NBA Power Rankings: Blake Griffin trade shakes things up

The Suns treated themselves to an 0-4 week, running their recent stretch of ineptitude to seven losses in their last eight games. Devin Booker missed 12-of-14 field goal attempts, but made all nine of his free throws to finish with 14 points, getting dominated by his former teammate Eric Bledsoe, who had 19 points and seven assists. The Suns laid down and surrendered to the Pacers in their second game of the week, losing 116-101 in a game that was decided in the third quarter. It was 79-44 after a Pacers run to start the second half, and the reserves got the honor of finishing the game while the starters contemplated their poor performance.

The Suns weren’t able to take care of the Knicks, who ended a long road trip in the desert, as the home team lost 107-85. The Knicks physically dominated the Suns from the opening tip, with Enes Kanter having a walk in the park against Greg Monroe. T.J. Warren finished with 20 points, but had the best plus-minus of the starters with a -17 performance. Jared Dudley decided to get into a Twitter battle with Kanter, but let’s be honest, if you score seven points in a 22-point loss at home, you’ve already lost that battle.

Devin Booker broke out of a slump with 31 points and 10 assists, showing off the perimeter touch that is one of the few bright spots for Phoenix this season. He did have a tough fall, injuring his ribs and hips, and will be re-evaluated on Monday to see if there is an injury that will keep him out.