PHOENIX SUNS

Suns Strokes: Telfair, Toronto end Suns’ three-game win streak

Mar 7, 2013, 5:41 AM | Updated: 5:46 am

Sure, you could read the box score and know who won, but we all know that won’t tell you everything that happened in a basketball game. So, we will give you Suns Strokes, providing you with the analysis, quotes and notes from the Suns’ 98-71 loss to the Raptors on March 4.

The Good:

Uh, let me think….

The Bad:

Where to begin….

The Suns saw their three-game winning streak end, their former teammate Sebastian Telfair have his best game (13 points, seven assists and four steals) since mid-January and oh yeah, their rivals (Lakers) overcome a 25-point deficit on the road to pull to within 1.5 games of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

After a 24-point (on 52.4 percent shooting) first quarter performance, the Suns scored 16, 15 and 16 points in the remaining three quarters thanks to 32.1 percent from the floor(17-of-53).

The Suns committed a season-high 29 turnovers, giving them five games of 20 or more turnovers since the coaching change.

The Good:

Yeah, still thinking….

He Said It:

“That was pretty bad,” interim head coach Lindsey Hunter said. “I do not see one bright spot to take from that game other than it is over. It doesn’t get much worse than it did for us tonight. We see how we respond after having some success, having some days off. That is not much we can say about that game. It was just a total disaster from jump ball to finish.”

Noted:

• Marcin Gortat left the game late in the first quarter with a right mid-foot sprain; X-rays taken were negative and he will undergo an MRI Thursday. “I definitely heard a pop in my foot,” he said as he exited the locker room on crutches. Gortat has appeared in every game since being acquired by the Suns on Dec. 18, 2010 — 182 consecutive. He has started 138 consecutive games, every game since March 27, 2011, and is the only Sun to start every game this season.

The Good:

Okay, I got it.

Hamed Haddadi made his Suns debut, becoming the first player in franchise history to wear a uniform number (98) higher than 55. Also, Marcus Morris scored in double figures for the third straight game, leading the team with 12 points. He was the lone Sun to reach double figures.

Up Next:

The Suns (21-40) travel to Sacramento to play the Kings on Friday, March 8.

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