Thunder at Suns
Phoenix interim coach Earl Watson is still looking for his first victory
but the upcoming schedule is doing him no favors. The Suns have lost
their first three games under Watson, and recording a win before the
All-Star break might be tough as Phoenix hosts the Oklahoma City Thunder
on Monday and then the defending champion Golden State Warriors on
Wednesday.
The three setbacks under Watson - including a 98-89 loss to Utah on Saturday - stretch Phoenix's losing streak to seven games and 24 of its last 27. "It seems like we can't get it together," rookie shooting guard Devin Booker told reporters after the loss to the Jazz. "Either we start off a game good or we finish a game good. We won the last three quarters, but the big deficit in the first quarter hurt us. We just have to maintain the same drive and energy the whole game." The Thunder will be aiming to bounce back after suffering a 116-108 loss to the Warriors on Saturday. The defeat was just the second in 14 games for Oklahoma City, which received 40 points and 14 rebounds from All-Star forward Kevin Durant.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, FSN Oklahoma, FSN Arizona (Phoenix)
ABOUT THE THUNDER (38-14): Oklahoma City stands third in the Western Conference despite its lengthy strong play and Durant delivered a message to the Warriors and San Antonio Spurs after the loss. "Man we're not scared of either one of these teams," Durant told reporters. "We're going to play our game. Nobody in this locker room is scared. We have to play them. If we want to get to where we want to get to, we have to play them. We're not ducking anybody." All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook had 27 points and 12 assists against Golden State for his sixth straight double-double and is averaging 24.7 points and 12.7 assists during the stretch.
ABOUT THE SUNS (14-38): Point guard Brandon Knight (groin) will miss his 10th straight game and won't play again until after the All-Star break, and the team misses his presence while trying to force-feed Archie Goodwin at the point. "Archie is young. He's trying to figure it out and he's going to figure it out," Watson told reporters. "Sooner or later, Brandon Knight's going to be back, (backup) Ronnie Price is going to be back and these nine-point, seven-point and six-point losses eventually become (wins)." Power forward Markieff Morris is out of the doghouse with Jeff Hornacek fired and is averaging 20.3 points in three games since Watson became coach.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Thunder are 2-0 against the Suns this season and have won 16 of the past 19 meetings.
2. Phoenix backup F Mirza Teletovic has recorded back-to-back 15-point performances.
3. Oklahoma City backup C Enes Kanter is averaging 17.2 points and 9.4 rebounds with three double-doubles over the past five games.