The Denver Nuggets visited the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night, and here’s how the game unfolded at the Footprint Center in Phoenix: In their preseason home opener, the Phoenix Suns faced the Denver Nuggets in front of a sold-out crowd, with the final score being 115-107 in favor of the Nuggets.

Starting Lineups:

Suns:

Josh Okogie

Chimezie Metu

Jusuf Nurkic

Grayson Allen

Saben Lee

Nuggets:

Justin Holiday

Aaron Gordon

Nikola Jokic

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

Jamal Murray

Notably, Phoenix’s star trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal didn’t participate in this game. Suns head coach Frank Vogel provided the reasoning for their absence, stating, “We’re making these decisions on a game-by-game basis. I always felt that we’re not going to play them in all five preseason games. We want to manage their preseason workload, especially after an east coast trip with a three-hour time zone change and an afternoon game that affected their sleep. I wanted to give them a few days to recover before putting them back on the court.”

First Quarter:
The Suns found themselves trailing 13-12 after the first timeout, with Grayson Allen being the only starter not to score in the initial five minutes of play. With 3:55 remaining in the quarter, Yuta Watanabe and Drew Eubanks joined the Suns lineup, and soon after, Keita Bates-Diop and Eric Gordon entered the game, helping the Suns take a 21-20 lead just over a minute later. However, Denver regained the lead, finishing the first period with a 25-23 advantage. The Nuggets were accurate from beyond the arc, shooting 50% from three-point range, while Josh Okogie led the Suns with six points and three rebounds.

Second Quarter:
Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray returned to the court for Denver, swiftly contributing eleven points, prompting a timeout from Suns coach Frank Vogel. All six points scored by the Suns at the beginning of the second quarter came from Gordon. Grayson Allen caught fire after the sluggish start, scoring seven points to help tie the game at 38. However, Denver, primarily playing their starters, pulled away again towards the end of the quarter, leading 55-48 at halftime. Phoenix’s shooting struggled, ending the half with a 38% field goal rate. Jusuf Nurkic was the only Suns player in double digits with ten points and four rebounds.

Third Quarter:
The third quarter saw the debut of Bol Bol, who received a rousing ovation from Suns fans as a free agent signing. Other than that, the third quarter was relatively uneventful for both teams, with the Nuggets holding an 87-77 lead going into the final quarter. The Suns emphasized getting to the free-throw line, attempting 24 free throws compared to Denver’s nine through three quarters.

Fourth Quarter:
The Suns made an early fourth-quarter push, cutting Denver’s lead in half and prompting the Nuggets to call a timeout. Bol Bol contributed four of Phoenix’s seven points during their initial run. However, Denver’s second-team players proved too strong for Phoenix down the stretch, as the Suns managed only one field goal attempt in the final two minutes of play. Josh Okogie led the Suns with 17 points, with four of their five starters finishing with ten points or more.