Kevin Durant, back from injury, scores 23 in winning Suns debut

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It was in Charlotte over All-Star Weekend in 2019 that Kevin Durant solidified his decision to partner with Kyrie Irving when both became free agents the following summer. Four years later, a new partnership was unveiled in the same arena, this one with hope for a better outcome.

Playing for the first time as a member of the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night, Durant showed early signs of the potential for the devastating 1-2 punch he can form with Devin Booker in a 105-91 win to snap the Charlotte Hornets' five-game win streak.

Durant scored 23 points in just 27 minutes, his jumper looking rust-free after being out since Jan. 8 while recovering from a right MCL sprain he suffered when he was still with the Brooklyn Nets. But it was the playmaking combination with Booker that left the biggest impression.

When they were on the floor together certainly, as Booker had a terrific all-around game with 37 points, six rebounds and seven assists to create the sort of wing scoring duo that the Durant acquisition was all about. But it was when they were separated where the Suns' game plan with them came into focus.

In both halves, Durant played stretches with four bench players, and both times the score went from close to double-digit Phoenix leads as he drilled a series of his trademark midrange jumpers. He ended the game having shot 10-of-15.

Those stretches, essentially, made it a stress-free win as the Suns never trailed and Durant ended up with a team-best +13 plus/minus.

When Durant, who played four six-minute shifts and then the final three minutes as part of a minute restriction, was sitting, it was Booker who was going to work — making 15 of 26 shots as he worked off Chris Paul, who had 11 assists, per