The Phoenix Suns continued their stuttering play since the trade deadline on Tuesday, as they once again dropped blow .500 on the season. This time it was the Memphis Grizzlies who came to town and highlighted that this roster is just not good enough to contend for a championship this season.
It wasn't all bad however, as Bol Bol continued to have some impressive plays and notable stat lines since being given more run, and he even managed to start this game. Granted Bradley Beal was missing once again, but it was perhaps yet more evidence that - with nothing else really working and the season slipping away - head coach Mike Budenholzer should go deeper into his bench more.
The night really belonged to Kevin Durant and his scoring exploits.
Despite Durant being thrown into trade rumors close to the deadline - with the 36-year-old handling that situation excellently with the media after staying put - it was in a Suns uniform that he hit the 30,000 point club in the NBA. His 34 points on the night helping him to enter the exclusive club, as only the eighth player in league history to hit that milestone.
This couldn't have come at a better time for the player and his legacy personally. At a time when long-time trade target Jimmy Butler has hit the ground running with the Golden State Warriors, Durant has become overlooked in the league. That's as much to do with the position the Suns find themselves in than anything else, although he will be starting in the All-Star game once again.
Nike celebrates Kevin Durant scoring 30,000 career points with new “Easy Money” spot 💸💸💸 https://t.co/N0cfV5x2X0 pic.twitter.com/OvvVh2GNWR
— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) February 12, 2025
The links have died down in recent years, but there was a time when Durant was thought of as second best behind LeBron James. The Miami Heat beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2012 - and it wasn't until Durant joined the Warriors the first time and got a couple of rings of his own - did any separation between the two friends exist in the league.
James is obviously one of the other guys to hit the 30k in points, he's also the all-time leading scorer in league history and Durant is never going to catch him. But where Durant can finally say he legitimately has one over his fellow future Hall of Famer is in how quickly he reached this particular milestone.
Only Wilt Chamberlain and Michael Jordan made it to 30,000 points quicker than Durant managed to, and that is something which can never be taken away from him. By James or anybody else. It is a shame that this feat was wasted on a loss to the Grizzlies - at home no less - but the fact still remains that perhaps the greatest pure scorer ever made it to this point.
Durant's play - on both ends of the court no less - has also been a welcome distraction in what has been a poor season for the franchise. Devin Booker has failed to hit the heights expected of him, while those around their stars have struggled with inconsistencies. The Suns continue to have Durant however - and as long as he's knocking down baskets - there will be fans in attendance.