PHOENIX SUNS NOTES
The Suns stand at a league-best 58-14 on the season, 9 games ahead of MEM for the best record in the NBA, and the team’s best start through 73 games of a season in franchise history.
The Suns won the Pacific Division title for the second-straight season and the 8th time in franchise history.
Phoenix has scored 125+ points in six-straight games entering tonight, a franchise record and the longest such streak in the league this season (would be 1st team with seven-straight such games since the 1988-89 Nuggets, who did so in seven-straight games).
With his 23rd point last night, Devin Booker became the fourth-yongest player in NBA history to 11,000 career points (25 years, 144 days), trailing only LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant.
The Suns hold a .829 (29-6) win percentage in road games this season, better than every team’s home win percentage.
DEVIN BOOKER totaled 28 points on 7-of-15 shooting in the Suns’ win at Minnesota last night, to go along with 7 assists and 3 rebounds. Booker attempted a season-high 16 free throws, knocking down 13 of them, which matched a season high (has now done so three times). Over the last eight games, Booker is averaging 28.1 points on 53.6 FG%, 6.6 assists and 4.5 rebounds.
ON THIS DAY IN SUNS HISTORY: On this day five years ago (March 24, 2017), DEVIN BOOKER scored a career and franchise record 70 points at Boston. Booker shot 52.5 FG% (21-of-40) in the game and added 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals. Booker became the sixth player in NBA history to score 70+ points in a game, joining Wilt Chamberlin (six times), Kobe Bryant, David Robinson, David Thompson and Elgin Baylor, and was the youngest to do so at 20 years, 145 days.
DEANDRE AYTON scored a game and career-high 35 points last night on 15-of-24 shooting and grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds. Ayton scored 11 points in the fourth quarter and 19 in the second half, both of which marked personal season highs for fourthquarter and second-half scoring. The game marked Ayton’s 26th double-double of the season, his fourth-straight and seventh in the last nine games. Additionally, the game was Ayton’s second-career game with 30+ points and 10+ rebounds (33 points, 14 rebounds on Dec. 29, 2018 vs. DEN). Improving his career field goal percentage to 60.1 FG% over the last couple of games, Ayton joins Mark West and Shaquille O’Neal as the only players in francbhise history with a career FG% above 60.0 (min. 500 field goal makes) while in a Suns jersey.
MIKAL BRIDGES totaled 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, 6 rebounds and 3 steals last night in Minnesota. The game marked Bridges’ 13th-straight game scoring in double figures, his longest streak with 10+ points this season (previous was 12-straight spanning Jan. 28-Feb. 24).