Kevin Durant went to Inglewood and stole the Los Angeles Clippers’ thunder.
Durant scored 25 points and the Suns denied the Clippers inside their new home arena in overtime, 116-113, as the visitors picked up their first win of the season.
GAME WON.#SunsUp pic.twitter.com/prOoPGUVee
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) October 24, 2024
The two-time champion and Finals MVP added seven rebounds and three steals, as his clutch one-legged fadeaway over two defenders sent the game to overtime at 103-apiece.
KD AGAIN.
1-LEGGED FADING AWAY FOR THE TIE 😲Heading to OT on ESPN in the first game at the Intuit Dome 🍿🍿 #KiaTipOff24 pic.twitter.com/4Pljn13GD8
— NBA (@NBA) October 24, 2024
In the extra five minutes, the Suns dodged a bullet in the closing moments of the game as James Harden missed a potential game-tying basket in his second free-throw attempt.
Big man Jusuf Nurkic secured the rebound, got fouled, and calmly sunk two freebies from the charity stripe to give Phoenix a 116-113 lead with three seconds left.
Los Angeles had a chance to send the game to another overtime, but Grayson Allen stole the ball from Harden in an inbound play that sealed a gritty Suns win inside the brand new Induit Dome.
Grayson Allen comes up with the inbounds pass to seal the deal!
— NBA (@NBA) October 24, 2024
An opening-night thriller goes to the @Suns on the road. pic.twitter.com/cQ0g1RK5iT
Bradely Beal chipped in 24 points while Devin Booker had 15 markers before fouling out late in the fourth quarter.
KD & Beal lead the way in the @Suns opening-night OT road W 🔥 #KiaTipOff24
— NBA (@NBA) October 24, 2024
KD: 25 PTS, 7 REB, 3 STL
Beal: 24 PTS, 4 3PM pic.twitter.com/e0vsP78B6Z
Despite squandering an early 14-point lead, the Suns knocked down 15 threes and key crucial stops in the end for a winning start.
Meanwhile, James Harden went to work for the Clippers with an all-around game of 29 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists but had eight turnovers in 40 minutes.
Harden comes right back!
— NBA (@NBA) October 24, 2024
101-101 on ESPN 🍿🍿 https://t.co/TeEgQU9AKV pic.twitter.com/P09GfQmXDE
The Clippers, playing without injured star Kawhi Leonard, also got 21 markers from Ivica Zubac and 17 points from Norman Powell.
It was their first home game in the state-of-the-art arena after sharing their home games in Los Angeles with cross-town rival Lakers for 25 years.
The Clippers actually held a nine-point lead, 99-90, but got outscored, 13-4, in the final 3:51 seconds of the fourth period.
Los Angeles also dominated the rebounding battle, 51-42, and pounded Phoenix inside behind a 62-42 paint point advantage.
Up next for the Clippers are the Denver Nuggets while the Suns will play Los Angeles Lakers.
