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PHOENIX — The Phoenix Suns returned to the win column on Thursday night, handling the Orlando Magic 117-104 at Mortgage Matchup Center. It marked just the second victory of the season for Phoenix, which was expected to beat a struggling Orlando squad missing Paolo Banchero.
While the Suns were favorites, a loss would have raised more questions than answers. Instead, they took care of business, and three key factors stood out in the win.
Devin Booker's Continued Success
Booker came out hot and never cooled off, pouring in 30 points on 11-of-22 shooting from the field and 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. He also added eight assists and three steals. The Suns are at their best when Booker is aggressive, especially early, and he knows it.
"I think I got two early threes to start, and then that just opens everything up the rest of the way," Booker said after the game. "The ability to find people on the backside and get open threes in that way. So trying to take what the defense gives you. When you're being guarded like I do, those actions have to be quick. They have to be on point, you know. So it was great with that."
If Phoenix is going to be a playoff team, it needs Booker at the top of his game. That's exactly what he was on Thursday.
Improved Defensive Performance
The Suns held Orlando to a season-best 104 points allowed, though that number was achieved in garbage time after Phoenix pulled its starters late in the fourth quarter. Yes, the Magic are a hobbled team that isn't an offensive juggernaut, but before Phoenix can slay bigger dragons, it needed to defeat Orlando.
Most notably, the Suns forced 25 turnovers on the night and recorded 14 steals. "Our activity was in a good place — 14 steals," Suns coach Jordan Ott said post-game. "It always comes down to how you guard their drives. This is an elite driving team, it just looks a little different than last night. I thought that we were able to contain the ball much better and keep them out of our paint. Which then keeps you out of close outs, which then hopefully puts you in a better spot to defensive rebound. And obviously we need to do that in the first half as well. There will be some things to definitely clean up, but that was a step in the right direction."
Starting Lineup Switch
The Suns insisted on starting Khaman Maluach to open the season, a move that hasn't netted instant results. Many had been clamoring for Ott to insert Oso Ighodaro into the starting lineup amid the team's struggles, and that finally happened on Thursday night.
Maluach finished with a better box score than Ighodaro, but Booker said Ighodaro's presence on the floor changes the dynamic. "It helps a lot, it keeps the flow of the offense definitely going," Booker said of Ighodaro in the lineup. "The ability to switch on the defensive end. Obviously, we're giving up some size so we all got to do a little bit more and help him rebound. Overall it's a different pace, not saying one's better than another but it's definitely different and you can feel it when you're out there."
The Suns should stick with Ighodaro more permanently moving forward.