Grayson Allen leads the Suns’ balanced effort as they overcome the Lakers 123-113 in the closing minutes.

Grayson Allen leads the Suns’ balanced effort as they overcome the Lakers 123-113 in the closing minutes.

Phoenix — — The fact that a Big Three led the Phoenix Suns on Sunday is hardly surprising.

The surprising part is that Grayson Allen, Royce O’Neale, and Jusuf Nurkic were those three guys.

The Suns overcame the Los Angeles Lakers 123-113 in the fourth quarter thanks to 24 points from Allen and 22 from Kevin Durant.

With three minutes remaining, Allen and O’Neale made clutch 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to give the Suns a 116-104 lead. In addition, Nurkic recorded one of his best career all-around performances with 18 points, 22 rebounds, and seven assists.

The Suns’ coach, Frank Vogel, stated, “Those three guys were the stars of the game tonight.”

The Suns’ roster has been constructed around the so-called “Big Three” of Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, and Kevin Durant, who have together been selected to 21 All-Star teams. They have carried a lot of the load this season, as was to be expected, but the Suns are now a much deeper team because to the development of supporting players like Allen, O’Neale, and Nurkic.

Playing among the Suns’ studs has taught Allen to pick his scoring opportunities, he added. One of those days was Sunday.

“It’s partly an instinct, but mostly I know that our group follows (Booker, Durant, and Beal) wherever they go,” Allen remarked. “They will take the lead.”

“He’s been making the right plays all season,” Durant remarked.

Late in the first quarter, the Lakers were behind by 20 points; but, by the end of the third quarter, they had narrowed the gap to 92-90. Phoenix ended a two-game losing streak with the following six points and a non-losing fourth quarter.

LeBron James scored 28 points on 12 of 19 shots, dished out 12 assists, and led the Lakers. Anthony Davis finished with 14 rebounds and 22 points.

At least 20 points were scored by four Phoenix starters, while the Suns dominated the glass 51–34. On 6-of-10 three-point attempts, Booker scored 21 points, and O’Neale added 20. Bol Bol scored 11 points off the bench in 24 minutes.