BBNBA: Devin Booker's near triple-double can't power Suns past Wemby, Spurs

Thursday night didn’t feature a whole lot of former Kentucky talent, but the guys who were in action balled out. At the top of that list of guys who performed well was Devin Booker for the Phoenix Suns. Booker was just one rebound shy of a 30-point triple-double in the Suns’ loss to the Spurs. Elsewhere in the NBA, Tyrese Maxey put up solid numbers to carry the 76ers to a win over the Toronto Raptors.

Booker and Wemby duel in high-scoring affair

It’s no secret that one of the biggest storylines of the NBA season is the rookie campaign of Spurs sensation Victor Wembanyama, or “Wemby” for short. For the first time in his young NBA career, Wemby went up against another freak of nature, Kevin Durant.

However, the best matchup from that game wasn’t actually Wemby vs. Durant — it was Wemby vs. Booker. Now, they weren’t really trying to go one-on-one against each other, but they were trading buckets each time down the floor.

Big Book Bucket. pic.twitter.com/1iFBk7q3dD

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) November 3, 2023

Wemby finished the game with 38 points and 10 rebounds, but one could argue Booker had the better outing. Booker finished with 31 points, 13 assists, and nine rebounds in the game. Unfortunately for Booker and the Suns, the Spurs came out on top, winning 132-121. Keldon Johnson had seven points, seven rebounds, six assists, and two steals for San Antonio.

Tyrese Maxey contributes to 15-point 76ers victory

Booker wasn’t the only former ‘Cat who had a big night. While he didn’t have a performance quite like Booker’s, Tyrese Maxey did more than enough to help the Philadelphia 76ers cruise to a 114-99 win over the Toronto Raptors.

Maxey was all over the floor on Thursday night. He would end the game with 18 points, four assists, and two steals. Simply put, Maxey did everything he needed to do to get the job done, and that’s really all you can ask of a player.

On top of that, he was hustling up and down the floor, which is what ultimately created his opportunities to score. It’s clear that he is the facilitator of the 76ers offense, which is exactly what they need to be great.

catch him if you can. pic.twitter.com/9VhnZkjl02

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) November 2, 2023

11/02/23 Statistics:

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	MIN
Devin Booker (PHX)	132-121 L vs Spurs	31	10-19 (5-7)	9	13	0	0	5	-2	35
Tyrese Maxey (PHI)	114-99 W vs Raptors	18	7-16 (0-3)	1	4	2	0	1	6	40
Keldon Johnson (SAS)	132-121 W @ Suns	7	3-11 (1-6)	7	6	2	1	0	11	35

Tonight in the NBA:

• 7:00 PM | Pacers (Jackson, Tshiebwe) @ Cavaliers
• 7:30 PM (ESPN) | Bucks (Livingston, Washington Jr.) @ Knicks (Quickley, Randle, Toppin)
• 8:00 PM | Heat (Adebayo, Herro) @ Wizards
• 8:00 PM | Thunder (Gilgeous-Alexander, Sarr, Wallace) @ Warriors
• 8:00 PM | Bulls @ Nets
• 10:00 PM | Trail Blazers (Sharpe) @ Grizzlies
• 10:00 PM (ESPN) | Nuggets (Murray) @ Mavericks