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The Suns like to experiment in their preseason win over the Lakers

Jasper
The Suns like to experiment in their preseason win over the Lakers

The Phoenix Suns experimented with lineups and got good depth contributions in a 118-114 preseason win over the Lakers.

New head coach Mike Budenholzer wanted to use this time well and tried out a few lineup variations that could become integral parts of the Suns rotation outside of the traditionally defined groups.

Grayson Allen was, as expected, the first replacement, unexpected for Tyus Jones, which immediately left Phoenix without a point guard. The Suns will still turn to these looks, sacrificing the key advantages of a point guard for even more offense in the form of Allen’s shooting. A few minutes later, backup point guard Monte Morris checked in and led the all-bench lineup.

Bradley Beal reported for his second shift at the start of the second quarter, giving him minutes without Devin Booker or Kevin Durant. These are minutes that Beal is tailor-made for being himself, and last year he had to worry about getting the ball upfield in those minutes. He was out there with either Jones or Morris and did a great job of driving to the basket almost every time he got the ball. That must be his mindset in these sequences.

A few minutes later, more lineup disputes erupted as Jones, Beal, Booker, Durant and rookie Ryan Dunn lined up, with either he or Durant serving as the small-ball five. There were a handful of screens from Booker and Durant in those minutes, a staple of modern NBA offenses that Suns fans have been begging for since Durant’s arrival.

This is impossible to guard.

Jusuf Nurkic was sidelined with a left middle finger injury, leaving Mason Plumlee in the starting lineup and Oso Ighodaro playing a clearer role on the bench.

Nurkic suffered numerous small cuts last season, and he probably would have had this too if it hadn’t been the preseason. He will be re-evaluated on Saturday, a schedule that rules him out for the first three games. Budenholzer would certainly like to get the core guys at least one tune-up game together, leaving Oct. 13 in Denver and Oct. 17 hosting the Lakers as possible options.

Beal, Booker and Durant only played in the first half. Booker led the way with 12 points and three assists.

It was a good evening for the newcomers. Dunn has been diligent about getting 3s, something he will need to continue to do after his timid nature in college. He was 2 of 6 from 3 and, as expected, had some nice defensive moments.

Ighodaro was a positive player straight away with 12 points, four rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block.

Passing translates.

How many centers do you see making this?

As we’ve been saying here since the offseason, watch him put up a real battle for the reserve team for 5 minutes.

Damion Lee returned to the floor after missing all of last year due to rare knee surgery and immediately made an impact with 10 points. Those three, along with Collin Gillespie and Josh Okogie, had a great run in the final period of this game and put the game away. Okogie finished with 15 points, five rebounds, two assists and three steals, while Gillespie had 12 points, four rebounds and five assists.

LA chose Anthony Davis and LeBron James in its first contest on Friday, paving the way for both to debut against Phoenix. Both also belonged to the two-quarter regiment. James scored 19 points in 17 minutes and Davis added 17.

Phoenix will spend the night in Los Angeles before flying directly to Michigan, where the Suns will face the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday at the Breslin Center in East Lansing on the campus of Michigan State.

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