Suns Strokes: First run of Devin Booker starting at PG fails in loss to Knicks

PHOENIX — If it is indeed an experiment, then the Phoenix Suns may want to conduct a few more trials before drawing any conclusions on the Devin Booker-Troy Daniels backcourt.

Or maybe not. Because the first trial was a failure.

The pair combined for 23 points and four assists with three turnovers — all by Booker — in a 107-85 defeat to the New York Knicks in front of an announced crowd of 17,068 at Talking Stick Resort Arena on Friday.

To be fair, the loss, the Suns’ third straight, wasn’t all on Booker and Daniels. Not many of their teammates were of much help. And they played short-handed. Tyson Chandler was a late scratch due to illness.

The Knicks (22-28) jumped on the Suns early and led wire-to-wire to end a three-game losing streak, and in the process, sweep the season series for the second time in the past three seasons.

Enes Kanter recorded a double-double (20 points and 10 rebounds), while four others reached double figures in scoring, including Kristaps Porzingis, who had 19 on 6-of-11 shooting.

The Suns trailed by as many as 27 points and scored just 36 points in the second half.

Booker again struggled with his shot. He made just 4-of-12 field goal attempts for 12 points. His night ended late in the third quarter when he picked up his second technical foul — he pushed Kanter after Kanter starred him down following a shot block — resulting in an automatic ejection, the second of his career.

T.J. Warren led the team with 20 points, while Josh Jackson added 18 off the bench.

Overall, the Suns (17-32) have lost five of six and eight of 10. They own the fifth-worst record in the NBA.

THE GOOD

Though they never led in the first half (or the game as it would turn out), the Suns had the game tied at 39 after a 12-2 run midway through the second quarter. It began with a Warren 3 and ended with Jackson hitting 1-of-2 free throws to even the score at the 6:34 mark. Jackson scored eight of his 10 first-half points in the period, shooting 3-of-6 from the field, including one 3-pointer.

Getting his first start of the season, and just the fifth of his career, Daniels’ 11 points were the result of four field goals, including a trio of 3-pointers. He has now made multiple 3s in eight straight games, tying the longest such streak of his career. Daniels, by the way, had not started a game since Dec. 18, 2016, while with the Memphis Grizzlies.

Once again, Jackson proved to be one of the few bright spots. His 18 points (to go along with eight rebounds in 29 minutes) on 7-of-17 shooting marked the seventh time scoring in double figures in his last nine games. Over this nine-game stretch, he’s averaging 14.6 points on 47.2 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from 3-point range.

THE BAD

Nearly half of the Knicks’ 33 first-quarter points belonged to Kanter. He scored 15 on 6-of-7 shooting, including three and-1s. Kanter overpowered Greg Monroe for much of the quarter. As a team, New York went 12-of-19 from the field. Their 63.2 percent shooting was aided by eight straight makes to begin the game. The eighth was a Courtney Lee triple that put the Knicks in front 22-7 at the 7:19 mark.

At the 1:35 mark of the second quarter, Jackson was whistled for a foul on Porzingis. Jackson disagreed with the call (of course) and showed his frustration. It earned him a technical foul, even though his display of emotion was not directed at any one official. Jackson has now been T’d up seven times this season, tied with Warren for the second-most on the team and the fifth-highest total in all of the NBA.

Up four at halftime, the Knicks began the third quarter on a 14-2 run to take a 67-51 lead at the 8:24 mark. Porzingis had seven points during the scoring stretch, which he punctuated with a fastbreak dunk. It was a big quarter for Porzingis, who was just 1-of-5 for six points in the first half. He scored 13 on 5-of-6 shooting, including a pair of 3s. He also added two rebounds and one block in 10 minutes.

Playing his first game since Jan. 7, Marquese Chriss showed the obvious signs of someone who hadn’t seen action in nearly three weeks. He missed 11 of his 12 shot attempts, including five of six from beyond the arc. In 20 total minutes, his stat line read: three points, four rebounds, one assist and one block. Chriss had missed the last six games with a right hip strain.

STAT OF THE GAME

35.1: For the fourth time in the past six games, the Suns failed to shoot at least 42-percent from the field. Their 35.1 percent effort tied for the second-lowest mark of the season.

HE SAID IT

“I thought early offensively we got good looks, but we didn’t get stops,” interim head coach Jay Triano said. “Same thing to start the second half of the game, too, so obviously that group wasn’t a good group defensively, but I’d have to look at the film and see why and where the breakdowns were and who they were.”

NOTED

Warren recorded his 25th game with 20-plus points this season; prior to this season, he had 21 such games in his career.

Booker now has nine technical fouls, tied with DeMarcus Cousins and Russell Westbrook for the third-most in the NBA.

Booker made two free throws; he’s now made a career-high 51 straight, six shy of the single-season franchise record.

The Suns have made a 3-pointer in 1,107 straight games, just one game shy of tying the longest streak in NBA history.

The Booker-Daniels-Warren-Chriss-Monroe unit marked the Suns’ 14th different starting lineup used here this season.

Chandler was a late removal from the starting lineup; he was announced but remained in the locker room for the game.

Alex Len was inactive due to right ankle soreness; it was his second straight game missed and third overall this season.

The Suns debuted their City Edition uniform which honors the Hispanic heritage of the community as part of Latin Night.

UP NEXT

It’s back out on the road.

The Suns will play their next two games — at Houston and at Memphis — away from the Valley with the Rockets matchup coming up on Sunday, Jan. 28. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. with pregame coverage beginning 30 minutes earlier on 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station.

The Rockets have won the first two meetings this season, both in Phoenix, and have won six straight and 13 of the last 15 in the series.

By the way, the Rockets’ six-game win streak bests a five-game run from 2014-2015 and the first five meetings ever while the Rockets were based in San Diego for their longest in series history.

From Houston, the Suns will stop in Memphis to play the Grizzlies on Monday.

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