The Phoenix Suns edged past the Portland Trail Blazers in the recent away match with a 127-116 win. Despite seeing his team win away from home, the visitors’ shooting guard Bradley Beal expressed his disappointment with the team’s defense. Sitting down with reporters after the win, he revealed his thoughts, jokingly admitting that he wants to take the 4th quarter off in the upcoming games.
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His response spurred from the team’s inability to maintain momentum against an inconsistent Blazers side. Despite the hosts going through a rebuilding phase while registering one of the worst season’s in their recent history, the Suns failed to capitalize. Interestingly, starting their big three of Beal, Kevin Durant and Devin Booker also did not help in that situation.
The Arizona franchise trailed 31-33 in the first quarter before making a comeback in the following two to lead by 14 points. However, despite their best efforts, the home team fought back in the final 12 minutes of the game, adding uncertainty to the outcome. Eventually though, the Suns were able to register their 21st win this season, with the big three showing out to score a combined 78 points.
This unconvincing performance frustrated Beal as he reflected on the clash in a post-game interview. The 30-year-old faced a question surrounding the possibility of taking the final quarter off to have better defenders on the floor. He jokingly agreed with the reporter’s off-beat suggestion, mentioning, “Ah, that would be great,” highlighting the concerns surrounding the squad.
“There’s a lot of things that we gotta work on. We make a lot of things probably look nice and look good but that’s just the talent that we have. We gotta start putting together some IQ together too,” the 3x All-Star later added, demanding improvements from the team.
It put into focus the in-game understanding of the 6ft 4″ guard as he candidly pointed out the areas of concern for the Suns. At the same time, it also captured his relentless attitude towards the game, something that could play a big part in the Suns figuring out how to be consistently play at a high level.
The Phoenix Suns still need to work things out between Bradley Beal, Kevin Durant, and Devin Booker
The team’s away win against the Los Angeles Lakers right before this game was the epitome of what fans have wanted to see, as the big three worked almost flawlessly together. However, they failed to maintain the same momentum against the Blazers, as the team looked shaky on too many occasions. “No I think we took a step back and I think we all know that. We didn’t come out with energy,” Beal thus stated comparing the two games.
Just like the Missouri-born, Durant too addressed the concerns surrounding the roster a few weeks ago. But, unlike Beal, KD had a different perspective on the matter as he put the limelight on success in the NBA. “Only results matter to the people watching and context really doesn’t matter,” he declared on that instance.
Despite these struggles, outside expectations continue to rise. It is evident that the players can feel the pressure as they attempt to aim for the best possible solutions.
