Suns players volunteer at community Thanksgiving event
The Phoenix Suns/Phoenix Mercury Foundation partnered with St. Vincent de Paul to hold a Thanksgiving event on Nov. 20, 2025.
The Denver Nuggets had a little more in the tank than the Phoenix Suns in the second of back-to-back games for both teams on Nov. 29 at Mortgage Matchup Center.
Nikola Jokic delivered a near triple-double on a perfect night of shooting from the field, playing with a left wrist sprain, in leading the Nuggets to a 130-112 win before a sellout crowd of 17,071.
The Suns (12-9) were coming off a 123-119 loss at defending NBA champion Oklahoma City, while the Nuggets (14-5) fell to the San Antonio Spurs the previous night, 139-136, at home in NBA Cup play.
Phoenix still advanced to the NBA Cup quarterfinals as a wild card after Friday’s game. Denver was eliminated from the tournament, but the Nuggets bounced back to top the Suns for a second time this season.
Denver blitzed them last month, 133-111, at home.
Dillon Brooks paced the Suns with 27 points, with 19 coming in the first half. Devin Booker scored 24 points, and Grayson Allen added 10, shooting 2-of-7 from 3 in his return after missing seven games with a right quad contusion.
“It was very strange rehab or just time off with this,” said Allen, who came into the game averaging a career-best 18.5 points in his third year in Phoenix.
“There was such a large amount of swelling and blood in the muscle that it got to a certain point where I kind of felt like I got strength and mobility back, but then it wasn’t quite ready to go back out there and play. Then some other complications and risks on the court. It was a really weird rehab where I kept feeling I was one or two days away, and that one or two days away turned into another one or two days.”
“It was very strange rehab or just time off with this.”
Suns guard Grayson Allen on return from right quad contusion that sidelined him seven games.
“There was such a large amount of swelling and blood in the muscle that it got to a certain point where I kind of felt like I got… pic.twitter.com/n1h6dg1B9I
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 30, 2025
Here are the takeaways from Nov. 29’s game. The Suns begin an extended four-game road stretch Dec. 1 against the Los Angeles Lakers (14-4), winners of their last six games.
Jokic ultimate all-time hub
The NBA’s best player makes it look so easy, but one must still wonder how a 7-footer who isn’t super athletic and won’t win any foot races anytime soon can deliver 26 points on 7-of-7 shooting, 10 assists and nine rebounds in 31 minutes with an injured wrist in the second of a back-to-back.
Skill. Smarts. Motor.
Jokic is arguably the game’s best passer. The Nuggets maximize that skill by running the offense through him that involves so much action and movement off him.
He’s the quarterback who can make all the throws. Hit the cutter. Find the open 3. Cross-court feeds.
The Nuggets can be down Aaron Gordon (right hamstring strain), Christian Braun (left ankle sprain) and Julian Strawther (low back injury management) and still put up 130 points because Jokic enables them to score with such efficiency.
“We tried to go small. I don’t know if we can impact his passing quite as much because we went with Royce (O’Neale), but Royce fought as hard as you can possibly fight on him. Again, in the first half, it felt like we had the group under wraps a little bit.”
Jordan Ott on… pic.twitter.com/keEeFGe71Z
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 30, 2025
Denver shot 57.9% from the field, going 22-of-38 from 3 and generated 36 assists on 44 field goals. That nullified allowing 23 points off 17 turnovers and Phoenix generating 12 more shots from the field.
While the Suns could use a point guard to enable Booker to play more off the ball, the Nuggets don’t even need one because they have Jokic.
Jamal Murray can just play off him and score 24 points, hitting 5-of-9 from 3 and Tim Hardaway Jr. can come off the bench and jack up 11 3s without any hesitation.
Hardaway Jr. knocked down seven en route to scoring 23 points.
Jokic is a truly special talent who plays with pace and a motor. He took his game to another level when he made a commitment to get in tremendous shape.
He went from being able to play hard for five to seven minutes to now seven to 10. That’s seven to 10 minutes of having to worry if he’s going to score or find the open man for a basket.
Booker ice cold from 3
Booker has won an NBA 3-point shooting contest during the 2018 All-Star weekend in Los Angeles. He finished second to Buddy Hield by a single point in 2020 in Chicago.
Booker has the best form you’ll ever see on a jump shot, but he’s a career 35.3% shooter from 3.
“More hard on myself than anything. I’m still getting shots that I have to make.”
Devin Booker as he’s 13-of-64 from 3 in his last 12 games. Went 0-for-4 in Saturday’s loss to Denver. #Suns pic.twitter.com/zV59zrU7Xj
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 30, 2025
It’s pretty darn good, but Booker isn’t in that Stephen Curry all-time great class from 3.
However, Booker started this season on fire on 3s, shooting 43.1% from distance in his first nine games. He went 25-of-58 during this stretch.
Since then, Booker has gone 13-of-64.
That’s 20.3%. That’s not good. Not good at all.
“More hard on myself than anything,” Booker said after going 0-for-4 from deep in Saturday’s loss. “I’m still getting shots that I have to make.”
Respect, but it’s not all on Booker to shoulder.
He’s having to initiate the offense, is constantly getting blitzed and then teams are denying him the ball once he gets off it. All part of being that guy for your team, but the Suns must figure out ways to free him up and lessen his playmaking mode a little bit.
Having Jalen Green back will help. Green is scheduled for a re-evaluation of his right hamstring strain in December. The injury has limited him to two games.
Allen’s return will help as well. Shooting 44.7% from 3, Allen helps space the floor.
Mark Williams missed the game with a sore right calf. The 7-footer draws attention that helps free up perimeter offense.
Brutal stretch
The Suns can’t afford to have Booker remain in this slump when looking at upcoming games before Christmas. Phoenix plays its next four games on the road against the Lakers, Houston, Minnesota and Oklahoma City.
The Suns then face Golden State twice, for a home and away, and follow that up with a Dec. 23 matchup against the Lakers.
The Suns are currently seventh in the West, playing extremely hard. They have been one of the NBA’s surprise teams, but they could find themselves below .500 here real soon.
It’s not all dependent on Booker making 3s, but Phoenix could use a hot streak from him from distance.
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.
Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today.