A critical offensive foul on Grayson Allen gave the Memphis Grizzlies a lifeline. Ja Morant set up his rookie teammate Jaylen Wells to extend the lead to three in overtime. That would be enough to take down a scoring virtuoso from the Suns’ ‘Big 3’. Devin Booker, Durant, and Bradley Beal combined for 78 points. However, according to Book, Memphis had another member on their team – the referees.

Following the painful loss, Phoenix’s fourth in the last five games, Booker didn’t hold back during his postgame press conference. The Suns’ charismatic guard even risked the possibility of getting fined $25,000. But he felt the game consisted of officiating inconsistencies all around. “I think a poorly officiated game throughout tonight,” said the Suns’ all-time leading scorer.

In terms of fouls, the disparity wasn’t large. The Grizzlies went to the line 30 times, only three more than the Suns. For a team playing at home, opposing coaches would regard it to be a healthy exchange. Yet, what irked D-Book was how the whistle operated. He saw some actions that were identical but had different judgments from the referees.

“Just the inconsistency. Not saying one thing is a foul or the other, but if it’s a foul on the other end, you just keep it consistent,” the Suns’ All-Star guard said about the loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Devin Booker was found to sense some injustice. He couldn’t be present during the overtime period to help the Suns as he fouled out with close to three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. At the same time, though, the Grizzlies too were subtracted from their prime offensive threat. Jaren Jackson Jr. fouled out in the closing minutes of regulation, leaving the game to Ja Morant and Co.

And even through their early blur in overtime, Memphis managed to recover, improving to 38-20 for the season.

The Suns had multiple opportunities to win the game tonight. Particularly, Grayson Allen’s explosion in the fourth quarter allowed the Suns to have the lead for the most part of the game. However, the Grizzlies’ Morant kept attacking. 23 of his 29 points came in the second half and he was also responsible for forcing Booker to make defensive errors.

Every chance but no end-product for Devin Booker & Co.

It was largely his effort that paved the way for Memphis. Ja Morant hit a three to much-needed triple to bring the game to within one. And after Allen missed a clutch free-throw, all the Grizzlies’ magnetic guard needed was a lane. With 1.7 seconds remaining, Morant hit the floater to send the game to OT.

However, the big names weren’t the only ones who deserved to have their praises sung.

Phoenix’s bench played a massive role in keeping the game in their favor for most of the night. They scored 41 points led by Allen’s three-point spree, a significant increase from their season average of 33.2 points. Yet, once again, where they faltered was having the ability to hold leads.

Maybe the referees didn’t get every call right. But both sides benefitted almost evenly from those decisions. In the last seven games, the Suns have led by 6-10 points thrice. They have managed to win just one of those contests. Tonight, their 16 turnovers cost them 23 points as the Grizzlies capitalized on their plethora of mistakes. And in the current doom they are experiencing, the Suns have failed to respond to being in a deficit six out of seven times.

Now four games under .500, the team needs to improve their ball security and defensive structure to carry their leads to the end of the game. Having dexterous scorers such as Devin Booker and Kevin Durant is a luxury. But in order to harness the most out of their impact, it’s essential to stay coordinated and be cohesive. Currently, the Suns seem distorted.