featured-image

What We Learned From #SunsAtNuggets

To be blunt, the Suns desperately needed a win. 

Fortunately for Phoenix, they had won five straight against the Nuggets coming into Wednesday night, including a sweep in 2013-14 before Denver won the last meeting in the Mile High City on November 28.

Furthermore, Wednesday in Denver began the 14th of 18 back-to-back sets this season.

Needless to say, the Suns' 110-96 win was vitally important.

A few key factors from the game:

3. The Bledsoe/Knight backcourt

Even though Brandon Knight has barely had a chance to practice with the Suns, he continues to become more comfortable with his role every game.

Case in point: the Knight/Bledsoe backcourt combined for 37 points, 12 assists, nine rebounds and two steals on 45 percent shooting in the win.

As time goes on, look for their combined efficiency to improve as turnovers decrease with familiarity.

"It was great," Knight said after the game. "We had some mental mistakes but the effort was there and that's what we're going to need moving forward."

2. P.J. Tucker's hustle

With his 12 points tonight, P.J. Tucker has now scored in double-digits in a season-long five straight games.

But more than his scoring, Tucker added an impressive eight rebounds, five steals and a block.

It's that exact type of hustle - on both ends of the floor - that will get the Suns back on track.

1. The bench impressed

The Suns currently rank 1st in the NBA with 42.6 points per game scored by their bench. Among NBA reserves to appear in the majority of their team’s games off the bench, Gerald Green (12.5) ranks 8th and Marcus Morris ranks t-17th (10.2) in points per game when coming off the bench.

True to form, it was Green and Morris who stepped up on Wednesday.

In their win over Denver, the bench poured in an impressive 50 points led by Gerald Green's 15 and Marcus Morris' 12 (including an amazing half-court three-pointer to end the first quarter).

In addition to points, Marcus Morris added nine boards while Green had four with three assists. Brandan Wright added eight points, six boards and three blocks.