In the NBA regular season, the Suns challenged the Magic on the road and built a double-digit lead in the opening stages. However, the Suns were weak in the follow-up, and were gradually pressed by the Magic team step by step, until the final quarter of the game, the Suns suffered a complete collapse on both offensive and defensive ends, and after the opponent's 25-9 climax, head coach Vogel had no choice but to withdraw the main lineup and accept the defeat. In the end, the Suns lost to the Magic 98-113, swallowed two consecutive losses, and slipped to 26-20, temporarily in sixth place in the West, but they were neck and neck with the Pelicans behind them, and faced the risk of falling into the play-in tournament at any time.
In today's game, Booker still showed an efficient performance, shooting 17 of 26 from the field, 1 of 2 from beyond the three-point line, contributing 44 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks, and 1 steal. Although he missed all four mid-range shots in the final quarter and scored only two points from the free throw line, it is not surprising that he was too physically exhausted to cause his form to fluctuate in the final quarter, considering that he almost single-handedly supported the team in the first three quarters. Overall, Booker is still the brightest presence in the Suns.
Durant's stats were equally impressive, scoring 15 points, four rebounds, five assists and one block on 7-of-12 shooting and 1-of-3 three-pointers, however, he was slightly less aggressive, taking fewer shots in two consecutive games and committing seven turnovers in this game, with a low plus/minus of -25. In a Durant-dominated period, the Suns struggled to compete with the Magic. The 35-year-old appears to be in a period of adjustment before All-Star Weekend, and Durant desperately needs to get back to his peak form in the face of the team's ups and downs. At the same time, in order to cooperate with Booker's outburst, Durant took the initiative to reduce his individual offense and try to create more opportunities for him, but the key to dual-core drive is to find a balance between each other.
Beal, by contrast, became the most underperforming member of the Big Three today, hitting just four of his 13 shots and missing all five from beyond the three-point line, finishing with just nine points, five rebounds, six assists and four turnovers. When Booker single-handedly leads the way and the other giant is lost, the Suns' game naturally gets bogged down. Beal, who was in a slump after being elbowed by Turner in the last game, scored 7 points on 3-of-4 shooting in the first quarter of this game, which seemed to be unaffected, but only scored 2 points in the second quarter, and in the second half, he didn't hit any of the 7 shots, and did not get free throws or scores, which was obviously unsatisfactory.
With Nurkic resting today, Eubanks was able to get a starting spot and make the most of the opportunity. He finished with four points on 2-of-2 shooting, along with eight rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block. It's fair to say that Eubanks has lived up to the value of his contract, stepped up in crunch time, played solid on both ends of the floor, and while he can't be expected to show dominance at the multi-million dollar level, he does respond satisfactorily when needed.
Eric Gordon, meanwhile, seemed to have regained some of his long-lost confidence today, scoring nine points on 4-of-5 shooting in the game, and his overall performance was unmistakable.
From the overall pattern, the Suns show obvious lineup shortcomings, that is, the difference between the strength of the starters and the bench players is significant, so that often most or even nearly all of the scoring burden of the whole game falls on the shoulders of the starting lineup. Today, Booker almost single-handedly holds up the starting scoring banner, while Durant appears too humble and conservative on the court, resulting in a lack of offensive aggression; Bill's form is starting to decline; Coupled with Nurkic's injury problems, the combination of these factors has significantly weakened the overall strength of the Suns.