Mike Budenholzer surprised everyone when the Phoenix Suns released their starting lineup shortly before tipoff on Sunday evening in Minneapolis.
With Kevin Durant still nursing a calf injury and Jusuf Nurkic ailing, Budenholzer up-sized with a group that hadn’t played a minute together prior to this weekend. Out was Josh Okogie, who got the starting nod in an ugly loss in OKC on Friday night. In his place stepped backup 5-man Mason Plumlee, in this case starting at the 4.
From the jump, it became clear the insertion of Plumlee was just as much about Julius Randle as it was about Plumlee himself. The Suns vet played way off Randle on the defensive end, daring him to shoot jumpers while giving the Suns more rim protection and interior defense. When the Wolves pulled Plumlee into a pick-and-roll, he used his quick feet to execute an aggressive scheme, “blitzing” the ball-handler to force him to get rid of it and get the ball where the Suns wanted it — in Randle’s hands.
Offensively, Plumlee was more than just dead weight. Sure, he spaced out to the corner at times in hopes of forcing Randle into tough help decisions. But he also worked as a playmaker as usual, in dribble hand-offs and side pick-and-rolls that made use of his athletic finishing and high IQ.
The move helped the other centers as well. Nurkic was free to put up more 3s than usual to unclog the floor with the Suns’ bigger unit. Rookie Oso Ighodaro saw his role simplified, where he could focus on guarding Randle one on one or protecting the rim as a 4 rather than anchoring the defense as a 5.
Most importantly, the Suns executed the surprise gameplan with few mistakes. Intentionally leaving Randle open; running screen actions on offense and defense with two traditional big men; spacing the floor properly — these things take focus.
The Suns, led by Budenholzer, looked like they were in Year 4 together and as if this was a familiar trick. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Instead, we saw a new head coach throw a wildcard at his opponent and at his players, and pull it off. The loss stings, but the value of the reps on Sunday will matter far more than an L in the standings.
