Suns 117, Magic 104: Booker's 30 and a New-Look Lineup Snap the Skid
Final: Phoenix Suns 117, Orlando Magic 104 — Thursday, November 5, 2026, Mortgage Matchup Center
Four straight losses, including a rough one at home to Portland the night before. Back-to-back. Two rotation guys out. If you were a Suns fan walking into the building Thursday night, you were bracing yourself.
Instead we got the most complete three quarters we've seen all season, a lead that hit 30, and the losing streak is finally over. Phoenix moves to 2-5.
The Starting Lineup
Jordan Ott finally made the change a lot of us have been yelling about:
| Pos | Player | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | Devin Booker | 30 | 1 | 8 | 11-22 | 4-8 |
| G | Jalen Green | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3-7 | 0-1 |
| F | Dillon Brooks | 24 | 1 | 1 | 9-16 | 4-6 |
| F | Miles Bridges | 18 | 13 | 5 | 6-10 | 3-6 |
| C | Oso Ighodaro | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1-2 | 0-0 |
That's Oso's first start of the season, with Khaman Maluach moving to the bench after opening every game at center so far. Jordan Goodwin and Rasheer Fleming were both unavailable.
How They Played
Devin Booker — A+. This is what Book looks like when he's in control. Thirty points on 11-of-22, perfect at the line (4-of-4), eight assists, three steals, and a team-best +16. He ripped 20 in the first half alone and buried a three right before the halftime horn to send us in up 63-51. He wasn't hunting shots — he was picking the Magic apart and letting the offense breathe around him.
Dillon Brooks — A. Say what you want about Dillon, but he showed up. Twenty-four points on 9-of-16, 4-of-6 from deep, two steals, and he was the guy finishing in transition all night — four buckets on the break. When he and Book hit back-to-back threes in the third to make it 78-60, you could feel the building exhale.
Miles Bridges — A. Quietly the best all-around night on the floor. Eighteen points on 6-of-10, a season-high 13 rebounds, five assists, two steals. On a night we got crushed on the glass as a team, Miles was basically the only one fighting for boards. Double-double, and he made the right play almost every time.
Jalen Green — C. Only six points on 3-of-7 and he never really got going as a scorer. To be fair, he didn't force it — three assists, two steals — but with Book and Brooks rolling, we needed a little more punch from the starting backcourt.
Oso Ighodaro — B-. The box score won't impress anybody: two points, five rebounds, a block, five fouls. But the Suns were +7 with him on the floor, the starting group set the tone early (33-26 after one), and the ball moved. Foul trouble is the thing to clean up. I'd keep this lineup together and see what it looks like with more reps.
The Bench
- Luke Kennard (12 pts, 5 ast, 3-of-6 from three) — Exactly what you sign him for. Spacing, smart passes, no wasted possessions.
- Ryan Dunn (11 pts, 5-of-7) — Efficient, active, and a couple of nice finishes on the break. Love seeing his offense show up alongside the defense.
- Collin Gillespie (6 pts, 3 stl) — Shot just 2-of-9, but his three with 9:20 left pushed the lead to 30, the biggest of the night, and his hands on defense were a big part of why Orlando kept coughing it up.
- Khaman Maluach came off the bench for the first time this season. Let's see how the young big responds to the role change.
What Won It
Turnovers, turnovers, turnovers. The Magic gave it away 25 times, and the Suns turned that into 36 points. Fourteen steals as a team. That's the whole game right there.
Shooting. 17-of-34 from three (50%) and 51.7% overall, with 30 assists on 45 baskets. That is a team playing together.
The third quarter. We won it 33-22, including a 22-5 run that broke it wide open. Up 96-73 heading into the fourth, the game was over.
What Still Worries Me
- The glass. Orlando out-rebounded us 61-38 and grabbed 15 offensive boards. That cannot keep happening.
- Wendell Carter Jr. went off for 27 and 13 on 10-of-12 shooting. Nobody had an answer for him inside.
- Franz Wagner dropped 15 assists. He was finding cutters all night when he wasn't turning it over.
- The fourth quarter. Orlando won it 31-21. Yes, it was mostly garbage time, but letting a 30-point lead shrink to 13 isn't the habit you want.
Up Next
No time to celebrate. The Suns host the Houston Rockets on Saturday, November 7 at 7:00 PM MST. If this starting five can rebound like they shared the ball tonight, we might be starting a streak of the good kind.
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