The Phoenix Suns pulled off a miracle 119-117 win over the Sacramento Kings after a dreadful start to the game which saw them trail by 22 points. Kevin Durant led the team on a 32-8 fourth-quarter run to steal the win, something that baffled even him.
“I have no clue. I usually know how the game is going, but this one felt like a blur. I feel like I looked up and we were down six and the next time I looked up, it was a tied game. Everything happened so fast.”
"I have no clue."
Kevin Durant when asked how Suns came back from down 22 points in 4th quarter to win 119-117 over Sacramento.
Said it was "a blur." #Suns pic.twitter.com/0G4WXPQuZD
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) January 17, 2024
Durant ended the night with 27 points, with 15 of them coming in the fourth quarter. Grayson Allen was keeping the Suns competitive the entire night, hitting nine three-pointers and ending the game with 29 points. Bradley Beal and Devin Booker combined for 29 points in a rough showing but were fortunate to have KD and Allen lead the team in this comeback win.
This is the second consecutive clutch loss for the Kings, losing their last game to the Bucks after missed free throws. This loss has also dropped them to the seventh seed behind the Mavericks and Pelicans. The Suns are sitting just one game behind the Kings and this win was massive for them.
Frank Vogel Tactical Adjustments Worked Perfectly
The Suns offense was not finding any success through the first three quarters. If Grayson Allen wasn’t shooting as well as he was through that stretch, the Kings could have easily been nearly 30 points up in the fourth quarter. But a key tactical decision from Frank Vogel to close the game made all the difference for Phoenix.
The Suns decided to play a faster small-ball lineup with five shooters on the court. Kevin Durant anchored that lineup as the center, while Booker, Allen, Beal, and Eric Gordon surrounded him. The pace of that lineup worked wonders offensively, as the Kings were unable to defend the stretched-out lineups and gave up easy shots.
Defensively, the Kings didn’t look for ways to attack the paint. There were many questionable switches that the Kings’ guards kept calling for, as Durant is entirely capable of locking up a guard on the perimeter for occasional possessions. We saw this with KD getting multiple stops after switching to Malik Monk or forcing the Kings to reset their offense.
One of the clutchest teams from last year are losing pace in an incredibly tough West. This single loss dropped them from fifth to seventh in the West, given how tightly matched they are with the Pelicans and Mavericks. This also brings Phoenix into the mix, sitting just one game behind the Kings and 1.5 games behind the sixth seed.
This could be a season-swinging loss for Phoenix, who have been one of the worst fourth-quarter teams in the NBA. Running KD at center led to injury-prone stretches on the Nets but this is a fantastic lineup to have in your back pocket for similarly tough fourth-quarter situations.
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