The weak spot is behind Sengun, and the game-day report didn't fix it. Clint Capela is out again with his right ankle sprain, and Steven Adams is out with a calf strain and no timetable, with Ime Udoka saying he'll be evaluated weekly. That thin frontcourt cost them against Minnesota. Houston led 84-82 after 3 quarters, then the Wolves dropped 35 in the 4th on a night they shot 53%, and that was a Wolves team missing Anthony Edwards. Sengun had 17 and 12 and Durant had 21, but there was no rim protection behind them when the game tightened.
Phoenix has the opposite problem: plenty of scoring, nothing to stop anybody. Before the Orlando game the Suns had lost 4 straight, giving up 125, 127, 116 and 132, and Jalen Green put their 1-5 start down to effort on the defensive end. Booker hasn't been the issue. He dropped 33 in the 132-119 loss to Portland and had 26 in the Orlando win. The question is whether anyone else can hold up their end.
Green is the swing piece. Phoenix is asking him to run more of the offense, and through 6 games he was shooting 40.3% from the field and 23.1% from 3, both career lows. He has also put up 22 in back-to-back games, the Portland loss and the Orlando win. If that is Green finding his range, the Suns have a second scorer who can match Durant. If it was a 2-game blip, Houston can load up on Booker and make everyone else beat them.
Both teams are thin up front. Mark Williams is out long-term after surgery on a torn labrum, Rasheer Fleming (ankle) is questionable and Jordan Goodwin (calf) is doubtful, and both of them sat out the Orlando win. That leaves Phoenix short on size against a team built around a center who passes like a guard. Defense and rebounding have been the Suns' biggest problems this season, and Sengun plays best against exactly that kind of team. Houston's own frontcourt depth is the counterweight. With Capela and Adams both out, the Rockets' second unit has the same size problem the Suns have, and the Wolves already exposed it.
Tipoff is 7:00 PM MT at Mortgage Matchup Center. Phoenix had the night off Friday after playing Orlando on the 2nd night of a back-to-back, and Houston has been home since the Minnesota loss. Neither team has another game first, so what you see on the form card is what walks in the door.
