Key Match-up – Alec Burks and Devin Booker
Although it still hasn’t been officially announced who will start in Rodney Hood’s place and while it very likely may not be Alec Burks due to the limited minutes he’s been able to play as he works to recover from his recent ankle surgery, it still feels good to have him back and pin him as a key figure in this game.
And whether Burks starts and gets significant minutes or not, he’ll need to play his part well in both adding a much-needed scoring punch for the Jazz as well as utilizing his quickness to slow Devin Booker defensively. Devin Booker has been nearly unstoppable of late as he has put up a career-high 39 points in each of his last two contests while shooting 61.9 percent from the field and 75 percent from deep.
Devin Booker joins LeBron as the only players in #NBA history with 4 or more 38+ PT games at Devin's age (20 yrs, 76 days). #NBAVote pic.twitter.com/EIhHNqvOLp
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) January 15, 2017
He’s moved his way up the ladder and is now the Suns’ leading scorer having recently surpassed Eric Bledsoe for the spot. The two create a dynamic backcourt duo as Booker is averaging 20.3 points per game while Bledsoe is chipping in 20.1. But given how hot Booker has been of late, he will certainly need to be the key player of focus for the Jazz.
Burks, meanwhile, has appeared to get some of the spring back in his step as he played well against Orlando notching eight points on 3-of-5 shooting in 15 minutes of play.
With all the time he’s missed this season, it would be great to see him have a breakout game particularly while he has such a great opportunity in Hood’s absence. If he’s able to put up even a low double-figure game while also helping out his teammates to force Booker into an inefficient night, it will give the Jazz a critical advantage in winning this game.