The Suns needed a spark Friday. They got it from Jalen Green.
After a season mostly lost to injuries, Green erupted for 36 points and eight threes in the play-in win over the Warriors, as detailed by Doug Haller of The Athletic.
Not bad for a guy who played just 32 games. The road back wasn’t easy.
“Getting injured, coming back. Getting injured again, coming back,” Green said. “I think it happened three or four times. It was hard.”
That part showed all year. Friday? Different story.
And yes, beating Golden State meant a little extra after last year’s playoff exit with Houston.
Still, Green took a moment postgame to connect with Stephen Curry, someone he’s leaned on for years, per Tristi Rodriguez of NBC Sports Bay Area.
“He was telling me to handle business in OKC,” Green said. “Coming from Steph, it means a lot to chop it up with him and just hear from him at the end of the day, just because I was maybe 16 years old when he was having me come out to Oakland just to work out with him. So he’s kind of been somewhat of a mentor.”
Things got heated down the stretch.
Devin Booker and Draymond Green were both ejected after a fourth-quarter shouting match, Booker didn’t make much of it afterward.
“It’s nothing man,” he said, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. “I’ve been there before and I understand the situation. My big brother used to beat me in NBA Live back in the day and I’d throw a fit. He’s a competitor. He loves the sport.”
Looking ahead to Sunday’s opener in Oklahoma City, the Suns could be shorthanded again. Mark Williams (foot) and Grayson Allen (hamstring) are both questionable, per Rankin.
Williams played earlier in the week but sat Friday. Allen hasn’t played since April 10.
One more thing. According to Bobby Marks of ESPN, Dillon Brooks earns a $1 million bonus thanks to Phoenix reaching the playoffs.
It was considered unlikely before the season. Not anymore.
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