The Phoenix Suns (2-1) played its first home game Saturday night, after splitting games in Los Angeles.
In a 114-102 win over the Dallas Mavericks, the Suns looked dominate at times..
Bradley Beal (elbow) and Grayson Allen (personal reasons) were out, but the rotations played well.
Rookie Ryan Dunn was inserted into the starting lineup, finishing with 13 points on 5-8 shooting, 3-6 from three. He also spent a lot of time defending Luka Doncic and handled that well.
One brief observation: The most effective lineup seemed to be Tyus Jones, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, Dunn, and Oso Ighodaro. Two rookies playing key roles with the starters may be something to monitor throughout the next few months.
Also, there will be talks in Suns fans circles about Beal moving to the bench so that Dunn can start. Don’t count on that anytime soon, but don’t be shocked if that happens by the end of the regular season. The fit may be better for a postseason run, if Dunn continues to prove he can hang on the offensive side of the ball beyond this small sample size.
Durant dropped 31 points with nine rebounds. Booker had 21, but only shot 4-12 from the field. He was 11-12 from the free throw line.
Jusuf Nurkic was the focal point of the offense for different parts of the game. He ends the night with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
Just three games into the season, excitement should be brewing in the valley.
Jordan Spurgeon
