Game ID: 22500505
Phoenix Suns @ Houston Rockets
Monday, January 5, 2026 at 8:00 PM ET
Toyota Center, Houston, TX
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
HOU 25 29 24 22 100PHX 29 31 18 19 97
HOU vs PHX ScoutingHOU vs PHX Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
HOU availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restBACK Eason back 12/21 after 14, 20 min since (76% of 26)
BACK Finney-Smith back 12/25 after 27, 13 min since (81% of 16)
NEW Okogie 17 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restBACK Eason back 12/21 after 14, 20 min since (77% of 26)
BACK Finney-Smith back 12/25 after 27, 15 min since (90% of 16)
HOU availability going into 1/01 · 2 days' restOUT Sengun missed 2 since 12/27, returns tonight: 34 min (100% of 34)
BACK Eason back 12/21 after 14, 22 min since (83% of 26)
BACK Finney-Smith back 12/25 after 27, 15 min since (93% of 16)
HOU availability going into 1/03 · 1 day's restBACK Sengun back 1/01 after 2, 34 min since (100% of 34)
BACK Finney-Smith back 12/25 after 27, 15 min since (93% of 16)
HOU availability going into 1/05 · 1 day's restOUT Adams missed 2 since 1/01, returns tonight: 31 min (137% of 23)
BACK Sengun back 1/01 after 2, 17 min since (52% of 34)
BACK Finney-Smith back 12/25 after 27, 15 min since (95% of 16)
HOU availability going into 1/07 · 1 day's restBACK Sengun back 1/01 after 2, 17 min since (52% of 34)
BACK Adams back 1/05 after 2, 31 min since (137% of 23)
HOU availability going into 1/09 · 1 day's restOUT Sengun missed 2 since 1/05, out tonight
BACK Adams back 1/05 after 2, 31 min since (135% of 23)
HOU availability going into 1/11 · 1 day's restOUT Sengun missed 3 since 1/05, returns tonight: 35 min (105% of 34)
BACK Adams back 1/05 after 2, 31 min since (138% of 23)
HOU availability going into 1/13 · 1 day's restBACK Sengun back 1/11 after 3, 35 min since (105% of 34)
BACK Adams back 1/05 after 2, 29 min since (129% of 23)
PHX availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT Allen missed 5 since 12/18, out tonight
OUT Green missed 21 since 11/10, out tonight
BACK Fleming back 12/23 after 3, 12 min since (101% of 12)
PHX availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Allen missed 6 since 12/18, out tonight
OUT Green missed 22 since 11/10, out tonight
OUT Dunn missed 2 since 12/27, returns tonight: 19 min (103% of 19)
BACK Fleming back 12/23 after 3, 12 min since (101% of 12)
PHX availability going into 1/02 · 1 day's restOUT Allen missed 7 since 12/18, out tonight
OUT Green missed 23 since 11/10, out tonight
BACK Dunn back 12/31 after 2, 19 min since (103% of 19)
BACK Fleming back 12/23 after 3, 10 min since (87% of 12)
PHX availability going into 1/04 · 1 day's restOUT Allen missed 8 since 12/18, out tonight
OUT Green missed 24 since 11/10, out tonight
BACK Dunn back 12/31 after 2, 19 min since (99% of 19)
PHX availability going into 1/05 · back-to-backOUT Allen missed 9 since 12/18, returns tonight: 22 min (78% of 28)
OUT Green missed 25 since 11/10, out tonight
BACK Dunn back 12/31 after 2, 19 min since (103% of 19)
PHX availability going into 1/07 · 1 day's restOUT Green missed 26 since 11/10, out tonight
BACK Allen back 1/05 after 9, 22 min since (78% of 28)
BACK Dunn back 12/31 after 2, 19 min since (99% of 19)
PHX availability going into 1/09 · 1 day's restOUT Green missed 27 since 11/10, out tonight
OUT Bouyea missed 2 since 1/05, out tonight
BACK Allen back 1/05 after 9, 21 min since (75% of 28)
BACK Dunn back 12/31 after 2, 19 min since (103% of 19)
PHX availability going into 1/11 · 1 day's restOUT Green missed 28 since 11/10, out tonight
OUT Bouyea missed 3 since 1/05, out tonight
BACK Allen back 1/05 after 9, 23 min since (81% of 28)
PHX availability going into 1/13 · 1 day's restOUT Green missed 29 since 11/10, out tonight
OUT Bouyea missed 4 since 1/05, out tonight
BACK Allen back 1/05 after 9, 23 min since (81% of 28)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 104, shooting 51 percent and 36 from three, 19 free throws a game; Durant at 28 and Thompson at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 15 a night. Without Adams (2 straight). One day's rest. Phoenix comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 110, shooting 45 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Booker at 26 and Brooks at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Allen (9 straight), Green (25 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-15 a night and Phoenix plus-8 and the defense, Houston allowing 104 a night to Phoenix's 110. Call it Houston 117, Phoenix 110.
12/27 vs CLE 117-100 — HOU notes
HOU won 117-100. HOU shot 49% (43 of 88) to CLE's 43%, 16 of 35 from three, and went to the line 21 times to CLE's 11 — 15 points from the stripe to their 7. Durant led with 30 (11 of 17, 2 of 4 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Sheppard added 18, Smith Jr. 15. The hinge was Q3, 30-17: a lead of 14 became 27, and the lead reached 31. Adams was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
12/29 vs IND 126-119 — HOU notes
HOU won 126-119. HOU shot 59% (49 of 83) to IND's 50%, 10 of 27 from three. HOU turned it over 16 times to IND's 9, and IND turned those into 12 steals. The glass went 50-29 for them. Durant led with 30 (13 of 20, 2 of 6 from three); Smith Jr. added 21, Thompson 20. The hinge was Q2, 36-23: a lead of 5 became 18, and the lead reached 28. Adams was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
1/01 @ BKN 120-96 — HOU notes
HOU won 120-96. HOU shot 57% (47 of 82) to BKN's 45%, 12 of 29 from three, and got to the line 18 times to BKN's 30. The glass went 45-27 for them. Thompson led with 23 (10 of 12, 2 of 3 from three); Durant added 22, Sengun 20. The hinge was Q3, 37-25: a lead of 11 became 23, and the lead reached 26. Sengun was the night's best plus/minus at +30.
1/03 @ DAL 104-110 — HOU notes
HOU lost 104-110. HOU took 26 more shots (106 to 80), fed by 17 offensive rebounds, but shot 39% to DAL's 55%, 10 of 41 from three. HOU turned it over 9 times to DAL's 15. Durant led with 34 (14 of 26, 2 of 7 from three); A. Thompson added 20, Eason 19. Q1 was theirs, 31-25, but the other 3 periods went 85-73 against them. They led by as many as 11. Sheppard's -24 in 22 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/05 vs PHX 100-97 — HOU notes
HOU won 100-97. HOU shot 44% (38 of 87) to PHX's 42%, 9 of 37 from three, and went to the line 21 times to PHX's 12 — 15 points from the stripe to their 9. The glass went 51-40 for them. Durant led with 26 (9 of 21, 2 of 12 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Smith Jr. added 17, Thompson 17. The hinge was Q3, 24-18: HOU came in trailing by 6 and left it level. HOU trailed 54-60 at the half and won the second half 46-37. Sheppard was the night's best plus/minus at +8.
1/07 @ POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Portland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 116, shooting 46 percent and 39 from three, 23 free throws a game; Avdija at 28 and Sharpe at 19 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Holiday (25 straight), Grant (10 straight), Henderson (37 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 104, shooting 49 percent and 34 from three, 20 free throws a game; Durant at 28 and Thompson at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 13 a night. One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Houston allowing 104 a night to Portland's 116 and the glass, where Houston has been plus-13 a night and Portland plus-5. Call it Houston 116, Portland 114, Portland keeping it close.
1/09 @ POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Portland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 112, shooting 45 percent and 37 from three, 24 free throws a game; Avdija at 31 and Sharpe at 18 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Holiday (26 straight), Grant (11 straight), Henderson (38 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 105, shooting 46 percent and 29 from three, 21 free throws a game; Durant at 30 and Thompson at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 15 a night. Without Sengun (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-15 a night and Portland plus-0 and the arc, Portland at 37 percent from three to Houston's 29. Call it Houston 114, Portland 113, Portland keeping it close.
1/11 @ SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Sacramento comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 101 a night and allowing 120, shooting 45 percent and 29 from three, 22 free throws a game; DeRozan at 19 and LaVine at 18 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Murray (2 straight), Sabonis (24 straight), Plowden (26 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 103, shooting 43 percent and 26 from three, 21 free throws a game; Durant at 30 and Thompson at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 13 a night. Without Sengun (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-13 a night and Sacramento minus-8 and the defense, Houston allowing 103 a night to Sacramento's 120. Call it Houston 115, Sacramento 108.
1/13 vs CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 106, shooting 41 percent and 23 from three, 24 free throws a game; Durant at 30 and Thompson at 23 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has won the glass by 9 a night. One day's rest. Chicago comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 111, shooting 47 percent and 33 from three, 13 free throws a game; Buzelis at 20 and Vučević at 19 a game. Without Giddey (6 straight), Collins (7 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the arc, Chicago at 33 percent from three to Houston's 23 and the line, where Houston takes 24 free throws a game to Chicago's 13. Call it Houston 114, Chicago 110, Chicago keeping it close.
12/29 @ WAS 115-101 — PHX notes
PHX won 115-101. PHX shot 41% (41 of 101) to WAS's 46%, 17 of 40 from three. PHX turned it over 10 times to WAS's 15. Brooks led with 26 (8 of 20, 3 of 8 from three, 7 of 7 at the line); Gillespie added 25, Booker 22. The hinge was Q2, 39-31: PHX came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 7, and the lead reached 17. Ighodaro was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
12/31 @ CLE 113-129 — PHX notes
PHX lost 113-129. PHX took 9 more shots (105 to 96), fed by 19 offensive rebounds, but shot 40% to CLE's 50%, 15 of 36 from three, and got to the line 16 times to CLE's 22. Booker led with 32 (13 of 25, 2 of 4 from three); Brooks added 20, Bouyea 18. Q3 was theirs, 35-29, the deficit cut from 13 to 7, but the other 3 periods went 100-78 against them. Gillespie's -17 in 27 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/02 vs SAC 129-102 — PHX notes
PHX won 129-102. PHX shot 56% (49 of 87) to SAC's 41%, 8 of 31 from three. PHX turned it over 12 times to SAC's 21. Booker led with 33 (13 of 21, 1 of 6 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Brooks added 18, Gillespie 15. The hinge was Q4, 32-19: a lead of 14 became 27. O'Neale was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
1/04 vs OKC 108-105 — PHX notes
PHX won 108-105. PHX shot 44% (35 of 79) to OKC's 48%, 17 of 43 from three, and went to the line 29 times to OKC's 19 — 21 points from the stripe to their 17. PHX turned it over 15 times to OKC's 9. The glass went 49-29 for them. Goodwin led with 26 (9 of 16, 8 of 13 from three); Booker added 24, Brooks 22. The hinge was Q3, 32-24: PHX came in trailing by 7 and left it ahead by 1. PHX trailed 42-49 at the half and won the second half 66-56. Ighodaro was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
1/05 @ HOU 97-100 — PHX notes
PHX lost 97-100. PHX shot 42% (37 of 88) to HOU's 44%, 14 of 41 from three, and got to the line 12 times to HOU's 21. The glass went 40-51 against them. Booker led with 27 (9 of 20, 2 of 5 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Brooks added 15, O'Neale 15. Q1 was theirs, 29-25, but the other 3 periods went 75-68 against them. They led by as many as 13. Allen's -8 in 22 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/07 @ MEM — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Memphis comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 122, shooting 45 percent and 32 from three, 21 free throws a game; Morant at 26 and Jackson Jr. at 21 a game. Without Morant (2 straight), Mashack (6 straight), Prosper (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Phoenix comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 107, shooting 44 percent and 37 from three, 21 free throws a game; Booker at 28 and Brooks at 20 a game. Without Green (26 straight). One day's rest.
So: Phoenix wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Phoenix allowing 107 a night to Memphis's 122 and the turnovers, Memphis giving it away 16 times a game to Phoenix's 12. Call it Phoenix 116, Memphis 114, Memphis keeping it close.
1/09 vs NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Phoenix comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 107, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 19 free throws a game; Booker at 26 and Brooks at 19 a game. Without Green (27 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 121, shooting 44 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Brunson at 27 and Towns at 17 a game. Without Hart (7 straight), Shamet (21 straight). One day's rest.
So: Phoenix wins, and the game turns on the defense, Phoenix allowing 107 a night to New York's 121 and the glass, where Phoenix has been plus-2 a night and New York minus-3. Call it Phoenix 117, New York 112.
1/11 vs WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Phoenix comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 102, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Booker at 26 and Brooks at 21 a game. Without Green (28 straight). One day's rest. Washington comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 122, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; McCollum at 21 and Sarr at 16 a game. Without Riley (2 straight), Watkins (6 straight), Cooper (19 straight). One day's rest.
So: Phoenix wins, and the game turns on the defense, Phoenix allowing 102 a night to Washington's 122 and the turnovers, Washington giving it away 18 times a game to Phoenix's 12. Call it Phoenix 120, Washington 109, Phoenix by 11.
1/13 @ MIA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Miami comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 120, shooting 44 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Powell at 20 and Herro at 19 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest. Phoenix comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 101, shooting 44 percent and 37 from three, 18 free throws a game; Booker at 22 and Brooks at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Green (29 straight). One day's rest.
So: Phoenix wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Phoenix allowing 101 a night to Miami's 120 and the turnovers, Miami giving it away 18 times a game to Phoenix's 13. Call it Phoenix 115, Miami 111, Miami keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
HOUAH A. Holiday
AT A. Thompson
CC C. Capela
DF D. Finney-Smith
JO J. Okogie
JS J. Smith Jr.
KD K. Durant
RS R. Sheppard
SA S. Adams
TE T. Eason
PHXCG C. Gillespie
DB D. Booker
DB D. Brooks
GA G. Allen
JG J. Goodwin
MW M. Williams
OI O. Ighodaro
RD R. Dunn
RF R. Fleming
RO R. O'Neale
HOU/PHX the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Durant's 3-pointer in final seconds gives Rockets 100-97 win over the Suns
HOUSTON -- — Kevin Durant scored 26 points and his 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds to go lifted the Houston Rockets to a 100-97 win over the Phoenix Suns on Monday night.
The game was tied when Durant drained the 27-footer to give the Rockets the victory over his former team. Durant joined the Rockets from Phoenix this summer in a blockbuster trade that sent Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green to the Suns.
Devin Booker 's 3-point attempt bounced off the rim after Durant gave Houston the lead to end it.
The Suns had a chance to take the lead before Durant’s game winner, but Booker’s 3-point attempt was off. Phoenix got the rebound, but the shot clock expired, giving Houston the ball with 5.1 seconds to go.
Amen Thompson and Jabari Smith Jr. added 17 points each to help Houston to its fifth win in six games.
Booker scored 27 points and Brooks had 15 for the Suns, whose two-game winning streak ended.
The Rockets led by seven with less than five minutes left before the Suns used a 10-0 run, with eight points from Booker, to take a 97-94 lead with about 2 1/2 minutes to go.
Smith made a free throw with six minutes remaining, but the Rockets hadn’t scored a field goal in almost 4 1/2 minutes when a three-point play by Thompson tied it with under two minutes remaining.
Houston’s Alperen Sengun sat out after spraining his right ankle Saturday and coach Ime Udoka said the big man is expected to miss 10 to 14 days with the injury.
The game was briefly delayed in the second quarter because of a malfunction of the clocks and scoreboard before play resumed without either working and the public address announcer periodically announcing the time on the game clock and shot clock.
The clock and scoreboard began working with about four minutes left in the first half, and the shot clocks were restored for the start of the third quarter.
Up next Suns: Visit Memphis on Wednesday.
Rockets: Play consecutive games at Portland on Wednesday and Friday.