The Suns bench scored 58 points and beat Phoenix after its fourth consecutive victory, giving them the second-best record in the NBA in the All-Star Break.
Phoenix outscored the Warriors a total of 62 to 38 and had 31 strokes against the Warriors. 22. While Golden State made a few runs as expected, the Suns controlled most of this game.
Devin Booker was sidelined early in the match with a knee injury and did not look like his usual self. In the end, it did not matter because of the excellent banking game and a balanced attack. It will be something to watch during the All-Star Weekend with his participation in the Three-Point Contest and All-Star Game.
It was a slow start for Phoenix, with six early turnovers and difficult problems taking Deandre Ayton to the bench in the first eight minutes.
It was not the start they wanted, but the bench came in and gave a spark to give them separation to end the first quarter. Abdel Nader came in and made a big impact on both sides of the floor to ignite the spark.
The rapid strong following the second quarter by the second unit gave them an 11-point lead in the second quarter that led 34-to-23.
In the second quarter, the Suns bench decided to throw it up and extend the lead in the first four minutes of the period to 45-29, forcing a Warriors time-out.
Cam Payne played with tremendous energy and pace, similar to his game in the bubble.
The Warriors quickly started running to reduce the lead to 13 before a try from Cam Payne got them back on track to close out the first half.
Booker knelt down with Juan Toscano-Anderson, and it certainly seemed like he did not have the same lift or agility after that.
The Beginners were finally saved by the bench mass in the first 24 minutes of basketball when the Suns entered the half with a lead of 62 to 51. Despite the injury, Booker led all Suns scorers with 10 first-half points.
The Suns performed offensively much sharper to kick off the 3rd quarter and build up a 16-point lead that led to a Warriors timeout.
The Warriors continued their scratch game and hung around for most of the third quarter, after which Chris Paul went a quick 5-0 run to extend their lead to 14 before the banking unit checked in again.
Phoenix outscored the Warriors 25 to 22 in the third quarter.
Cam Payne continued to play at an excellent pace once he reported to Chris Paul, making striking plays on both sides of the floor.
The Suns eventually divorced forever late in the fourth split and were able to download the bench, including Jalen Smith and Jevon Carter.
Strong play from the bench, including Dario Saric, Abdel Nader, Cam Payne and Frank Kaminsky, helped the Suns to victory despite shaky play from the beginners.
Cameron Payne- 17 points, 10 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 block and was plus-22 in the goal kick.
Following: The All-Star Break
Chris Paul will compete in the skills competition, Devin Booker in the 3-point competition, and everyone will also compete in the All-Star Game.
Chris Paul will be on Team LeBron, while Devin Booker will play for Team Durant.