The last time Trae Young visit Phoenix was on February 2, 2019. The dynamic young player "oohed" and "aahed" the crowd with his 27 points, 8 assist, and 7 rebound performance that evening, and he left Talking Stick Resort Arena with a 118-112 victory. The star of the game, however, was fellow rookie John Collins.
The Power Forward from Wake Forest sizzled in all aspects of the game: 13-20 from the field, 2-4 from downtown, and 7-11 from the line. The dude looked amazing. His offensive rebound with 3:02 left in the 4th and subsequent foul and made free throws put the Hawks up for good. He was a force the Suns had no answer for.
The 2019-20 Suns would not have to deal with John Collins this evening as, much akin to DeAndre Ayton, he was amidst a 25 game suspension following testing positive for a banned substance. All eyes would be on Trae Young to lead the Atlanta Hawks (4-6) to victory. The star wouldn't disappoint early, as his quick handles and court vision led to an early 9 point lead. The Suns interior defense once again looked maligned and Damian Jones was having his way, throwing down jam after jam. Baynes was ineffective and in foul trouble, which once again assisted in our thin presence inside.
Booker was tentative to start the evening, turning the ball over three times and catching two early fouls, all before he scored a point. I get his passiveness; he's embracing the "team first" attitude, but he needs to go out and set the tone offensively, then allow collapsing defenses to dictate his passing. Booker came back in the game with 3:00 minutes left and quickly put up 8 points, and the team followed suit. The Suns were up 67-61 at the half.
The NBA Twitter-verse received their nightly Trae Young highlight-of-the-night when he nutmegged Ricky Rubio and then tear dropped a basketball as he was fouled. "Nutmegged"...a term I never had heard until this week, and now I hear it everywhere. Damn you Trae. The highlight is highly watchable though. Again, damn you. Trae ended the evening with 21 points and 13 assists. He went 1-6 from beyond the arc, however, and his impact was not as game changing as the highlight suggested.
Atlanta was undermanned to start the evening, and their bench became thinner following the ejection of Deandre' Bembrey (double tech) and Cam Reddish (two flagrant fouls). The Suns took advantage, outscoring the Hawks 58-51 in the second half. The Suns continued their hot three point shooting (38.5%) and downed the Hawks 128-112 to climb to 7-4 on the year.
Solar Flare of the Game
Kelly Oubre, Jr.: You have to give it to Tsunami Papi for this performance. After defending LeBron James on Monday, a energy draining task, Oubre came out and displayed why he is the heartbeat of the Suns. Oubre followed his worst performance of the year with his best. When the Suns needed a blot of energy, there was Kelly. He dunked, be popped threes, he hit a buzzer beater at the end of the 3rd...and he gave us the push-ups (something other teams/fans really don't like). His stat line was fantastic (30 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists), but it was his swag that changed the game. He didn't have to guard LeBron, and it appears he was thankful.
Solar Synopsis
This is a game that the Suns should win. The Atlanta Hawks, a team that (when healthy) is very good, was not at full strength. This team will makes waves in the Eastern Conference and should be a playoff team. The Suns were at home and T.C.O.B'd as they should have. I am continually impressed by the adjustments Monty makes to put the team in a position to win.
Again, I hope Booker comes out focused. I feel that all of the 50/50/90 talk gets in his head and he doesn't want to fall below those numbers. Before the game there were stats showing that the only other players to do that through 10 games included Steve Nash and Larry Bird. Rarefied air indeed. Once Booker put his head in the game, he made an impact, the defense focused in him, and the team excelled. Monty gave the team earplugs as a gift, a symbolic gesture to "avoid listening to the noise". Booker isn't 19 anymore. He needs to focus on the court and he'll be an All Star.
The best stat of the night? Frank Kaminsky's +/-. It was +29.