Two teams looking to turn things back in a positive direction hook up Saturday night, when the Phoenix Suns host the Golden State Warriors in a matchup of teams that suffered a home loss to the Brooklyn Nets this week.
The game could feature a somewhat rare head-to-head between Olympic teammates Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry, both of whom have been sidelined with recent injuries.
After helping the Suns open the season 8-1, Durant missed seven straight games with a strained calf. Phoenix went just 1-6 in those contests.
The Suns rebounded with a 127-100 home blowout of the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday in Durant’s return, in which he contributed 23 points. He then went for 30 the next night against the Nets, but they weren’t enough to prevent a 127-117 defeat.
Durant pointed to another stat he deemed more important after the loss.
“That’s the game,” he demanded after scanning the stat sheet. “I can’t have seven turnovers if we want to win.”
Turnovers have been a bigger issue for the Warriors than the Suns. Golden State has had more than its opponent in three straight games, and has lost all three.
Curry wasn’t the culprit in a 105-101 home defeat at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday as he sat out with sore knees. But he’s had at least three in 10 straight games, including three apiece in losses to the San Antonio Spurs and Nets to start the losing streak that has followed a 12-3 start.
Interestingly, Curry’s absence gave Pat Spencer an opportunity he’s rarely gotten in two years with Golden State. The former lacrosse standout, who switched over to basketball after transferring to Northwestern as a fifth-year collegian just five years ago, had Warriors coach Steve Kerr raving after a six-point, four-rebound, three-assist effort against the Thunder.
“Fantastic,” Kerr said. “You love to see a guy just come in and play with great force and energy, and push the ball, and find shooters … He just plays the game. I thought Pat changed the game; as soon as he got out there, the game finally opened up for us. We started to move the ball.”
Curry is expected back for the game at Phoenix, which will be the first meeting this season between the Pacific Division clubs.
Curry and Durant were three-year teammates for the Warriors, a run that resulted in championships in 2017 and 2018, and a near-miss in 2019 when Durant and Klay Thompson were injured during the Finals against the Toronto Raptors.
The Warriors have met Durant’s teams 19 times since he left for the Nets after the 2019 Finals. Curry and Durant have been healthy enough to go head-to-head in just six of those games, with Durant’s team prevailing four times — twice with the Nets and twice with the Suns.
Curry has outscored his old pal 157-135 in the six games.
The Warriors and Suns have not met in the postseason over those years. In fact, the last time Golden State drew Phoenix in the playoffs was in 1994, when Curry was 6 years old and Durant 5.
