Josh Okogie scored 15 points and was the main driver in the Phoenix Suns’ hard-fought, 118-114 preseason victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Palm Desert, Calif. on Sunday.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Collin Gillespie, Devin Booker and Oso Ighodaro all netted 12 points apiece and Bradley Beal had 11 for the Suns. Royce O’Neale was defensively sound with three blocks and five rebounds.
LeBron James only played in the first half but led the Lakers in points with 19 points. Anthony Davis appeared in just the first two quarters as well, nearing a double-double with 17 points and eight assists in 18 minutes on the court.
Suns subs star in impressive comeback victory
Davis came out hot with an alley-oop slam, swished a 3-pointer and had multiple open looks in the first quarter to score more. He shot 7-for-10 (70%) overall.
In a back-and-forth battle of two 2015 first-round draft picks, Booker and D’Angelo Russell displayed their offensive skill in front of the fans in Acrisure Arena. Booker (No. 13 pick) tallied points 12 for Phoenix in the first frame while Russell (No. 2) answered right back with nine.
Even though it was preseason, James still exerted a high level of hustle and effort with a ferocious block on Booker and hammering home dunks in front of the overwhelmingly Laker crowd. The soon-to-be 40-year-old superstar and his teammates went on a 17-7 run to wrap up the first quarter with a 35-24 lead.
For the first time in NBA history, a father-son duo were on the court at the same time on the same team.
To start the second quarter, Gabe Vincent went to Los Angeles’ bench to make way for Bronny James, LeBron’s son. The ultra-popular Bronny had a lackluster debut with four turnovers and zero points.
Making his first appearance and start in a Suns jersey, Tyus Jones displayed spurts of why Phoenix signed him in the offseason. Exuding his playmaking prowess, aggressive pressure on defense and willingness to shoot from behind the arch, the Duke product notched nine points, six assists, two rebounds and a steal.
In his debut as a Sun, Ighodaro had himself 12 points, five assists, four rebounds, a steal and a block. With Jusuf Nurkić out with a thumb injury and Mason Plumlee starting, Ighodaro, the No. 40 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft out of Marquette, played 27 minutes.
Phoenix fired at an efficient 9-for-21 (42.9%) from three before halftime, but it was a layup parade for Los Angeles as they were up 69-57. The Lakers heavily outscored the Suns 44-14 in the paint in the half.
Since it was the first exhibition game and both teams getting their players back to game speed, the Suns’ trio of Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal sat on the bench in the second half like Davis and LeBron James for Los Angeles.
After suffering a season-ending root tear in his right knee during last year’s training camp, Suns guard Damion Lee checked into the game with 4:12 left in the third quarter. Lee hadn’t played a game since Game 6 of the second round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets on May 11, 2023. Coming back with a chip on his shoulder, he was 4-for-6 (66.7%) from the field and 2-for-3 (66.7%) from deep, good for 10 points.
The Suns emptied almost their whole bench as the game wore on. Resting their stars, Phoenix still clawed back in the fourth quarter to tie the game 91-91 and take the lead late. Okogie and Gillespie stole the show when it mattered the most, combining for 20 of Phoenix’s 33 fourth-quarter points.
Phoenix outrebounded Los Angeles 50-49 and cut the wide margin of paint points to only 60-50.
Next Preseason Games
Suns: Away at Detroit Pistons | Oct. 8 | 4 p.m. PT
Lakers: Away at Milwaukee Bucks | Oct. 10 | 5 p.m. PT
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Reporter Alec Cipollini covers the Phoenix Mercury, Suns and ASU Athletics for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
