Despite being one of the top three-point shooting teams in the league, the Oklahoma City Thunder managed to knock down just 7-of-30 attempts for a 23.3% rate. That’s well below their average, and while that wasn’t the only problem with that game, that was definitely one that stuck out. OKC now looks to get back on track as they wrap up a 2-game road trip with a visit to the Suns in Phoenix.
The Suns have struggled to a 4-5 start as they are still not quite completely healthy, and it just continues to show that trying to build a team of veteran stars doesn’t always work out quite as you hoped. Kevin Durant is still one of the league’s top stars, and Bradley Beal is finally back from injury, so he hopes to contribute in a significant way, but with Devin Booker sidelined with a strained calf, they have yet to have any real time to build chemistry.
Jusuf Nurkic will be the key Suns player to keep an eye on tonight as he has a history of causing trouble for OKC. The Thunder has seriously struggled with rebounding so far, and Nurkic is a hound when it comes to the boards. If OKC wants a shot at winning this one on the road, they’re going to need to combat Nurkic and the Suns down low, or it could be a long night.
Game Details
Tip-Off: 7 PM CT
Location: Footprint Center
Television: Bally Sports Oklahoma
Radio: WWLS 98.1FM OKC The Sports Animal
Twitter: Follow @ZacharyLowNBA for live tweets and discussion during the game
Game Notes: Oklahoma City Thunder Official Game Notes, Phoenix Suns Official Game Notes
Projected Starters
Thunder
- PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- SG: Josh Giddey
- SF: Luguentz Dort
- PF: Jalen Williams
- C: Chet Holmgren
Suns
- PG: Bradley Beal
- SG: Grayson Allen
- SF: Keita Bates-Diop
- PF: Kevin Durant
- C: Jusuf Nurkic
Injury Report
Thunder
- Keyontae Johnson is OUT (G League — two-way).
- Kenrich Williams is OUT (lower back spasms).
Suns
- Bradley Beal is PROBABLE (lower back spasms).
- Devin Booker is DOUBTFUL (strained right calf).
- Eric Gordon is QUESTIONABLE (left shoulder soreness).
- Damion Lee is OUT (right meniscus surgery).
Head-to-Head
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder is 31-19 against the Suns (18-6 at home, 13-13 on the road).
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder has won the season series against the Suns 9 times, tied once, and lost 5 times.
- The Thunder lost the season series with the Suns 1-3 a year ago (1-1 at home, 0-2 on the road).