings us to Jalen Green – who showed his entire offensive repertoire Friday night against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors.

Glided to the rack. Hit ridiculous off-balance deep balls. Put a ton of pressure on the defense.

36 points complete with six boards, four assists, three blocks, & two steals on a whopping 70% shooting.

You can’t ask for much more than that in a win-or-go-home situation. Especially when you consider the fact that he put up 35 points in the effort against Portland and only surpassed his minutes total in that game (39) with his new season-high in minutes vs the Warriors (40).

This performance was deeper than the game itself.

Last season, when Green was on the Rockets, he helped lead them to the 2nd seed in the West.

They went to seven games with Golden State in round one and in Game Seven, Green went 3 of 8 from the field and finished with just eight points in the loss before being traded to PHX.

This was his get back.

“I remember what they did last year,” Green said. “That’s not going to leave, it was my first playoff series. Like I said before, it was a lesson in every situation, there’s never failure. You always get back up. I for sure brought some of that energy from last year into tonight’s game and we capitalized it. I’m happy about it.”

On top of that, Booker did not play his best ball in the Play-In Tournament so the importance of Green and Brooks picking up the slack can’t be overstated.

Both are heating up at the right time, just like Goodwin – who might have the energy of ten men.

The 6-3 guard seems to be everywhere and provides the extra juice that Phoenix needs.

“That is our game, that’s our game,” Goodwin said. “We force stops, we go out there and run…after getting a lead, and keeping the lead, executing down the stretch to get the win. Energy was amazing tonight.”

The team also confirmed that Goodwin is the first Suns player to record 19+ points, 9+ rebounds, and 6+ steals since Shawn Marion in 2005-’06.

Ultimately, when you hold Curry to just 17 points on 4 of 16 shooting and a plus/minus of -13, the defense delivered on the perimeter.

While PHX did sacrifice the paint, losing that battle 42-28, if they can continue to at least run shooters off their spots and move the ball like they did against GSW – they’ll make it tough on No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder.

The mind games already started, with Brooks calling OKC ‘foul baiters’ postgame:

If Suns/Thunder goes to five games, I’d consider that a win (no pun intended). If it goes six, that’s an even bigger hats off to the fellas from the desert. OKC is just too good for me to pick against them in good faith.

One thing Phoenix does have going for it is the lack of tape with Devin Booker, Jalen Green, and Dillon Brooks all healthy. The trio played just 129 minutes together this season, so I’ll be curious to see how Jordan Ott gets creative against a juggernaut like Oklahoma City.

Game One is in OKC on Sunday at 12:30 PM (MST).

Sights and Sounds from Suns vs Warriors Play-In:

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