Phoenix is holding on with Booker’s strength.
The Phoenix Suns won 125-105 in a game against the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2022-2023 NBA regular season held at the Phoenix Footprint Center on the 26th (hereinafter Korean time).
Phoenix, which had been on a three-game losing streak before the match, managed to turn the atmosphere around by winning a complete victory against Philadelphia without Kevin Durant (ankle) and DeAndre Ayton (hip), the team’s key players. At the center of it all was Devin Booker.
Booker led the team’s offense with 29 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists for 31 minutes on the court. From the paint zone to outside the 3-point line, he aimed to score points everywhere on the court, putting a heavy burden on the opponent’s defense.
In fact, Phoenix is the team that has received the most attention in the league ahead of the second half. This is because they sent their main wingman Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson to Brooklyn ahead of the trade deadline and recruited Durant, one of the league’s best stars, to build a square formation leading to Durant-Booker-Chris Paul-Ayton. 메이저놀이터
But Durant’s sudden injury put everything in a twist. Durant suffered a broken ankle injury while warming up right before the game against Oklahoma City on the 9th, and Phoenix fell into a slump after that, winning only 2 wins in 8 games before the game.
However, Booker struggled to keep the center of the team even as Phoenix faltered. He played the role of first option, averaging 32.2 points and a high field goal success rate of 58.7% in 9 games, including Durant, who missed due to an ankle injury that day.
Even in the league as a whole, there are not many players who have a better scoring pace than Booker in the second half. After the All-Star Game, there are only three players whose average score in the second half is higher than Booker, who is averaging 32.1 points in 14 games, including Damian Lillard, Joel Embiid, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Booker’s efforts shone and won a victory after a long time, and Phoenix, which escaped from a three-game losing streak, will challenge Utah again on the 28th.