PHOENIX — Jusuf Nurkic broke the Suns' franchise record with 31 rebounds, the most in an NBA game in 14 years, but he didn't want to talk much about the feat after a 118-110 loss to Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday. evening.
Nurkic and Phoenix coach Frank Vogel criticized some missed calls after the Thunder cruised to victory despite blowing a 24-point lead.
“I don't know, man, I'm just trying to do my role the best I can. But it's a little tough when you have 13 offensive rebounds and 16 shots and then zero free throws,” Nurkic said. “As hard as I work and feel like [I’m] receive foul as [much as] anyone in the league.
“And I'm not here saying: we lost the game, it is what it is… [but] it's just not really common sense. At least one [free throw]. [To] Don't you even have one? But I know it happens. “I am not the first and, unfortunately, I will not be the last.”
Vogel, in particular, focused on how often he thought Suns star Kevin Durant was fouled.
“We have to be better,” the coach said. “[But] I'll start by saying that Kevin Durant was fouled all night. If he has the ball and they strip him three, four, maybe even five times, and every time he tries to get open, they hold him, which is something I really want the league to look at.”
Both Vogel and Nurkic also noted the Suns' 22 turnovers. Oklahoma City had six.
“That's where the problem of turnovers starts,” Vogel added. “We've had trouble with that all year. This team is number one in the league at forcing turnovers, we didn't handle their pressure well enough and their length, and we didn't recognize our length when we tried to touch the paint… “It was expensive.”
Nurkic also finished with 14 points, but had five of Phoenix's turnovers.
“Another turnover problem,” he said. “We're 22? So I think we all agree in the locker room that this s— has to change. We'll see something different in the future.”
Nurkic's efforts on the boards resulted in the most rebounds of any player since Kevin Love had 31 in 2010, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
“Unbelievable,” Vogel said of Nurkic. “Leaving aside the loss, just look at a 31-rebound night, at any time in NBA history. [it] It's just an incredible performance. The best in Phoenix Suns history. “He's a beast on the defensive end of the floor.”
On November 12, 2010, Love, while playing for the Minnesota Timberwolves, finished with 31 points and 31 rebounds in a 112-103 win over the New York Knicks. Nurkic was 16 years old when Love posted that total.
“I saw on the screen that he was 28,” Nurkic said, when asked if he knew, during the match, that he was on his way to history. “But it doesn't really matter. I mean, it's great, but we lost the game.”
Nurkic broke the Phoenix rebounding record of 27 rebounds set by Tyson Chandler against the Atlanta Hawks in January 2016. Nurkic's previous record was 23 for the Portland Trail Blazers against the Sacramento Kings in January 2019. The 7-year-old feet scored 22 earlier this season against both the Los Angeles Lakers and the Brooklyn Nets.
The Suns played without star guard Devin Booker on Sunday after he sprained his right ankle late in a loss to the visiting Houston Rockets on Saturday night.
Oklahoma City improved to 42-18 to take a half-game lead over rivals Minnesota and the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference's Northwest Division. The Thunder had won six straight before losing Thursday night to the San Antonio Spurs.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points for the Thunder, and all five Oklahoma City starters scored in double figures. Jalen Williams scored 22 points, Chet Holmgren 14, Luguentz Dort 13 and Josh Giddey 10. Gilgeous-Alexander also had eight rebounds and nine assists.
Bradley Beal scored 31 points for Phoenix (35-26). Ejected Saturday night for a fight with Houston's Jalen Green, Beal played 33 minutes in his second game back from a hamstring strain. Durant added 20 points and Eric Gordon scored 15 after missing three games with a groin injury.
Vogel said before Sunday's game that Booker's ankle was still being evaluated and the team would have more information Tuesday.
Initially, Phoenix overcame Booker's absence and took a 17-4 lead. But the Thunder scored the next 10 points and finished the first quarter on a 24-7 run to lead 28-22. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 10 points in the period.
Nurkic played seven minutes in the first quarter and had 12 rebounds, but the Suns only had one rebound for the rest of the quarter after he went to the bench to take a breather.
“He's a big guy, man. He works hard down there. He competes. He tries to get every rebound,” Beal said of Nurkic. “I think that says a lot; he's the best rebounder in the league, without a doubt. His ability to use his size and clear space.
“[I] I take my hat off to him.”
Gilgeous-Alexander, second to the Dallas Mavericks' Luka Doncic in scoring average at 31.4 entering Sunday's matchup, scored 18 points in the first half as the Thunder led 66-52 at intermission. Beal scored 17 to lead the Suns.
Oklahoma City led by as many as 24 before the Suns responded and cut the score to 86-83 at the end of the third quarter. Gordon's 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter made the score 91-89, the Suns' first lead since the first quarter.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
