Phoenix Suns guard Jalen Green talks high school jersey retirement
Phoenix Suns guard Jalen Green described his emotions after his high school jersey retirement and offered an injury update.
OKLAHOMA CITY – Until next time.
The Phoenix Suns fell short of stunning the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder, losing 123-119, on Nov. 28 before a sellout crowd of 18,203 at Paycom Center.
They won’t have to wait too long to see the NBA’s best team again.
The Suns (12-8) return next month to face the Thunder (19-1) in an NBA Cup quarterfinal game Dec. 10.
Oklahoma City earned the top seed in the West by clinching Group A with a 4-0 record with a plus-75, point differential, the league’s highest in tournament group action.
The Suns advanced as a wild card out of West Group A with a 3-1 record with a plus-31. The Memphis Grizzlies also finished 3-1 in West Group B, but they finished with a plus-14.
The quarterfinal matchups are set. Here are seedings and matchups:
Eastern Conference
Dec. 9. (4) Miami Heat at (1) Orlando Magic, (3) New York Knicks at (2) Toronto Raptors.
Western Conference
Dec. 10. (4) Phoenix Suns at (1) Oklahoma City Thunder, (3) San Antonio Spurs at (2) Los Angeles Lakers.
The winners advance to the NBA Cup semifinals Dec. 13 in Las Vegas. The championship game is Dec. 16 in Vegas. All three games will be played at T-Mobile Arena.
The Suns have four games between now and their NBA Cup rematch against Oklahoma City, but they should be more confident when the two teams meet again after pushing the defending champions to the brink before losing.
Devin Booker on hanging with OKC in 123-119 loss: “We fought. We fought all the way through. We knew it was going to be a scrappy game. It’s exactly what it was. Some things to learn from.”
On facing OKC again in NBA Cup quarters Dec 10: “Hopefully we get a couple of players… pic.twitter.com/red62Kqisp
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 29, 2025
“Hopefully we get a couple of players back by then,” Suns star guard Devin Booker said. “It’s going to be another dogfight.”
The Suns face the Denver Nuggets (13-5) in the second of a back-to-back Nov. 29 at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix. This will also be the second of a back-to-back for the Nuggets, who were eliminated from quarterfinal contention after losing to the Spurs, 139-136, Friday at home. San Antonio won West Group C with a 3-1 record in group play.
Here are several takeaways from Friday night’s game at OKC:
The Suns earned some respect
The Suns hung with the Thunder despite being down Grayson Allen (right quad contusion), Ryan Dunn (right wrist sprain) and Jalen Green (right hamstring strain).
Phoenix, despite its record, was viewed as a team that hadn’t played or beaten a top-tier team going into Friday’s game. The Suns only had two wins against teams currently with a winning record in the Spurs (twice) and Minnesota Timberwolves. The Spurs must be pretty darn good to top Denver without Victor Wembanyama.
Just saying.
They still lost, but earned some respect in defeat.
This was supposed to be the first real test for the Suns after a 1-4 start.
Phoenix overcame committing 20 turnovers that led to 29 OKC points. Phoenix trailed by 15 points to start the fourth quarter, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s historic 37-point night, but trailed by only two with 14.1 seconds left.
If one of Collin Gillespie’s teammates had tracked the loose ball he created the Suns would have had a chance to steal one. Gilgeous-Alexander sealed the game with two free throws with 4.7 seconds left.
“There was a little gap between the scoretable and the court that I stepped into.
Suns guard Collin Gillespie on his left ankle as he knocked ball way from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and saved it while diving out of bounds.
Was icing his left ankle after game. Didn’t have it… pic.twitter.com/Dv47bBXYfL
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 29, 2025
In defeat, the Suns proved to be up to the challenge even without key players.
OKC won its 11th straight game and is undefeated at home at 10-0, but Gilgeous-Alexander’s facial expression and a sigh of relief afterward shows that was a little too close for OKC’s comfort.
Seeing the Thunder acknowledge the Suns with high fives and hugs are signs for earning respect.
Injury update
While Green likely will be out several more games. The Suns announced Nov. 11 he’d be re-evaluated in four to six weeks. Allen and Dunn are much closer to returning from their injuries.
“(Allen and Dunn) had work (Friday),” Suns coach Jordan Ott said prior to Friday’s game, noting Allen played full court in practice on Thanksgiving. “See how they come out of that.”
Mark Williams may play the second of a back-to-back Saturday for the first time this season as he only logged 22 minutes in Friday’s loss. Williams posted 13 points and 14 rebounds.
Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin each suffered ankle injuries in the fourth quarter Friday with Gillespie injuring his left one diving for the ball out of bounds on the sidelines. Ott said Goodwin seemed fine in the locker room, but he limped off the court in the fourth with 4:47 left and didn’t return.
Gillespie made his way back into the game for the final 4.7 seconds, finished with a team-high 24 points, but it remains to be seen whether Gillespie or Goodwin will be available Saturday.
Turnovers doom Suns, again
Gillespie knew protecting the ball was going to be paramount against Oklahoma City as he talked about it after Phoenix’s 112-100 victory Nov. 26 at Sacramento.
“Oklahoma City is a really good defensive team. They’re a lot like Houston. Their length. They can switch a lot. They have a ton of bodies to throw at you. So we’ve got to be strong with the basketball, make good, smart decisions,” he said at the time.
The Thunder are first in the NBA in forcing turnovers at 18.3 and points off turnovers at 25.1 The Suns are 28th in the league in turnovers at 16.8 and last in points allowed off turnovers at 22.4.
OKC shows how to play to the limit
The Thunder are the NBA’s best defensive team because they’re committed to it. They have multiple guys who can guard and have great schemes and concepts. Plus, they really know how to play to the limit, something the Suns are striving for.
“The secret is out,” Booker said. “They do speed you up. They play aggressive. They’ll grab, they’ll hold, but it’s never like when you’re in a shooting position. It’s always on the handle or on your drives when they get away with it.”
“The secret is out. They do speed you up. They play aggressive. They’ll grab, they’ll hold, but it’s never like when you’re in a shooting position. It’s always on the handle or on your drives when they get away with it.”
Devin Booker on Thunder defense as Suns committed 20… pic.twitter.com/E27MYSv0Tz
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 29, 2025
Booker committed five turnovers while Gillespie and Williams each had four. Booker had two in the fourth and Gillespie turned it over once in the final 12 minutes.
Oklahoma City scored four points off those turnovers in the fourth. Phoenix lost by four points.
The Thunder finished last season first in the NBA in defensive rating. Having established themselves as a lockdown squad, they can now play even more handsy and aggressively without a parade of whistles.
The Suns are trying to play that way, but they will need to show over the course of the season they can defend at an elite level to have that luxury OKC has now in how they guard.
Gilgeous-Alexander unstoppable
The Suns watched Gilgeous-Alexander attempt 17 free throws, making 14, but that’s what he does.
The first team All-NBA performer tied Wilt Chamberlain for second all-time for consecutive 20-plus point games.
Suns coach Jordan Ott on defending Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: “We had different coverages on him all night. We were trying to play him with big involve, then we would switch. We were trying to take the ball out of his hands. Being there on the court, you can see how little space he… pic.twitter.com/tmsCMBAtbt
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 29, 2025
He either scores, gets fouled, or both, and makes his free throws. His ability to stop, start, get a step and either drive or stop and shoot a stepback is mind blowing.
The Thunder have a great team and will be even better when Jalen Williams gets back to his true form. He played his first game of the season after sitting out with a wrist injury, scoring just 11 points on 3-of-12 shooting.
However, it still starts and ends for Oklahoma City with the MVP.
He’s one of one.
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
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