Oct 31, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Tyus Jones (21) moves the ball against Los Angeles Clippers guard Terance Mann (14) during the first half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
The Phoenix Suns are trailing 70-52 to the Los Angeles Clippers as they were utterly dominated in almost every facet in the first half.
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Down by 18, here is what the Suns have to do if they want any chance to get back into the game:
Keep it simple
The Suns were not only punished by ice-cold shooting, but the Clippers punished them for overthinking when in possession and scoring on the fast break. Phoenix would pass the ball around and miss a pass to the intended player multiple times, resulting in the ball going out of bounds. They cleaned it up in the second quarter and as a result, Phoenix started to cut the deficit into single digits before the defense went back to the same issues.
Keeping the turnovers down is a key area of emphasis they will have to be aware of. In the first half, Phoenix turned the ball over six times. With Jusuf Nurkić benched in the second quarter, Mason Plumlee and Mesa native Oso Ighodaro are rotating, so it will be interesting to see if they can help turn the game around.
Be aggressive in paint
A big discrepancy between the two teams is how much more dominant the Clippers were in the paint. In the first quarter, Los Angeles outrebounded the Phoenix 16-6 and 26 of their 37 points came in the paint, resulting in a 37-20 lead. Things didn’t get any better in the next frame as the Clippers led in boards overwhelmingly 33-15 and 36 paint points. Budenholzer is trying to figure out which center can be able to disrupt the momentum on the inside that the Clippers have.
Even though Plumlee hasn’t been much better than Nurkić offensively, he has a block and two steals. The hustle hasn’t been there on 50/50 balls and there is next to no aggressive effort by the Suns in that department, being the main reason why they are losing by as much as they are.
Have a sense of urgency on defense
Ryan Dunn is the only player who is using his 100% effort on defense, but he will need support from others around him. The Clippers picked the Suns apart and will continue to do so if the defense doesn’t lock it down. Phoenix did trail 23-8 early against the Lakers on Monday and came back to win, so the Suns have it in them to make the proper adjustments to get a result, they just go to show it. Trailing by 18 is a massive differential, but crazier comebacks have happened and it is possible.
Keep feeding Durant/Booker the ball
Without Bradley Beal, the Suns need to keep giving Booker or Durant the ball and let them go to work. Besides Dunn with nine points, no one else is close to scoring double-digit points while Booker leads the team with 15 and Durant has 10. Known for their spot-up scoring and sharpshooting from anywhere, 3-pointers are going to be extremely important to chop this deficit to half or even tie the game.
Durant and Booker can give the Suns 30-plus points a night and are paid the big bucks for a reason, it is time takeover the game before it is not too late in the second half.
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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
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