"Monty Williams has got untapped resources that he is yet to use" - Former NBA Coach Of The Year on the impact of 23-year old Phoenix Suns star in Devin Booker's absence
The Phoenix Suns went past the New Orleans Pelicans, 114-111, on the back of Deandre Ayton's 28 points, 18 rebounds, and Chris Paul's 28 points and 14 assists. The Suns went 2-1 up in the series with the win and will continue their road-trip with Game 4 in New Orleans.
Sam Mitchell, on NBA radio, spoke about Ayton's high scoring performance in the absence of Devin Booker, who has been ruled out for a few weeks with a sprained hamstring:
"We saw last night, when he saw no Devin Booker and he knew this coming into the game, it's one thing to lose your star player in the guts of the game, it's another thing to know the guy's not gonna be there"
- 28 points🏀 - 28 points
🏀 - 17 rebounds
🏀 - Game 3 win
@SamMitchellNBA tells @BGeltzNBA why he was so impressed with Deandre Ayton last night #ValleyProud https://t.co/Ew9CrHrgzt
"And you've had two days to think about what you wanna do and how you wanna attack certain guys and see your advantages so Deandre Ayton flipped on that hat that says 'We now need you to be the No. 1 pick'"
He compared Ayton to Booker and offered some advice pertaining to how Ayton's scoring can be utilized going forward:
"He came out and he took it to them, he was Devin Booker from the center position...Deandre Ayton is a polished scorer...I wouldn't be afraid, in certain circumstances, to play Javale McGee at the 5 and Ayton at the 4, especially if you play Milwaukee in the finals again"
Ayton has exclusively played the center position, and Mitchell suggested that unlike last year, he should match-up with Giannis Antetokounmpo at the 4, should the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks meet again in the finals.
Deandre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns have a tough road ahead of them
Devin Booker was ruled out for 2-3 weeks with a grade 1 strained hamstring after a chase in transition during Game 2 went awry. The Pelicans came back and won the game 125-114 to level the series.
Suns' Devin Booker has right hamstring tightness and is out for remainder of Game 2 vs. Pelicans.
Devin Booker's absence has been severely felt by the Phoenix Suns, who only managed to get a three-point win over the Pelicans on Friday. No one foresaw the Pelicans-Suns series being anything more than a walkover, let alone competitive. Devin Booker's injury changes that.
Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum will look to make the series as daunting as they can for Chris Paul, Deandre Ayton and Co., and once the Phoenix Suns make it out of the first round, the road ahead is as tough as it gets: The Warriors are firing on all cylinders and the Mavericks now have a third scoring option in Jalen Brunson.