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The Phoenix Suns were already facing an uphill battle without Tyson Chandler (back spasms) and Brandon Knight (illness). Turning the ball over 22 times ensured they would never reach the top in a 116-94 loss to the Sacramento Kings.
Devin Booker, playing point guard in Knight's absence, committed eight turnovers in the 1st half and nine for the game — the most by a Suns rookie since 1983-84 according to basketball-reference.com. Fourteen of Phoenix's 22 turnovers were committed in the 1st half, which helped the Kings go on a 14-4 run to end the 2nd quarter and lead 58-48 at halftime.
When the 2nd half started, the Suns already appeared beaten, and they let the Kings storm ahead to a 77-56 lead with 4:21 to play in the 3rd quarter that made the game academic at that point.
The Kings mauled the Suns on the inside tonight. DeMarcus Cousins did the job in the 1st half, putting up 20 points and nine rebounds (and hitting a 3-pointer that bounced in and out twice before dropping in the third time) en route to game highs of 29 points and 11 rebounds. Willie Cauley-Stein took over in the 2nd half and finished with a career-high 26 points.
Rajon Rondo finished with 12 assists for the Kings.
The Suns were led by Booker, who had 26 points to somewhat atone for his careless play. John Jenkins finished with 11 points and eight rebounds starting in place of Knight, and Alex Len had 14 points and seven rebounds but on 4-of-13 shooting. Archie Goodwin had a rough outing (1 point, 0-of-7 shooting) in a rare appearance, and rookie Alan Williams had six points and five rebounds in 11 minutes of action.