Early in the 3rd quarter, while the Suns trailed by 11 points to the Mavericks, Devin Booker let loose on Chimezie Metu after a lazy play.
Metu, who actually had an excellent night off the bench as he contributed 19 rebounds and 23 points, threw a bad pass to Booker, resulting in a steal by Luka Doncic.
And instead of sprinting down the court to attempt to prevent an easy layup, Metu stood and watched as Luka stormed to the basket for two points.
This propelled Booker to yell at his teammate, “Why aren’t you running back? You turn the ball over and don’t run back?”
The lack of effort almost perfectly sums up what has haunted the Suns over the past month or so. While the talent appears to certainly be available, the Suns have made too many mental mistakes.
Although almost immediately after this lazy play by Metu, Phoenix did erase the deficit, allowing them to enter the 4th quarter with a lead, things went south again quickly.
The Mavericks outscored the Suns 37-22 in the 4th quarter, leading to Phoenix’s 3rd straight loss.
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