The Suns had a great bounce-back win at the Footprint Center on Tuesday night as they defeated the Clippers by a final score of 123-109.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Devin Booker finished the game with an impressive 38 points and 9 assists on 64% shooting. Kevin Durant added 25 points and 5 assists of his own. Chris Paul had 16 points 8 assists and a win against Scott Foster and Deandre Ayton added a double-double of 14 points and 13 rebounds on 70% shooting.
I didn’t even mention another starter Torrey Craig who finished the game with 17 points on 6-9 shooting and 5 of them on made threes. But what was most impressive about the starting lineup’s efficient shooting night was how it transpired throughout the night.
The Suns, as a team shot 21-29 from long mid-range jumpers last night and took advantage of the Clippers, dropping coverage all night long from all spots in the paint.
no layups, free throws, offensive rebounds, 3-pointers
doesn't matter, here's 21-29 2P shooting outside the paint pic.twitter.com/QjpfHJzrqA
— Lucas Burns (@nba_indepth) April 19, 2023
Chris Paul and Kevin Durant, in particular, combined for 14-20 from mid-range shots last night which is good for 70%. Devin Booker talked at length about when the Clippers do play that sort of defense, the Suns have to just simplify the action and go from there.
“I think when they do that, we just have to simplify it,” Booker said. “A lot of things that we haven’t seen before, but they have a veteran team that can do it on the fly. I don’t think a lot of teams can do that, and I remember our last series with them, they had a lot of stuff with them too. So when they’re doing that, just simplify it for us.”
Lucas Burns on Twitter posted a graph on the difference the Suns and Clippers were shooting in Game 2 and it’s safe to say that if the Suns continue to hit shots like that against that specific coverage, it may be a long series for the Clippers.
Wild difference in Clippers-Suns game 2 shot charts pic.twitter.com/6kjjII44qv
— Lucas Burns (@nba_indepth) April 19, 2023
The Suns seem to be taking a page out of the book from the Houston Rockets. Instead in this situation, the Suns are relying heavily on the mid-range game while the Rockets with D’Antoni relied heavily on the three-point shot.
One thing to allude to this was what Monty Wiliams said after Game 1 which bodes well for Suns fans. That the Suns will be living and dying by the mid-range all postseason long.
“They did some things to force us into those shots, and when we have those shots, we gotta make ’em,” Williams said. “The midrange shot is not kryptonite. We’ve always felt like if we make those shots, we can set our defense.”
Point Book Was Key in Putting The Suns On His Back in Game 2
The Mid-Range Mafia was alive and well during Game 2 and this exact formula is what’s going to make or break the Phoenix Suns’ title run. Game 3 tomorrow starts at 7:30 PM AZ time at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
