The Suns clinched a spot in the playoffs as the fourth seed in the Western Conference thanks to a decisive victory over the Timberwolves in Phoenix, where Kevin Durant made his home debut.
After relocating to The Valley from Brooklyn, Durant caused quite a commotion when the trade deadline rolled around. After playing three games away from home, he injured his left ankle during warmups for the game that was supposed to be his debut at home.
Although shooting poorly, Durant could still score 16 points, grab eight rebounds, and dish out four assists against the Timberwolves, who had a four-game winning streak stopped. Durant’s performance helped the Wolves snap their winning run. In over 29 minutes of action, the two-time Most Valuable Player of the Finals shot just 5-for-18 from the field. The Suns are in good shape because of Devin Booker, who has maintained his excellent play this season and scored 29 points, and Chris Paul, who contributed 19 points.
With a record of 39-38, the Timberwolves are still outside the top six in the Western Conference thanks to Anthony Edwards’ 31-point performance.
These big-time baller awards should go to a pair of Bucks players. With an incredible 51 points scored against the Pacers, Jrue Holiday had the highest-scoring game in his professional career. He became the sixth player in the franchise’s history to score 50 points by shooting 20 for 30 from the field, including three three-pointers, and making eight shots from the free-throw line. In addition, he contributed eight rebounds and eight assists to the team’s overall performance.
In the same vein as filling out the stat sheet, Giannis Antetokounmpo also enjoyed a 38-point, triple-double performance. In just 32 minutes of action, the two-time winner of the Most Valuable Player award racked up 17 rebounds, 12 assists, and his point total.
