00:00Let's talk about our Phoenix Suns' 117-93 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers this past
00:06Sunday.
00:07It's been a testament to our team's continuity that we haven't seen more offensive struggles
00:11without Jalen Green, and we even managed back-to-back wins without Devin Booker.
00:16But this game was a different story, as the offense really spiraled.
00:19We actually shot well from deep, hitting 19 of our 46 three-point attempts for a 41% clip.
00:25Coming into Sunday, teams that made 19 or more threes this season had an incredible record
00:30of 111-26 per state head.
00:35But here's the crazy part.
00:36The lowest point total in those 137 instances was 111.
00:41We only managed 93 points.
00:44So how did that happen?
00:45Our overall field goal percentage was a woeful 33%.
00:49That was weighed down by shooting just 12 for 47, 26%, on two-point attempts.
00:56A lot of that damage, per cleaning the glass, came from the mid-range, where we were just
01:015 of 32, 16%.
01:03We only scored 18 points in the paint, a season low, and got just a dozen points from the foul
01:10line.
01:10Head coach Jordan Ott pinpointed part of the issue, saying,
01:13We couldn't get to the rim, so that's a portion of it.
01:16Anytime you can't get to the rim, and you're shooting twos, a lot of those shots aren't
01:21efficient.
01:22When you're not getting to the free-throw line, that helps your efficiency.
01:26Grayson Allen added that some of those two-point attempts came without going through multiple
01:30actions, leading to quicker, less efficient shots, a habit that's crept in with this shorthanded
01:36group.
01:37A 33% shooting night is a real anomaly.
01:39In fact, failing to crack above 36% has happened one or fewer times in seven straight Suns seasons.
01:45On top of that, we turned the ball over only five times, which is just the tenth time that's
01:50happened league-wide this season, according to StatHead.
01:53It was just a very bizarre outcome.
01:56A 20-point first quarter was a sign of things to come.
01:59We were leaning heavily on threes, and not enough were falling.
02:02Our defense did work to stagnate a Clippers offense missing James Harden, personal reasons,
02:06but the double teams on Kawhi Leonard and Avika Zubak could only do so much.
02:10The Clippers pulled away with a 36-point third quarter to our 28, and a 9-2 run to start
02:16the fourth ballooned their lead to 21.
02:19We had a few mini-runs, but nothing sustained for more than a few possessions.
02:23A pivotal difference was scoring only 13 points off the 18 turnovers we forced, while the Clippers'
02:30size bullied us 21-8 in second-chance points.
02:34The lack of shot-making was glaring.
02:37Our available creators, Dylan Brooks 7-for-20, Grayson Allen 7-for-21, and Colin Gillespie
02:434-for-13, all had inefficient nights.
02:46For the Clippers, Kawhi Leonard was solid through the doubles, finishing with 25 points.
02:51Younger guys stepped up with the extra space.
02:53Third-year guard Jordan Miller was terrific off the bench with 20 points, and rookie Kobe
02:58Sanders added a dozen.
02:59John Collins kept his sensational run going with 16 points and 9 rebounds for the Clippers,
03:04who are now 17-4 over their last 21 games.
03:07Coach Ty Lue also threw in a new wrinkle.
03:09After the center duo of Zubak and Brooke Lopez had played just 7 total minutes together this
03:14season, they played 9-0-2 as a pair on Sunday, and the Clippers were plus-under 10 in those
03:19minutes.
03:20Beyond the shooting, it was rare to see our bench get outplayed so decisively.
03:24Oso Iguodaro finished at 19, while the Clippers' Jordan Miller was plus-under 18.
03:28Coach Ott acknowledged it, saying,
03:31That's a great comment, that we've played so well with our second unit.
03:34Tonight we just didn't have it.
03:36On the injury front, Sunday marked the one-week re-evaluation point for Devin Booker's right
03:41ankle sprain, but Coach Ott had no new status updates for the upcoming week.
03:46Jalen Green's absence was strictly due to his left hip contusion, per Ott, though the
03:51injury report also listed right hamstring injury management.
03:55The concern now is that missing this much game time will make conditioning that hamstring
03:58a continued point of emphasis.
04:00On a bright note, Devin Booker was named an All-Star Reserve pre-game, his fifth time earning
04:06the honor.
04:06It was a well-deserved recognition in a stacked Western conference where even a player like
04:11Kawhi Leonard, despite incredible form, didn't make the cut this year.
04:15The league is still finalizing the balance for the new USA vs. international All-Star format.
04:20According to insider Mark Stein, if there are fewer than eight international players selected,
04:25Commissioner Adam Silver will add players to reach that number.
04:28This could open a spot for a player like Canada's Dylan Brooks.
04:32Injury replacements like for Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo are also a factor, with other
04:37international players like Alperin Sengun, Josh Giddee, and Laurie Mark Kanin in the mix.
04:45We have a quick one-game trip to Portland on Tuesday before returning home for games Thursday
04:50and Saturday, after a game defined by such a profound shooting drought.
04:55What's the one key adjustment you believe is most critical for the team to bounce back
04:59on this road trip?
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