127-105. Yeah, it was that bad. Worse even. So much for all the talk about “swag” and “tough juice.” Only time will tell if last night’s shellacking at the hand of the Phoenix Suns will start the backlash on the hype and attention the Wizards have earned this year, but boy was it ugly. The crowd of 20,173, not to mention the huge media contingent, came to the Verizon Center last night be entertained and watch two of the best teams in the NBA, but Phoenix was the one providing most the ooh’s and aah’s.

The Suns scored early and often in the first quarter, quickly turning an early 6-6 tie into a 28-12 Wizards deficit that only grew as the game wore on. The Suns hit six three pointers in the quarter, just one less than the number of field goals mustered by the Wizards. Washington’s 33 percent field goal percentage – on 7-21 shooting – actually went down in the second quarter before Gilbert Arenas started to heat up and make the score somewhat respectable. Phoenix was running their fun-and-gun offense to perfection, getting open looks at threes off of dribble penetration and seemingly hitting everything they threw at the rim. They were getting in the lane with impunity and scoring so quickly that the Verizon center PA announcer was having a hard time telling the difference between James and Jumaine Jones.

Halftime couldn’t come quick enough. Phoenix hit another five threes in the second and had six players in double digits by the time the horn sounded, leading to a 25 point Suns advantage. Steve Nash was a perfect 7 for 7 from the field at that point. During the break, a teenager sitting near me in a Nash jersey called his Mom to excitedly proclaim “We’re totally kicking their ass!” The sad thing was, he was right.

Photos by Kyle Gustafson. More here.