Phoenix Suns - Weekly Roundup - Week 13
- Matt Elvy
- Mar 22, 2021
- 5 min read
Join us as we review the highs and lows of the last week, as well as previewing the week ahead.
Week 13: 15 March - 21 March 2021
Week Record: 3-1
Overall Record: 28-13. 2nd in Western Conference
Games Played and Results:
W - 122 - 99 Vs Memphis Grizzlies
L - 119 - 123 Vs Minnesota Timberwolves
W - 113 - 101 Vs Minnesota Timberwolves
W - 111 - 94 VS LA Lakers
Yep a big fat stinking L to the Timberwolves. A blip in an otherwise successful week for the Suns. I won't go in to the loss, as you can read about it here, but I did say last week that the Minny games were important to help us keep up with the rest of the West. We're fortunate that the Jazz have started to come down to earth a bit and Atlanta beat the LeBron-less (for most of the game) Lakers.
I enjoyed the Memphis win. It shows how far we've come to blow them out when they're at, pretty much, full strength. In the previous few seasons they've been a team that have been fairly level with us, in terms of where they were in their rebuild - not anymore.
We got our own back against Minnesota on Friday and last night's win against the Lakers was a foregone conclusion.
Superstar Watch:
Booker - 25.2 Points, 3.9 Rebounds, 4.6 Assists, 0.8 Steals, 49.6 FG%, 35.7 3PT FG%, 3.4 Turnovers
Chris Paul - 15.9 Points, 4.8 Rebounds, 8.8 Assists, 1.4 Steals 48.3 FG%, 38.0 3PT FG%, 2.4 Turnovers
Scorching Suns:
Mikal Bridges (again?!)
Mikal was great again this week. His point average dropped compared to last week, as he took less shots, but his efficiency stayed high and all his other stats increased.
He was brilliant in the 2 Minnesota games, shooting 13 of 19 overall and 7 of 11 from 3. Bridges had a career high 8 assists in the 1st T'Wolves game, demonstrating the versatility that he's developing.
For the week Mikal averaged:
12.8 Points, 5 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 1 .5 Steal, 0.8 Block, 60.6 FG%, 46.7 3PT FG% & only 0.5 TO
Honourable Mention:
Langston Galloway
Though he hadn't seen any playing time since 22nd January, he found a place in the rotation this week and delivered.
Langston averaged 8.3 points off the bench and his shooting numbers have been awesome - 65 FG% on 5 attempts and 53.8 3PT FG% on 3.3 attempts per game.
Struggling Suns:
Dario Saric
After 2 great weeks where he was arguably our best and most consistent player, Saric has fallen off a cliff this week.
Dario failed to manage 50% shooting and didn't score in double figures at all this week, after having 5 games in a row with at least 11 points.
He seemed to have been moving away from what had made him successful the rest of the season, which is using his body to score downlow, to taking jump shots. This could be due to the amount of lengthy Centers we faced. Hopefully he can get back on form, as he's been key to many recent victories.
Over the 4 games he averaged, 5.3 Points, 5.3 Rebounds, 1.5 Assists, 2.5 TOs, 32 FG% & 18.2 3PT FG%.
Stat Line of the Week:
Deandre Ayton Vs LA Lakers
I said it in the write up for the game, but Ayton looked like the guy we saw back on that brilliant stretch in January.
For the game his full stat line was:
26 Points, 8 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 1 Block & 10/13 FG (76.9%).
Video provided by The Timeline: A Phoenix Suns Channel
Honourable mention:
Langston Galloway Vs Minnesota Timberwolves (game 2)
15 mins, 14 Points, 2 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 5/6 FG (83.3%) & 4/5 3PT FG (80%)
Rookie Watch:
Jalen Smith - 3 games this week.
Jalen saw 4 minutes against Memphis, missed the 1st game against Minnesota, had just under 2 minutes in the 2nd game and then 50 seconds against the Lakers - all in garbage time. He totalled 3 points and 4 rebounds for the week.
Season Stats
14 Games, 4.6 mpg, 1.4 Points, 1.1 Rebounds, 0.1 Assists, 0.1 Blocks, 38.1 FG%
Upcoming Games:
We have 4 games this week on an Eastern Conference road trip.
We start our week with our toughest opponent (going by current record), visiting the Miami Heat. Miami will be going in to this game on a 3 game losing streak and will not be looking to make it 4 losses in a row.
The night after we face the Orlando Magic. Many fans have been calling out for us to trade for the Magic's All-Star Center Nikola Vucevic, so it'll be interesting to see if someone like Deandre Ayton is taking those rumours personally and will try to show why we don't need to make that trade.
Friday we remain in Florida, where the Raptors are playing their games this season, due to Covid travel restrictions in to Canada. As of writing (Monday) the Raptors are on an 8 game losing streak. They could look like a different team by Saturday, with the trade deadline being Thursday and all the Kyle Lowry trade chatter that's all over Twitter and NBA forums.
Last up is Charlotte. They have been a surprise team this season and been playing brilliantly. They, very controversially, defeated us earlier in the season, however they lost Lamelo Ball to a broken wrist over the weekend, so we'll be looking to take advantage of them missing that key cog.
The game against Charlotte is a nice early one for us UK fans, as tip-off is at 6pm. It'll also be shown live on Sky Sports - there's no word yet whether this will be available for free on Sky Sports' YouTube channel, though it is likely going by the time it starts. Keep an eye on our Twitter feed for updates.
We have a chance to go 4-0 this week. All our opponents seem to be on the backfoot at the moment and with most games being in Florida, there shouldn't be too much travel fatigue.
Any Other Business:
Suns Trade for Torrey Craig
Phoenix started trade deadline season with the small addition of Torrey Craig from the Milwaukee Bucks. This move was essentially free, with no player going back the other way, only cash considerations.
You can read more in our full article on the trade.
Trade Deadline
The NBA trade deadline is this Thursday. Do you think the Suns will make an additional move? Let me know by signing up to the website and commenting below.
I've already said it and I think it's become quite apparent over the last couple of weeks, that we need a long defensive back up center. Dario is great, but gets exposed when playing against these bigger guys, as we've seen this past week.
I can see us being more involved in the buyout market rather than trades though. Keep an eye out for names like Andre Drummond, LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol (especially if he's traded) & my personal favourite JaVale McGee.
Chris Paul Makes More History
CP3 does it again, breaking records like the future Hall of Famer he's destined to be. Against the Lakers on Sunday, not only did he have the 1st triple double of his Suns career, but he became the 6th player in NBA History to achieve 10,000 career assists.
Congratulations Point God!
Go On My Suns!
This past Friday we held our 3rd Go On My Suns! Instagram Live show. This week we met Adrian.
You can catch the replay on our Instagram page - make sure you're following to be notified when we go live.
This coming week we hope to have another guest, so come over and join us. We'll be back this Friday at 7PM (UK time).
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