Down 17 at the break, not a lot went right in the first half for Phoenix. However, things started to turn around in the second half, and we won the game in the fourth quarter, something we’ve seen before.
Reason 2 – Chris Paul had a solid fourth quarter for the Suns
If Phoenix is going to accomplish its goals for the season, CP3 is going to have to play well. Paul was not perfect down the stretch against the Pelicans, including being whistled for a traveling violation, but he made several big plays that made a difference.
Paul was not great from the field overall, going 6-11; however, he was 5-7 from three-point range and hit two massive threes in the fourth quarter. The first three gave the Suns their first lead since the first quarter with just over 5 minutes remaining, 106-105.
His second big three-pointer came with just over a minute to go pushing the Suns’ lead to five.
It was not a vintage Paul performance; however, if you add in his big steal against Zion in the fourth, it was a big quarter for the Suns’ floor general.
Reason 3 – Okogie goes pogo on the offensive boards
It is not every game that you can say a bench player who scored only seven points and had a -3 plus/minus was the difference maker, but Josh Okogie was a difference maker for the Suns against New Orleans.
Okogie is earning more minutes with both Cams out injured and is getting to keep those minutes with his athleticism and effort. Okogie was matching up one-on-one defensively against Zion Williamson and was doing respectably. More importantly, Okogie had four huge fourth-quarter offensive rebounds to extend possessions and lead to second-chance points.
On a night when the Suns only got 16 points from the bench, Okogie and company did enough of the little things to help Phoenix win.