The Suns are one of four teams to have beaten the Spurs twice this season.
SAN ANTONIO — Fresh off their record-setting 3-point performance against the Kings, the Spurs look to continue their hot shooting against a better Pacific division opponent.
The 39-30 Phoenix Suns come to town Thursday night in a possible first round playoff preview.
If the season ended today, the Spurs would be the No. 2 seed and the Suns would be the No. 7 seed. In the past, this would for sure be the first-round matchup. However, since the play-in tournament has been introduced, Phoenix needs to win one play-in game to officially get the No. 7 seed.
But that’s in the future, as of now, the Spurs are as hot as the sun, and not the Phoenix kind.
Against the Kings, San Antonio hit a team-record 25 3-pointers, shooting a sizzling 51% from that range.
Julian Champagnie went 5 of 7 from 3-point range, Harrison Barnes was 4 of 5, De’Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper each went 3 of 5, Lindy Waters III was 3 of 7, and Victor Wembanyama and Keldon Johnson each hit two 3-pointers. Three other players added one 3-pointer apiece.
Everyone who checked in other than the backup big men (Luke Kornet, Bismack Biyombo and Luke Kornet) hit a 3-pointer for the Spurs.
Interestingly, three of the top five best shooting games for the Spurs in their history has been against the Kings. On November 11, 2024, they hit 22 3-pointers, less than a month later on December 1, 2024, they hit 23 3-pointers against the same Kings team.
Adding to this phenomenon, the most 3-pointers a team has hit this season was the Orlando Magic when they hit 27 points on Feb. 19.
The team that was against? You guessed it. The Sacramento Kings.
So if you see the Kings on your schedule, there’s a good chance you’ll be breaking some 3-point records.
The Spurs’ 25 3-pointers is tied for second most made with four other teams this year behind the aforementioned Magic.
Now the question becomes can the Spurs continue their hot shooting against Phoenix? The stats say maybe not.
The Suns allow the third least amount of 3-pointers in the NBA at 12.1 a game. They also allow the second worst 3-point percentage at 34.4%.
The last time the Spurs played the Suns on Feb. 19, they hit 13 of 37 3-pointers in a 121-94 win.
The Spurs have been relatively dominant this year, but one of the teams that has their number has been Phoenix.
The first two meetings this season in November saw two Phoenix wins.
The Nov. 2 matchup was a 130-118 win for the Suns. In that game Devin Booker dropped 28 points and dished out 13 assists.
The loss was the first loss of the entire season for the Spurs, being down by as many as 31 points.
Stephon Castle had 26 points, grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists. It was a rare off game for Wembanyama, who finished with nine points on 4/14 shooting and nine rebounds, one of the only times you’ll see him finish a game with single digits in both categories.
The Nov. 23 matchup was more of the same, resulting in a 111-102 win for the Suns. This game Wemby and Castle didn’t play at all, so there was a built-in excuse for the Spurs to lose that one.
De’Aaron Fox led the way with 26 points.
The third matchup on Feb. 19 was more of what Spurs fans have experienced this season. The Spurs dominated the Suns 121-94, being up by as many as 32 points.
Wembanyama had another quiet game for his standards, “only” scoring 17 points while grabbing 11 rebounds but blocking five shots.
Stephon Castle had another strong game with 20 points.
The trend in these three games is that Wemby has been not the Wemby we know, only averaging 13 points and 10 rebounds in two games.
Castle on the other hand has upped his play, averaging 23 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists in two games.
Both players are coming off relatively quiet games against the Kings, albeit in limited minutes. Wemby had 18 in 22 minutes, and Castle had three points but 12 assists in 22 minutes. Their lack of stats points more to the blowout than their abilities, however.
The Suns are currently on a cold streak, losers of four in a row after winning six of their last seven. This might have to do with Dillon Brooks being out for the past month. The 30-year-old is having a career year averaging 20.9 points and his absence has been felt in Phoenix.
Still, a team battling for playoff positioning in the Western Conference should always be taken seriously, especially one that has beaten the 2025-26 Spurs twice.
How to watch
The game will be televised on FanDuel Southwest at 7 p.m. Thursday. You can also listen to game action on WOAI 1200 and KXTN 1350.
Team stats leaders (as of Tuesday night)
- POINTS: Victor Wembanyama (24.2), De’Aaron Fox (19.0), Stephon Castle (16.5)
- REBOUNDS: Wembanyama (11.1), Luke Kornet (6.2), Julian Champagnie (5.8)
- ASSISTS: Castle (7.1), Fox (6.3), Dylan Harper (3.8)
- BLOCKS: Wembanyama (3.0), Kornet (1.1), Champagnie (0.4)
- POINTS: Devin Booker (25.8), Dillon Brooks* (20.9), Jalen Green (17.2)
- REBOUNDS: Mark Williams (8.1), Oso Ighodaro (4.9), Royce O’Neale (4.8)
- ASSISTS: Booker (5.9), Collin Gillespie (4.8), Grayson Allen (4.1)
- BLOCKS: Williams (0.9), Ighodaro (0.6), Khaman Maluach (0.5)
Injury report
As of Wednesday afternoon, Devin Vassell is questionable due to an ankle injury.
For the Suns, Dillon Brooks is out with a hand injury and Mark Williams is out with a foot injury. Grayson Allen is questionable with a knee injury.
Five more things to know
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The Suns are one of four teams to have beaten the Spurs twice this season (Warriors, Cavaliers, Timberwolves).
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Phoenix hits the fourth most 3-pointers of any team this season at 14.8 a game. They shoot the ninth best percentage at 36.3%
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Phoenix gets to the free throw line the third least amount of times a game at 20.3, hitting 16 of them, the third least.
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The Suns steal the ball 9.8 times a game, third best in the league.
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Despite his struggles against Phoenix, Wemby has averaged 25.1 points, 10.7 rebounds and 3.6 blocks in his last 10 games.