LOS ANGELES – After defeating the Lakers by 114-104 on Tuesday without their top scorer and All-Star, Devin Booker, in the final stretch, the Phoenix Suns said it had put a stamp of legitimacy on its season.
“I think Jae Crowder said it in the best way: we got better tonight,” Suns coach Monty Williams said after the game. “You gain confidence when a guy like Book doesn’t play or is thrown out and you are able to pull a game on the road at the end of a trip. That’s a recipe for sending it, and this group has shown a lot of resilience. But that it was a big character win, and we got better.
“I think we played well tonight, but we are probably more confident that we can play the game without Devin or Chris [Paul] saving the day. ”
Booker was discarded for receiving two technical fouls with 7:10 remaining in the third quarter and Phoenix ahead by 70-63. Booker had 17 points at the time to lead the Suns.
“Booker received his first technical foul for continually complaining and then he received his second technical foul, and as a rule he was kicked out, for directing profane language to a game official,” team chief Marc Davis told ESPN as part of a report. pool after games.
The Lakers, playing without Anthony Davis for an eighth game followed by injuries to his right leg and also without the pivot Marc Gasol (health and safety protocols) and Kyle Kuzma (injury to his right heel), naturally saw the ejection as a chance to come back. the contest. But the Suns doubled their lead from seven to 14 in the third minute without Booker.
“I don’t know if it was a big effect, except that we felt we had the opportunity to win a game where we were lost,” said Lakers coach Frank Vogel. “This is not how it happened.”
The victory ended a 3-0 trip to Phoenix and improved the Suns’ record to 15-3 in their last 18 games. They also overtook LA in the standings, moving up to second place in the Western Conference with the win.
“We are just trying to improve with every game, but I honestly feel that today we have improved,” said Crowder, who, with 15 points out of 5 out of 8 shots, was one of five Suns to score in double figures. “I went into the locker room and told the guys that. Booker went out in the third room and we could just have given up or we could have accepted the challenge, and we decided to accept the challenge.”
The Phoenix bank surpassed LA reserves by 38-27, and the Suns hit 16 to 29 on line 3 (55.2%) compared to the Lakers’ 11 to 31 mark (35.5%).
“You can’t be very happy on the farm, man,” said Suns striker Mikal Bridges. “We know what we are doing; we know that we are improving. We just have to keep making progress and improving.
“Any team can be beaten, and if we relax, there are a lot of difficult teams. Even teams without great records, they will play hard, so we have to keep improving, not relax and continue playing our way.”
Phoenix has another game before the All-Star break at home against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday.