Suns Players Share Their Side of the Story Following Physical Battle with Raptors

The Toronto Raptors and Phoenix Suns played what seemed like a rivalry game Friday night with chippy altercations from both teams in a tough fought battle

Aaron Rose | Mar 12, 2022

Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

There's certainly no love lost between the Toronto Raptors and Phoenix Suns.

Friday night's game may not constitute a rivalry game, but it certainly felt like it as things unraveled into a dogfight late.

The chippiness really began in the third quarter when Devin Booker and Torrey Craig yanked Precious Achiuwa down from behind as he went up for a coast-to-coast dunk. It led to a flagrant one for Booker who said post-game that he was just going for the ball.

"I don't know what was wrong with him. He continued to play. But it definitely looked worse than it was," Booker said.

A quarter later, Gary Trent Jr. and Cameron Payne got into things when Trent's three-point follow-through made contact with Payne's closeout leading to a flagrant offensive foul on Trent.

"That ain't a regular shot," Payne said post-game. "It ain't a regular shot."

Trent did get the last laugh though, nailing the game-winning free throws to cap off a 42-point performance as Toronto snuck out of Phoenix with the victory. He let his game speak for itself post-game, opting to take the high road and claim amnesia in regards to the altercation with Payne.

"Our team came in here and tried to get a W and we left with a W," he said.

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