Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul (3 years old) leads against Ja Morant, the Memphis Grizzlies goalie, in the first half of an NBA basketball game on Saturday, February 20, 2021, in Memphis, Tennessee ( Photo AP / Brandon Dill)
Having Chris Paul on your team can earn wins like Friday’s stunning fourth-quarter explosion for the Phoenix Suns.
It can also make possible catwalks like Saturday’s 128-97 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.
With Paul finding his elite form in recent weeks, there is a certain level of play that the Suns will have almost every night. With the talent Phoenix has around Paul, following the goalkeeper’s leadership will yield great results.
On Saturday, that meant not letting an abbreviated Grizzlies team even get to try to win.
Head coach Monty Williams congratulated his team’s attention on taking care of business.
“These are the kinds of games where you can lose pace,” he said. “When they have so many boys away from home, you can get involved with the game, and we didn’t do it tonight.
“I came to a timeout and I was very grateful for the way we played in the fourth quarter, because it’s a time when you can get into the game by making bad shots, I have to call the timeout to get back to where we need to be to be and we didn’t have to do it tonight ”.
Memphis head coach Taylor Jenkins met with his staff Friday night after winning the Detroit Pistons and tried to explore any precautions needed in their rotation. That’s because Saturday’s Grizzlies against the Phoenix played their fourth game in five nights and the fifth in seven nights.
With Memphis already facing some injuries and absences related to COVID-19 before that, he had to sit a few players against Phoenix to be safe. It was guard Grayson Allen, striker Kyle Anderson and big man Brandon Clarke. With the Grizzlies already gone starters Dillon Brooks and Jaren Jackson Jr., who left their rotation decimated.
Not a good idea with Point God in town.
He never really gets old watching Paul take control of a game. He started filming in the first quarter offensively and settled from there.
Paul made all five shots in the first half with 13 points. Altogether, he only had 16 points and six assists, a test of his excellence that he can do with a statistical line that suggests anything but precise manipulation of the opposition.
The Suns maintained a double-digit 10-minute lead, which remained above 15 for most of the second quarter, and only got worse from there.
The Suns played a good defense against the Grizzlies ’poor offense. Memphis looked half decent, but never got any falls. Like the Suns ’breeze with a win against the Orlando Magic in early February, it looked like the Grizzlies weren’t there at all because of the number of guys they were missing.
The Grizzlies missed 16 straight triples to open the game.
When they made attempt no. 17, the Suns had climbed 25 with 41.4 seconds left for the first half.
Phoenix went all the way. The Grizzlies didn’t have enough fighting after the Suns pulled them off the jump. A 31-point lead in the middle of the Suns only dropped to 26 in the second half.
This game wouldn’t have been much disputed in any way that shooting took place, but it didn’t help the Suns also achieve a franchise record with 24 triples.
In such an open game, a few players were able to get a rhythm score. Devin Booker had a maximum of 23 games, while Mikal Bridges, Cam Payne and Dario Saric contributed 19 points.
Memphis finished 5th out of 33 (15.2%) from three points. The Suns had 35 assists in just nine business losses.
Fans of this season’s Suns will often remember Paul’s greatness. Beyond his impact on the last two victories, there is also the fact that on Saturday he overtook Robertson, a freaking Oscar, in the all-time aid classification, moving up to sixth place.
Not everyone in the Suns takes it for granted.
“For me, we’ve won a great game, but I’m impressed to be able to be a part of that with him,” Williams said of Paul’s performance. “When you think of Oscar Robertson’s name, it’s unreal for Chris to play the way he plays … I think it’s amazing and a blessing, and I feel so honored and humiliated to be part of that team when he did.”
Booker made sure to get the game ball for Paul so the team could present it after a ball that Paul still held while talking to the media.
“It’s a little hard to put it into words, being a fan of the game for so long and being a fan of yours for so long; now getting to be funny on the court with him is amazing,” Booker said.
“It means everything, really,” he added as he handed the ball to Paul. “Just being part of the story, man, is Chris Paul right there. I say it every day. I call him by his first and last name because that’s how I grew up saying it ”.
Booker said “it’s no mistake” that Paul is as prominent of a basketball player as he is because he has now seen Paul’s day-to-day life over the past two months.
This special mindset that Paul has had was reflected when he was asked if he was trying to take Magic Johnson (number 5) to the next standings this season.
“I try to accumulate victories,” Paul said with a smile.