The Miami alum balled out in this one.
The Washington Wizards scrapped and clawed their way back from a large deficit, but still fell short Thursday in a 130-123 loss to the Phoenix Suns at Capital One Arena.
The Suns led by as many as 24 points in a game that was initially shaping up to be a blowout. Kevin Durant hit a midrange jumper that gave Phoenix a 103-79 lead with 58.1 seconds to play in the third quarter.
But the Wizards showed some fight to close out the contest. The bench unit of Kyshawn George, Jared Butler, Corey Kispert, Justin Champagnie, and Jonas Valanciunas all played big down the stretch.
George in particular had the best game of his young career. He went off for a career-best 24 points, including 10 in the game’s final six minutes of play. George also hit a clutch triple with 1:06 to play, cutting the lead down to three.
The bench was vibin’ after this bucket https://t.co/zskCDegl71 pic.twitter.com/imisWWsYsK
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) January 17, 2025
However, the Suns answered with a Devin Booker triple that basically iced the game.
George made six of his eight three-point attempts. Given his shooting woes throughout the season, hopefully this game gets his outside stroke back to form.
Alex Sarr also had a decent outing with 16 points on 7/17 shooting to go along with nine rebounds and two blocks. The downside is he went just 1/7 from long range.
Corey Kispert looked extra spry in this one with 14 points off the bench. Instead of relying on his three-point shot, Kispert went 7/10 from within the arc. Kispert had several tough finishes in the paint and tied Kyle Kuzma with a team-best five assists.
The Wizards start a six-game West Coast road trip on Saturday against the Golden State Warriors.