In the first quarter of their 130-126 overtime triumph over the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena Sunday afternoon, the Phoenix Suns looked like the NBA’s top offense.
Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Bradley Beal drove the Suns to a 46-point win over the former Suns coach Monty Williams’ Pistons. Phoenix went 17-of-20 from the floor and Durant led all scorers with 10 points on 3-of-3 shooting. Booker scored nine on 4-of-6 shooting and Beal seven on 2-of-3.
“Just a peak of what we can be offensively,” Suns coach Frank Vogel said. “On paper, our firepower with those guys all clicking and comfortable in the system looks great. Although the offense was great, I was more thrilled with our defensive detail. Guarding helped us get into an attacking rhythm. We seldom fouled or took the ball out of the net. We’ll be tough to beat when we get into an offensive flow like the first quarter.”
Booker and Durant both scored 12 in the Suns’ preseason opener. Durant had three rebounds and Booker two assists. Beal, making his Suns debut, scored 11 points on 3-of-5 shooting (4-of-4 from the free-throw line), four rebounds, and three assists.
Beal scored the Suns’ opening points on a free throw and a jumper. After Booker’s pull-up, Durant sank a 3-pointer to put the Suns up 9-2.
They looked great throughout. These were their top buckets.
Suns starting center Jusuf Nurkic scored four points, five rebounds, three assists, and four fouls.
Phoenix also had good efforts from Grayson Allen and Yuta Watanabe. Allen led the Suns with 18 points and a plus-22. Watanabe scored 10 points, five rebounds, and two steals in a team-high 30 minutes.