On Monday, the Phoenix Suns secured a much-needed victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, increasing their prospects of making the Play-In Tournament. The Suns won 108-106, thanks to a clutch shot from Devin Booker on their final offensive possession. Additionally, Kevin Durant contributed significantly to his 38-point performance.
While the stars took a lot of credit for their win, head coach Mike Budenholzer never forgot to give credit to rookies Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro. Dunn played important minutes as a starter and finished with 12 points and nine rebounds on 71.4% shooting from the field. Ighodaro came off the bench and had four points in 19 minutes of action. Although he wasn’t a big performer on the offensive end, the big man took on the challenge of guarding Giannis Antetokounmpo.
After the game, Bud spoke highly about how the two rookies accepted the challenge to step their game up, especially on the defensive end.
“They have a ton of respect for veterans, but they also have a desire to go after them and take the challenge and get into it and guard, make people — probably just earn people’s respect. They’ve been doing it from the day they walked in the door,” Bud said. “Tonight’s a big one. To take the challenge and just try and make things difficult, it was good for both Ryan and Oso.”
Mike Budenholzer on Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro guarding Giannis: "They have a ton of respect for veterans, but they also have a desire to go after them and take the challenge…and probably just earn people's respect. They've been doing it from the day they walked in the door" pic.twitter.com/h4FAa5InE6
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) March 25, 2025
Dunn was also asked about his thoughts on his defensive performance on The Greek Freak.
“That’s a monster. That’s a real-life monster. He’s so aggressive. He takes no plays off, and his size, the way he just moves, and he’s very physical,” Dunn said.
The Suns will play another game against the Bucks before the 2024-25 season ends. Their next bout, on April 1, will be critical.
Phoenix Suns star was impressed with Dunn’s poster dunk on Antetokounmpo
The Phoenix Suns’ rookie didn’t back down from the challenge of playing against one of the best players in the league. At one point, Dunn energized the crowd with his poster dunk over Antetokounmpo. The No. 28 pick of the 2024 draft got a chance to talk about his moment after the game.
“It was crazy. I’m not going to lie. (Devin Booker) Book had the pass and I knew he was going to try to contest it. I got to try to dunk it on him. Just closed my eyes and I heard everyone scream when I fell. I made it. It was very cool, very cool seeing that moment,” Dun said.
Rookie Ryan Dunn on his dunk over Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2nd half of Suns win over Bucks: "It was crazy. I'm not going to lie. (Devin Booker) Book had the pass and I knew he was going to try to contest it. I got to try to dunk it on him. Just closed my eyes and I heard everyone… pic.twitter.com/nZGn5sfmUf
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) March 25, 2025
Booker also praised Dunn for capitalizing on the opportunity to show off his athletic abilities. Over the last five games, the rookie has been one of the Suns’ most consistent players. During that time, he averaged 14.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, and one assist per game.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
