Kevin Durant sat on the bench as the Phoenix Suns beat the Sacramento Kings 120-109 during the Tuesday night NBA slate, thanks to 32 points from Devin Booker and 29 points and 11 rebounds from Deandre Ayton.
The Suns played their first home game since Durant was acquired from Brooklyn in a trade on Jan. 12. Durant has been recovering from a right knee injury. A standing ovation greeted his introduction during a timeout in the third quarter. After this weekend’s All-Star break, Durant should return.
“I was watching him more than anything,” Booker said. “I don’t think people realize what it is until you’re in it. He deserves it, he’s a legend in this game. I’m glad he’s here.”
After 29 minutes of play, Booker was 13 of 20 from the field without taking a 3-pointer. After 21 games sidelined by a left groin strain, this was his highest-scoring game since returning.
“I feel good. It’s been a long recovery road, something I found peace in and just enjoyed the whole process,” Booker said.
NBA SCORES & NEWS: Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns & Sacramento Kings Updates
Chris Paul scored 17 points and dished out 19 assists for Phoenix, which has won 11 of its last 14. In addition to making three 3s, Josh Okogie added 19 points to the team’s total.
“I think we did a really good job of finding the open man,” Suns coach Monty Williams said. “Overall, it was a well-balanced game for us, complemented by how hard we played from start to finish.”
On Saturday, De’Aaron Fox scored 36 points for the Kings in a win over the Dallas Mavericks. He added another 35 points in his performance against the Suns.
“We just had too many unforced errors and going up against a team like that you can’t do that,” Fox said. “They capitalized on just about every error that we made today.”
For Sacramento, Domantas Sabonis scored 24 points and 15 rebounds, while Kevin Huerter scored 18 points, diminishing its Division lead over Phoenix to one game.
NBA SCORES & NEWS: Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns & Sacramento Kings Updates
A 13-point lead for the Suns in the third quarter was cut to four points by the Kings at the end. In the fourth, Sacramento stayed close, but Okogie’s 3 with 1:42 left proved to be the game-deciding play. After Paul hit his step-back jumper, the Suns led by nine points.
Want the latest in NBA analysis, breaking news, and insider information? Click Here.
