Deandre Ayton adds some dimension to his game, as if the Phoenix Suns weren’t already strong enough.
He is very aggressive in the post. Monty Williams, Suns coach, said that Ayton was aggressive in the post. Ayton scored 20 points Friday night in Suns’ 129 to102 win over the Chicago Bulls to help them get closer to the NBA’s best regular season record.
“I saw that I was getting to my spot, and if you don’t give me resistance, I may go through with you,”
Ayton finished 8 of 11 in the field. He continued to make mid-range jumpers and also got inside for better shots. Ayton also led the Suns in rebounding with 12,
The Suns finished second to Memphis at a franchise-best 57-14 in 71 games. With 11 games remaining, they moved nine games ahead. Memphis was defeated by Atlanta on Friday.
Devin Booker was the Phoenix point guard with 28 points. Despite being without two starters, point guard Chris Paul and forward Jae Crowder, the Suns still managed to roll despite having sixth man Cam Johnson out with injuries.
Williams stated that Williams doesn’t want to be “Chris and Book” dimensional. “We want to feel comfortable with other guys so that when they are in key moments, it is not something new for them.”
They weren’t Friday, they were definitely not. Cameron Payne had 15 points, Torrey and Landry Shamet each had 14, JaVale McGee 12, and Mikael bridges 11.
DeMar DeRozan scored 19 for Chicago, which was fifth in the Eastern Conference at 41-49. Nikola Vucevic had 16 points. Coby White scored 14, Zach LaVine had 12, and Tristan Thompson 11 points.
Paul is out of the Suns’ 9-4 record. He was injured at the All-Star break and has a fractured thumb.
Craig took Crowder’s place in the second game and put forth another solid performance. Craig scored 21 points in Houston on Wednesday night, shooting 8 of 8, including three 3-pointers. He also had 14 rebounds.
Craig stated, “To get the lead that was ours and to sustain it, and then keep it throughout the second half was quite impressive.”
It was just more of the same for the Bulls. The Bulls lost their third consecutive game to fall to 2-6 in March. Chicago is currently at 16-19. All of the losses during the streak were on the road. The Bulls will play five consecutive games on the road after a Monday home game.
Billy Donovan, Chicago coach, said that while he doesn’t mean to disparage Phoenix or other teams that we have played against, he believes they need to be better at responding when shots don’t go in. “I felt some of the offensive rebounds by the Suns in the second quarter really hurt our team, and then we started missing shots. It’s important to be resilient when things don’t go according to plan.
DeRozan stated that the team is facing new challenges after a successful season.
He said, “We’re at the time of year where nothing seems to be a secret.” “We’ve been playing great basketball, and now teams want to play against us regardless of who we are. We’ll be fine once we figure it all out.
Booker scored 38 points in a victory over the Suns 127 to 124 on February 7.
Booker stated, “That’s a really great team over there and they played really well.” We enjoy this matchup.
NUMBERS
Friday’s field-goal percentage leaders in the NBA were the Bulls (48.2%), and the Suns (48.5%) as they entered Friday. The Suns made 56%, bettering their season average. The Bulls were at 41%.
IRISH PRIDE
Williams was busy preparing his team for the game but he still managed to follow the NCAA tournament’s surprise victory over Alabama earlier Friday.
The former forward for Ireland said that he had seen a bit before he left. “Then I received a text saying that they won,” he added. Williams was a Notre Dame player from 1989 to 1994. “Coach Mike Brey just changed our program. “I hope he will be there for another twenty years.”
“It’s a huge win for us, because it’s difficult to get those elite players here to Notre Dame because of other things. It’s great that he did it in a year when this isn’t one of their best years.
INJURY UPDATE
Bulls: Donovan stated that Patrick Williams, PF, could be back with the Bulls next week. Williams missed 65 games due to a wrist injury which required surgery.
Williams will likely play Sunday for Bulls’ Windy City G-League before he returns home to the NBA.
Donovan said that G Lonzo Ball’s status (right knee) is unchanged. Ball has been out since Jan. 28. He is currently in the middle the original prognosis for six to eight weeks but has not been able resume activities. Donovan stated that there is a possibility that he won’t return to the field before the regular season concludes in three weeks.
Suns: Crowder (left-groin soreness), is being moved along slowly. He also missed Wednesday’s Houston game. Johnson (right quad), has missed eight games.
NEXT
Bulls: Toronto hosts the Bulls on Monday night.
Suns: Sunday at Sacramento
