'FINIX Big 3 88 points joint victory'

The Phoenix Big 3 has paid off its name.

The Phoenix Sons won 117-111 against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2023-2024 NBA regular season at Rockets Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland on the 12th (KST).

The Phoenix will face Cleveland, the third-ranked team in the Eastern Conference. However, Devin Booker was scheduled to return to the team. Cleveland ace Donovan Mitchell was confirmed to be absent.

The presence or absence of a main player greatly affected the game.

Booker played 38 minutes and 9 seconds, recording 27 points, six rebounds, and seven assists. He threw seven shots and scored just one. However, his field goal success rate reached 50.0 percent (11/22).

Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, who built Booker and the Big Three, also showed strong concentration. Durant had 37 points, eight rebounds, and six assists, equivalent to a triple-double. Beal also displayed his influence in both offense and defense with 24 points, five rebounds, four assists, and three steals.

Booker added strength to the Phoenix with his steady scoring throughout the game. Durant bombed 19 points in the third quarter alone, and Bill scored 11 points in the second quarter. As a result, the Phoenix ended its highly anticipated trip to Cleveland with a six-point victory.

"Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal have the opportunity to play together. I'm really grateful for that. Today's game was like a slugfest. But I could see the hard work Booker made during his rehabilitation period. He showed great performance," Phoenix coach Frank Vogel said in an interview after the game.

His opponent, Caris Lebert, also gave a tongue-in-cheek at the presence of the big three.

"We can win in these games as well. When our opponents throw punches on the day, we felt as if we kept throwing punches. However, the opponents got hotter and we couldn't stop them," Lebert said.

With the victory, Phoenix maintained its sixth place in the Western Conference with 38 wins and 27 losses as of Tuesday. It is 7.5 games shorter than the top-ranked Oklahoma City Thunder, but only four games shorter than the fourth-ranked Los Angeles Clippers.

It remains to be seen whether the healthy Phoenix Big 3 can put the West's top-ranked competition in the mix.

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