The Phoenix Suns‘ four-game win streak came to an end on Wednesday as they faced the defending champions, the Boston Celtics. The Celtics were without their best player, Jayson Tatum. But even with Tatum’s absence, Boston had a dominating 132-102 win over the Western Conference team. With their loss, the Suns are once again tied with the Dallas Mavericks at the 10th spot.
All-Star forward Kevin Durant had 30 points on 68.8% shooting from the field. The star forward was only one of three players who scored at least double digits in the game. His co-star, Devin Booker, was a no-show offensively against Boston. Booker only had 14 points and shot 30.8% from the field. Aside from scoring, though, the star guard contributed with seven rebounds and 10 assists.
Following the game, Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer offered frank criticism of his team’s performance. According to him, the Celtics executed their plan brilliantly, which allowed them to make baskets.
“I think we should be able to fall back a little bit on the progress we’ve been making,” Bud said. “Tonight, we got punched. Boston was very good, they executed their shot well.”
"We got punched."
Mike Budenholzer on loss to Celtics. #Suns pic.twitter.com/JFJj8knsTy
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) March 27, 2025
The Phoenix Suns will have a one-game road trip against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday. They’ve played against the Wolves three times this season and have failed to capture a win in their four-game regular season series.
Durant talked about his limited time for the Phoenix Suns in the second quarter
On Monday, the 6-foot-11 forward had 38 points in the game that led to a 108-106 win for the Phoenix Suns. In the opening quarter against the Celtics, Durant showed he had not cooled down from the previous game. He scored 16 points on 6-for-8 shooting from the field in 12 minutes. This kept the Suns close as the first quarter ended in a close 42-38 advantage for Boston.
However, Durant only appeared in five minutes the next quarter and had four points. After the game, he was asked about what he thought of his minutes during the first two quarters.
“I prefer to play 48 minutes every night, but I know how realistic that is. I feel like I’m always simmering hot though,” Durant said. Regardless, I might be 0-for-10. You’ve seen games this year, I started 1-for-9 and I end up finishing the game shooting well ’cause I feel like I’m always hot.”
“Maybe that’s a little bit of overconfidence in myself or delusion, but that’s how I feel.
I asked Kevin Durant about sitting to start 2Q after his hot 1Q: "I prefer to play 48 minutes every night, but I know how realistic that is. I feel like I'm always simmering hot though…Maybe that's a little bit of overconfidence in myself or delusion, but that's how I feel" pic.twitter.com/n0Iwl3LtSA
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) March 27, 2025
KD said he doesn’t pay much attention to it and just follows the game plan. During their four-game win streak, Durant averaged 30 points, 5.3 rebounds and six assists on a 56.9% shooting clip. Over that stretch, the two-time champion has maintained his hot shooting stroke to give the Suns a fighting chance.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
