Thunder at Suns
THE STORY: The Phoenix Suns’ playoff chances are on life support, and a trip to Oklahoma City to play the charging Thunder on Wednesday could put another nail in the coffin. Phoenix is 4 1/2 games behind Memphis for the final spot and 2 1/2 games behind Houston for ninth place with just nine games remaining. The Thunder, playing the fifth game of a six-game homestand, clinched a playoff spot with Sunday’s win over Portland and sit comfortably in fourth place for home-court advantage in the first round, five games clear of Denver.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, FSOK, FSAZ
ABOUT THE SUNS (36-37): Phoenix has lost three straight and eight of 11 and will probably miss the playoffs for just the third time since 1988-89 but the second time in three years. On Tuesday in Sacramento, the Suns entered the fourth quarter with an eight-point lead but fell, 116-113. Prior to that, the Suns allowed the last eight points in a 91-83 loss to Dallas on Sunday and couldn’t hold a seven-point fourth-quarter lead against New Orleans on Friday.
ABOUT THE THUNDER (49-24): Oklahoma City is finding its groove at the right time. The Thunder have won four straight and 10 of 11, although only three of the 10 were against clubs above .500. The Thunder escaped with a 115-114 home overtime win Tuesday against Golden State when Monta Ellis missed a straightaway jumper in the closing seconds. Kevin Durant scored 39 points and Russell Westbrook had 15, eight rebounds and nine assists before bothering Ellis on his game-ending attempt.
WHO’S HOT/WHO’S NOT: Durant snapped out of a small slump Tuesday by draining 13-of-23 shots, including 3 of 5 from the arc. He was 12 of 36 in his previous two games. ... Suns forward Jared Dudley (21 points, 5 steals) and Marcin Gortat (17 points, 11 rebounds), who replaced Vince Carter and Robin Lopez, respectively, in the starting lineup for the second straight game Tuesday, combined for 38 points against the Kings. They each scored 20 against the Mavericks.
KEY STATISTIC: Oklahoma City improved to 7-1 with Kendrick Perkins starting at center. Opponents are averaging just 93 points in regulation in those eight games while shooting about 43 percent.
SEASON SERIES: Phoenix leads, two games to one. Carter, who has struggled since being acquired from Orlando, scored 33 in a 111-107 win Feb. 4 and 29 in a 122-118 triumph March 6. In the other 23 games surrounding the two Thunder games, Carter has scored above 21 points just once and failed to reach double figures 11 times.
KEY INJURIES: PHOENIX: F Mickael Pietrus (right quad); OKLAHOMA CITY: G Nate Robinson (right knee).
LAST WORD: "It feels good. A couple of years ago, we were the worst team ever. Two years later, we have clinched consecutive playoff appearances, so it feels good. We have to keep pushing." – Durant on the Thunder's turnaround.