Chris Paul hits career-high 7 3s, Suns top short-handed Nuggets to win season-high 7th straight

Phoenix pulled away late in topping Denver, 119-115, Thursday night before a sellout crowd of 17,071 at Footprint Center.

Extending the NBA’s longest active win streak to seven in a row, the Suns (45-35) went on a 14-4 run to take a 114-107 lead with 3:08 remaining with Kevin Durant and Chris Paul each hitting a 3.

"Down the stretch, you could see when we need to execute and when guys are in their spots; we understand what we need to, but in the meat of the game, it was just too many ‘my bad’ situations," Suns coach Monty Williams said.

It was Paul’s sixth 3 as he later nailed a career-high seven from deep in the regular season to give Phoenix an 119-111 advantage with 1:09 remaining. His 12 3-point attempts tied a career-high.

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"I should've made more," Paul said. "Just trying to take those shots and that's why these games are important. It's a new way. Like I've said, I've never really played with guys that's getting doubled like this. I think it's not just wait until the playoffs to find that rhythm. You need to use these games to do that."

Kevin Durant scored a team-high 29 points with 12 coming in the fourth while Paul posted 25 points. The Suns are now 8-0 with Durant in the lineup.

"I don't make too much of it," Durant said about Suns being 8-0 with him in the lineup. "It's a whole new season about to start. What we're doing right now is cool, record wise, but we want to keep building good habits and stay healthy. That's the only thing that's important to me."

The seven straight victories is also a season high for the Suns, who had a six-game win streak back in late November.

Bruce Brown led all scorers with 31 to lead the Nuggets (52-28).

"I thought we should have won," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. "We do prepare to win, and we do expect to win regardless of who plays. I cannot fault the effort. I thought our guys went out there and fought and competed. They played their hearts out and gave us a chance to win against a team that a lot of people are expecting to come out of the Western Conference."

The Suns were without T.J. Warren (illness), who was a late scratch and Denver played without all its starters — reigning two-time MVP Nikola Jokic (calf), Jamal Murray (thumb), Michael Porter Jr. (heel), Aaron Gordon (shoulder) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (non-COVID).

Phoenix topped the Nuggets by seven last week at home after nearly blowing a 27-point, second-half lead.

With Gordon being the only starter who played, Denver got within four points late in the fourth.

The Nuggets have clinched the No. 1 seed in the West for the first time in franchise history while Phoenix locked up the fourth seed.

The Suns play the Lakers (41-39) in the second of a back-to-back Friday in Los Angeles and close out the regular season Sunday against the Clippers at Footprint Center.

The Clippers (42-38) are fifth in the West as the 4-5 seeds meet in the first round of the playoffs. The Suns are 2-1 versus the Clippers this season.

Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Chris Paul career-high 7 3s, Suns edge Nuggets to win 7th straight