Who: Phoenix Suns (10-7) vs. Brooklyn Nets (8-10)
When: 7:00 pm Arizona Time
Where: Footprint Center — Phoenix, Arizona
Watch: 3TV & Arizona’s Family Sports
Listen: KMVP 98.7
Kevin Durant, Cam Johnson, and Royce O’Neale will face their former teams tonight in the Footprint Center. Mason Plumlee also started his career in Brooklyn, you can’t leave him out!
The Suns were fresh off a 6-day gap between games before hosting the Lakers last night in the blowout win, 127-100. They improved to 9-1 in games that Kevin Durant plays in. The big three combined for 72 points in the victory. It was a reminder of the success this team had early this season when their stars played of just how dangerous they can be.
Now, they get a Brooklyn Nets team that is better than you might think on the surface. They are competitive, scrappy, and filled with players trying to prove themselves. They remind me of the old Nets, the team that exceeded expectations before acquiring Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving.
Brooklyn has won back-to-back road games against the Kings and Warriors during their trip to the West Coast. They hold an impressive 5-1 record against teams in the West this season (4-0 on the road versus West teams) and are 4-7 on the road overall.
The injury report is on Phoenix’s side for once this season, as they will face a Nets team that is pretty banged up with several key game-time decisions looming.
Injury Report
Phoenix Suns
Collin Gillespie — OUT (ankle)
Brooklyn Nets
Cam Thomas — OUT (hamstring)
Noah Clowney — OUT (ankle)
Dorian Finney-Smith — QUESTIONABLE (ankle)
Cameron Johnson — QUESTIONABLE (ankle)
Nic Claxton — QUESTIONABLE (back)
Bojan Bogdanovic — OUT (foot)
Day’Ron Sharpe — OUT (hamstring)
Status alert: Cam Johnson (ankle) participating in shootaround Wednesday.
— Underdog NBA (@Underdog__NBA) November 27, 2024
Uniform Matchup
What to Watch For
How do the Suns respond after a big win?
From a National TV NBA Cup game against LeBron James and the Lakers to a Wednesday night game against a rebuilding Brooklyn team in the second of a back-to-back.
How will the Suns respond? It has all of the ingredients for a letdown game if they aren’t careful. The Nets play hard and will bring that edge from the start, regardless of who is available.
The energy level and effort need to be at the same level it was last night. If not, they could be in for a rude awakening.
Bucket Watch: Where will Brooklyn get their offense?
The Suns’ defense will catch a break with Cam Thomas out in this one. Thomas ranks 14th in the NBA and eighth in the East in points per game at 24.7. Ziaire Williams will likely take his place in the starting lineup.
Cam Johnson went through shootaround and both Nic Claxton and Dorian Finney-Smith are game-time decisions. Dennis Schroeder is averaging 18 points per game and Cam Johnson is at 18.3, leading the way as the top options with Cam Thomas out. The Cam Johnson revenge game feels inevitable.
The Suns will need to slow them down in this one, as they are two professional scorers who can get hot at any moment. Keeping Dennis out of the paint will be crucial. He’s been excellent at getting others involved this season, averaging 6.5 dimes per game. Outside of that duo, the young forward duo of Ziaire Williams and Jalen Wilson are players to watch. We’ll see if DFS and Claxton suit up.
Stars Shine Bright
The Suns’ big three clicked on all cylinders last night, and they have a great opportunity to do so again. These are the types of games the big three must take advantage of from a reps perspective.
With Durant and Beal back, the domino effect it has on the role players returning to their roles is another development to watch. Royce O’Neale certainly looked like himself last night again with their return. Grayson Allen and Jusuf Nurkic are players I’m looking at stepping up tonight.
It likely won’t take a herculean effort again from their big three in this one, but they will need to set the tone early against this competitive Nets squad.
With how young and energetic this Nets team can be, this could be a great opportunity for rookies Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro to step up and make an impact, bringing energy to match the Brooklyn youth.
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