The sun rises on O'Neale's efficiency in the win over the Lakers

Royce O'Neale's brilliant efficiency helps solidify the Phoenix Suns' team culture and identity in their first four games.

O'Neale scored 12 points (4 of 9 shooting, 2 of 4 from 3), nine rebounds, four assists, two blocks and one turnover in 24 minutes off the bench, leading to his game-high plus-25 mark in a 109-105 win. Home win on Monday against the Los Angeles Lakers.

He posted an NBA-best plus-71 in four games, tied with Derrick White of the defending champion Boston Celtics. O'Neale is averaging 7.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists and one block per game. Most notably, O'Neale boasts team-highs with a defensive rating of 86.8 and a net rating of 34.6.

“It’s all the little things that happen along the way,” Suns coach Mike Budenholzer said. “It's about getting loose balls, getting rebounds, fighting through screens, maintaining verticality at the rim, getting to second actions offensively, that just keeps things moving.”

“It's a lot of little, subtle things that go into winning and Royce just really understands them and does it night in and night out. He’s been a big, big influence for us.”

O'Neale helped Big 3 Devin Booker (33 points), Kevin Durant (30 points) and Bradley Beal (15 points) to a thrilling fourth-place finish. He scored five points, made stops, grabbed four of his seven total defensive rebounds and was plus-10.

O'Neale's defensive stops also helped the Suns on the open floor, leading to a 21-8 advantage in fast break points.

What Royce O'Neale thought about the comeback

“I think let's just stay together and keep our composure,” O'Neale said. “They took the lead right at the start of the game and we held on to it the whole game. “We got stops when we needed them and of course important rebounds to finish on the other end.”

The Suns began the fourth quarter trailing by seven, but took the lead with a 14-3 run.

During that stretch, O'Neale had an assist, a 3-pointer to tie the game at 84, grabbed two boards and blocked a layup attempt by Anthony Davis. He made Davis score his points at the line by fouling him in the post on his second attempt.

O'Neale helped guard LeBron James and contributed to him shooting just 11 points and 21.4% on his field goal attempts, his worst regular-season shooting performance since his lowest mark of 18.2 % on Halloween 2007.

“It was a group effort. “Brad started him, then I come in, Ryan (Dunn),” O’Neale said. “I think all of us who guarded him are connected. We know they love attacking the basket as a team, so we're trying to take that away from them. “It looks easy for them.”

A key to many elite teams in recent years is a physical enforcer and Swiss Army Knife type like Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors and Jae Crowder of the 2021 Suns.

O'Neale has filled this much-needed role since being traded to Phoenix at the latest at the season's trade deadline.

Royce O'Neale's influence on the Phoenix Suns

“Great, we feed off these moments. “It's a team effort,” O'Neale said. “I think it just shows how much we want to win games and how connected we are to each other. “Every possession counts and we don't take away any possessions.”

The Suns acquired O'Neale in February when general manager James Jones described O'Neale's style with the words “winning plays.”

In 30 Suns games after taking over for O'Neale, the 31-year-old boosted them to an on-court net positive rating of 9.4, the highest for the team. When he was on the bench, Phoenix had the team's worst negative score at 4.1.

The Suns re-signed O'Neale to a $44 million contract extension in July.

During the Suns' home-opening win over Dallas on Saturday, O'Neale reflected James' description of him by making a layup in transition in the closing seconds of the third quarter. He then ran to chase Jaden Hardy before the buzzer, sending the crowd into a frenzy.

“That play from the last game, making a layup on one end and a block on the other end within three to four seconds,” Booker said. “Just all the intangibles, and at the same time he'll knock down the open shot when he needs it.” Too. He’s really important to our team.”

Even in the Suns' 109-91 home loss to Detroit on Oct. 11, O'Neale battled with Ron Holland II on the floor in a heated jump-ball tug-of-war. As O'Neale rose from the football-like pile of dogs, he threw the ball like a gladiator into the roaring crowd.

Suns fans are finding out that's exactly how Royce plays.

What Royce O'Neale thought about the comeback

Royce O'Neale's influence on the Phoenix Suns

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