Kevin Durant was so focused on the game against the Houston Rockets on Saturday that he didn’t notice something. He said after the Phoenix Suns’ 118-109 loss at the Footprint Center that he didn’t know Bradley Beal had been ejected until late in the fourth quarter.
Beal was called for two technical fouls in the third quarter for his fight with Jalen Green. He was ejected from the game, but Durant didn’t notice his teammate’s departure until the fourth quarter. KD shared his hilarious story after the match.
“I didn’t even know Brad was ejected until the fourth quarter,” Durant said. “I thought he was right in the back. I was wondering, I thought someone else had had a tech.
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“I was wondering why they shot two free throws, and we didn’t. It was a fast game. You try to move forward and keep the momentum in our hands. We had the momentum at that point, so I think it gave us a little spark too even though we missed Brad.”
Bradley Beal finished with just seven points, two rebounds and two assists in 20 minutes of action. It was an overall poor game for the Phoenix Suns against a young Houston Rockets team that struggled for consistency. The Rockets have now beaten the Suns twice in three games since February 23.
Kevin Durant had a team-high 30 points with nine rebounds, but also had six turnovers. The Suns failed to contain Jalen Green, who had 34 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Fred VanVleet added 24 points and 11 assists, while Alperen Sengun had 21 points and 11 rebounds.
Kevin Durant and the Suns could be without Devin Booker after injury
Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns could do without it Devin Booker for their next game Sunday against the OKC Thunder. Booker accidentally stepped on Royce O’Neal’s foot late in the fourth quarter and sprained his right ankle. He left the game and it will likely be a game-time decision.
The good news for the Suns is that Booker’s x-rays came back negative and he may have avoided serious injury. The four-time All-Star has been terrific this season, averaging 27.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 6.8 assists.
Jusuf Nurkic also left the game in the second quarter after being hit in the head by teammate Josh Okogie. Nurkic underwent concussion protocol testing and tested negative, but was ruled out due to a neck sprain.
