Shishkin left his starting woes behind him at Kempton – only to be dealt a cruel blow when departing the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase with everything still very much to play for.
Nicky Henderson’s mercurial character had refused to race at Ascot on his seasonal debut and while connections reported him to be in good form at home, the only thing they could not be completely sure of was if he would jump off.
His talent has never been in doubt as a multiple Grade One winner over both hurdles and fences, but ever since beating Energumene in an epic duel for the Clarence House Chase at Ascot in January 2022, Shishkin has endured a series of ups and downs.
He was found to be suffering from a rare bone condition when pulling up in the Champion Chase of that year, then was beaten on his return last season in the Tingle Creek and immediately stepped up in trip.
Successful at Ascot on his next outing, he stayed on for second in the Ryanair Chase before flying home to win at Aintree on his first run over three miles – but he opted to take no part at Ascot last month.
He did start with the others in the King George, and although Nico de Boinville did have to roust him along early he soon warmed up and took over in front from Frodon after the first circuit.
Approaching the second-last he was in the lead and seemingly had Allaho and Bravemansgame beaten when he got his feet tangled a couple of strides after jumping the fence, giving De Boinville no chance of staying on board.
That allowed 12-1 outsider Hewick to claim an unlikely victory as he stormed past Allaho and Bravemansgame, leaving Henderson to take the positives from Shishkin’s luckless run.
“I think they say – ‘that’s racing!’,” he said.
“I was delighted with him until then. To be fair, Nico and I had discussed the start (of the race) at length, but we hadn’t really discussed the rest of the race. But he was having a good time, he was jumping great.
“There was all this talk of having to put cheekpieces on him and things – we took them off because it was the obvious thing to do. I think a lot of people thought it might help him, but he didn’t look as if he needed them there did he?
“It appears, and those that have watched the replay have said, that he didn’t do anything wrong. He just sort of stumbled and forgot to get the foot out.”
On future plans for Shishkin, he said: “He’s got to go for the Gold Cup hasn’t he, because that’s the obvious race? He’s not going to come back in trip I wouldn’t have thought. I suppose that’s what we’ll have to do.”
De Boinville said: “I’m very proud of the horse but these things happen.
“I think it was three strides after the fence he came down, I’m not sure what happened. Racing can be cruel.
“He behaved well and I’ve never had a roar like that from a crowd for getting to my feet.”
Defending champion Bravemansgame was beaten a length and a half into second and his trainer Paul Nicholls felt Shishkin’s departure had scuppered his challenge.
He said: “Harry (Cobden) said he was getting a bit of tow from the other horse (Shishkin) for as long as he could, then the other horse had an unfortunate incident, and that interfered with him and that stopped him dead and cost him any chance then.
“He has run a good, solid race. It is a case of ifs and buts. He has run a good race again, and he was staying on strongly again and picked up the crumbs. I’ve never doubted that he stays. He is better on better ground.
“We will get him fresh and well now and go to Cheltenham. I don’t think he needs to go to Newbury as he has had three hard races. Unfortunately he got stopped dead in his tracks today, but you can’t make excuses as incidents happen and he wasn’t good enough on the day.”
Cheltenham Festival winner The Real Whacker was always on the back foot and finished fourth for Sam Twiston-Davies, beaten just over 10 lengths.
His trainer Patrick Neville said: “He stayed on really well at the end, which I was happy with.
“He missed the start for some reason today and we were always chasing after that. I like the way he stayed on at the end and the Gold Cup is still on the agenda. Cheltenham is a place that he likes.
“I think we might go straight to the Gold Cup. Sam said he was always on the back foot, but he just missed the start. There was no one to blame. It was a good run and I’m happy. He has come out of the race well.
“Fair play to the winner, and I‘d take finishing fourth in a King George any day.”
Henry de Bromhead’s Captain Guinness will bid for a first Grade One success in the Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase at Leopardstown on Wednesday.
The gelding is a consistent type who was second in a string of contests at the same level last season, including in this race behind Blue Lord 12 months ago.
He returned to action this term to win the Fortria Chase at Navan by an impressive seven lengths, a performance regular rider Rachael Blackmore regards as one of his best.
“Captain Guinness was brilliant in winning the Fortria Chase at Navan last month on his seasonal return. He jumped super. I think that it was one of the best performances of his life,” she told Betfair.
“It seems like he has been around for ages, but he is only eight, he could have improved again a little this season. He finished second in this race last year behind Blue Lord, and it would be great if he could go one better this year. He hasn’t missed a beat since Navan, and I’m sure he will put up another solid performance.
“He has won Grade Three races and Grade Two races, and he has finished second in Grade One races three times. He is such a consistent horse, he is such a favourite in the yard, it would be brilliant if he could get his Grade One win on the board here.”
Willie Mullins will saddle every one of the remaining four runners, with Dinoblue joined by Dysart Dynamo, Saint Roi and Gentleman De Mee.
The latter horse will be ridden by Paul Townend as he makes his seasonal debut and Mark Walsh will take the ride on Dinoblue, the apparent first string for owner JP McManus.
“Mark Walsh has opted to ride Dinoblue here. She made a winning start this year at Naas and gets 7lb so she is an improver,” Townend said in his blog for Ladbrokes.
“I have Gentleman De Mee who was a very good winner at the course at the Dublin Racing Festival last season.
“It is his first run back and his first run isn’t always his best, so that is a little concern. He is the highest-rated horse in the field.
“Captain Guinness beat Dysart Dynamo at Navan earlier this year and he will take a lot of beating with race fitness on his side. If my horse can run to his best, then we will see, I am really looking forward to riding him.”
Townend also rides Daddy Long Legs in the Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle, a Grade One contested over two miles that will be the chestnut’s second run for new connections.
Second in his sole French start before joining Mullins, he made an impression when winning a Thurles maiden hurdle by 13 lengths in late November.
“We have plenty of runners in this, but I picked Daddy Long Legs. I really liked what he did at Thurles,” Townend said of the ride.
“He quickened up really smartly down the hill. Down Memory Lane (Gordon Elliott) was very impressive in the north (Down Royal) and will take a lot of beating.
“There is a lot of depth in this race. I like the way my horse did it at Thurles. He is a very smart horse and is my best ride of the day.”
Jaime Jaquez Jr. enjoyed a "special" Christmas Day as he stepped up in Jimmy Butler's absence, scoring a career-high 31 points for the Miami Heat as they overcame the Philadelphia 76ers.
Butler was ruled out for a third straight game with a calf injury, but Miami maintained their 100 per cent record in those contests with a 119-113 victory at Kaseya Center.
The Sixers – who were themselves without Joel Embiid due to a sprained ankle – erased a 21-point Miami lead in the third quarter, but Jaquez scored 10 of his points in the fourth to put the visitors away.
That made the 22-year-old the first rookie to manage at least 25 points and 10 rebounds on December 25 since Patrick Ewing for the New York Knicks in 1985, and he was delighted to see his hard work pay off on the big stage.
"It's definitely special," Jaquez said. "Great to get a win, a career night, on Christmas... I grew up watching these games.
"To be able to play and have a career night, I just go back to all the hard work, late nights in the gym, just preparing for moments like this."
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who is now 9-0 on Christmas, said of Jaquez's performance: "I don't think I called one play for him tonight, literally.
"I mean, they were in his zone most of the second half. But throughout the rest of the course of the game, I definitely did not call one play for him.
"He did it with offensive rebounding, transitions, cuts, timely threes, just a lot of plays in between, so you don't really think that it's a 30-point game."
Tyrese Maxey endured a difficult outing for the Sixers, shooting 4-for-20 and finishing with just 12 points, well down on his season average of 25.9.
The star guard lamented his poor shooting as he said of the Miami defense: "They did the normal stuff that I see when I'm out there without Joel.
"The blitzing, the hard showing, but for the most part, I got some really good looks and some shots that I make I don't know, four or five times out of 10. So I guess it was just one of those days."
Tom Bradshaw and Murray Wallace scored as Millwall beat QPR 2-0 to end a three-month wait for a home Championship win.
Bradshaw put the Lions in front with their only shot on target in the first half before Wallace made sure of all three points in second-half stoppage time.
Millwall applied pressure in the opening stages at The Den, with George Honeyman’s first-time side-footed volley dropping wide of the post, and he also curled a free-kick over the crossbar after Jimmy Dunne pulled down Bradshaw on the edge of the box.
Rangers enjoyed 65 per cent of the possession in the first half but failed to turn that into challenging moments for home keeper Matija Sarkic.
Their best moment before the break came after Paul Smyth nicked the ball past Jake Cooper in the 27th minute but George Saville cut out the Rangers winger’s cross.
A toothless half from both sides ended in delight for the hosts, as they went in front in the third minute of additional time through Wales international Bradshaw.
Only Saville will know whether he was shooting or providing a cross to the far post for the striker to slide the ball into the net for his third goal of the campaign, and just Millwall’s 10th league goal in 12 matches on home turf.
Aidomo Emakhu tested Asmir Begovic in the 49th minute, the QPR keeper turning the near-post attempt around the post after Kenneth Paal was too easily brushed to the ground by the young Irishman.
Rangers were presented with a chance from Emakhu’s misplaced pass in the 62nd minute but Ilias Chair produced a tame, low right-footed shot which was easily held by Sarkic and then Reggie Cannon’s first-time shot from Paal’s cross flashed across the face of goal.
Millwall substitute Zian Flemming whipped a left-footed effort narrowly past Begovic’s left post as the hosts looked to kill the contest off.
The fourth official had only just held up the board to show an additional 10 minutes of stoppage time when Wallace made it 2-0, the Scottish defender converting from close range after Begovic failed to punch clear a Honeyman corner.
Kevin Nisbet was then put through by Flemming, only to find the side-netting as the hosts looked for a third goal.
But Millwall had done more than enough for a first victory at The Den since September 20, ending a seven-match winless run in the league. For QPR it was a third straight loss and they remained in the relegation zone.
Leyton Orient gained bragging rights in their London derby with near-neighbours Charlton thanks to a goal from Omar Beckles.
The central defender met a cross on 80 minutes from substitute Dan Agyei – who had only been the field for two minutes when he sent a ball into the box – to earn a 1-0 win.
Neither side had anything to show for their intense energy in the first half with a lack of true quality proving their shortcoming.
Orient keeper Sol Brynn kept his side on level terms before the break when he was at full-stretch to keep out efforts from Corey Blackett-Taylor and Chem Campbell, after Watford loan striker Shaq Forde had spurned a good opportunity in the third minute for the home side when he blazed over the bar following a Theo Archibald corner.
Orient improved after the interval and were rewarded with Beckles’ defining goal, although they were indebted to Brynn’s fine late save from Blackett-Taylor that protected their win.
The victory exacted revenge for the O’s defeat by the same scoreline in the opening match of the season at The Valley.
Facile Vega proved a bitter disappointment as Found A Fifty claimed Grade One honours in the Racing Post Novice Chase at Leopardstown.
Having struck gold at the highest level in the bumper sphere and over hurdles, the Willie Mullins-trained Facile Vega was the 1-2 favourite to complete the set following a comfortable victory on his chasing debut at Navan last month.
With Paul Townend making the trip to Kempton to partner Allaho in the King George, Patrick Mullins was reunited with Facile Vega for the first time since he rounded off his unbeaten bumper campaign in the spring of 2022, but odds-on backers were ultimately left counting their losses.
Gordon Elliott’s Found A Fifty, who won on his fencing bow at Down Royal before chasing home I Am Maximus in the Drinmore at Fairyhouse three weeks ago, was unsurprisingly ridden aggressively by Jack Kennedy as he stepped back from two and a half miles to two miles and a furlong on the outskirts of Dublin.
The six-year-old showed a tendency to edge right at his fences, impeding Facile Vega on a couple of occasions, which prompted Patrick Mullins to switch inside racing down the back straight and he soon took over the lead.
Facile Vega looked to be travelling the better of the pair rounding the home turn, but while he faltered quickly to finish last of four runners, Found A Fifty kept galloping for Kennedy and passed the post with a length and a half in hand over My Mate Mozzie.
“He’s very quirky, but he’s got a massive engine,” Elliott said of the winner.
“To get a Grade One winner is brilliant as it looked like we were unlucky in Aintree (Farren Glory fell in Formby Novices’ Hurdle).
“Jack gave Found A Fifty a wonderful ride. He had to use his head everywhere as he even went to have a look at the rail after the first fence.
“He’s a good horse. He was actually the highest-rated novice chaser in England or Ireland coming into the race today but there is a quirk in him – most good ones have a little bit of a quirk.”
Elliott was also keen to praise his stable jockey, who has suffered more than his fair share of injuries in recent years.
The trainer added: “Jack is different class. He’s just a lovely fella. At home you wouldn’t even pick him out in the string. He’d ride a horse leg length and be nagging and twisting. He’s just a bit different.
“We’re very lucky to have him, holding onto him and keeping him in one piece now would be the problem.”
Preston turned the form book on its head as they edged out high-flying 10-man Leeds 2-1 at Deepdale.
Liam Millar was the North End hero, firing home brilliantly into the top corner to win a dramatic game in the 89th minute.
Leeds blew their chance to close the gap on the Championship’s top two after keeper Illan Meslier inexplicably earned himself a straight red card early in the second half.
With a full house watching on, the Roses battle atmosphere was white hot as the two teams got under way for the early kick-off.
The first opportunity went Leeds’ way. Djed Spence made a purposeful break down the left and crossed in for Joel Piroe, but his strike was blocked.
There was an even better block at the other end soon after when Glen Kamara expertly got in the way of Ben Whiteman’s shot.
Given Preston boss Ryan Lowe’s much-publicised backing from the club hierarchy during the week, there was certainly no hint of pressure early on as the stuttering hosts – and their fans – were giving it everything.
Canadian winger Millar whipped in a terrific cross, but skipper Alan Browne missed it by inches.
Millar then fluffed a great chance when, after being found in acres of space by Brad Potts, he blazed woefully over the top from 18 yards.
Millar went much closer in the 34th minute, with a brilliant curling effort from an angle forcing Meslier to produce a super save to keep the scores level.
Leeds’ cause was seriously hindered just eight minutes after the restart when a total loss of discipline cost Meslier dearly.
After initially clashing with Whiteman following a comfortably-taken cross from the right, the Leeds keeper then pushed striker Milutin Osmajic in the face after he had intervened and left referee Josh Smith reaching straight to his top pocket for the red card.
Just two minutes later, and with sub keeper Karl Darlow now having replaced Piroe, Leeds fell behind.
Browne found space in the box as he headed home Millar’s pinpoint cross.
Preston, clearly buoyed and now with a goal and a man advantage, fluffed a decent chance to make it two at the three-quarter point of the game when Browne this time smashed wastefully over the top from the edge of the box.
Georginio Rutter went close for the 10 men, before parity was restored, somewhat against the run of play, in the 83rd minute.
Dan James jinked into the box before being tripped by McCann, leaving skipper Pascal Struijk to slot home from the spot to make it 1-1.
However, that was not enough to earn Leeds a point as Millar darted into the visitors’ box before curling home sweetly to seal the deal just before the game headed into added time.
Hewick – a horse who cost just £800 – came from last to first to win a remarkable Ladbrokes King George VI Chase at Kempton.
Trained by Shark Hanlon and ridden by man of the moment Gavin Sheehan, he looked to have no chance at all for most of the race.
Shishkin had taken up the running from Frodon with over a mile to run and injected pace which had seemed too much for Hewick (12-1).
Turning into the straight Shishkin was going the best, with Bravemansgame and Allaho being ridden to keep in touch.
Over the second-last Shishkin was still seemingly in control, but having jumped the fence perfectly well he lost his footing a stride or two after, unseating Nico de Boinville.
That left Allaho in front and he was being challenged again by Bravemansgame, but coming into contention and just hitting full stride was Hewick.
Sheehan got a great jump out of him at the last and he swept on by to win by a length and a half from last year’s winner Bravemansgame.
Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr described officiating standards as "disgusting" after Nikola Jokic made 18 free throws in the Denver Nuggets' Christmas-Day win over his team.
Jokic made all 18 of his free throw attempts as the Nuggets posted their fifth successive win, which represented a career-high tally as he finished with 26 points in his team's 120-114 success.
Ten of those came in the third quarter as Jokic drew foul after foul from the Golden State defense, prompting Kerr to lash out at what he sees as a league-wide problem.
"I have a problem with how we are legislating the defense out of the game," Kerr said after the Warriors slipped to 15-15.
"We are enabling players to B.S. their way to the foul line. If I were a fan, I wouldn't have wanted to watch the second half of that game. It was disgusting.
"It was just baiting refs into calls, but the refs have to make those calls. The players are really smart in this league.
"For the last decade, they've gotten smarter and smarter. We have enabled the players, and they are taking full advantage. It's a parade to the free throw line, and it's disgusting to watch."
Four-time NBA champion Stephen Curry, who was held to 18 points, echoed Kerr's sentiments as he said: "It does cater to the guys who can sell calls.
"There is physicality, but it's tough because it is inconsistent, at times, on either side.
"On a night like tonight, when you feel there is physicality on one side and then ticky-tack on the other, it changes the complexity of the game.
"I'm not saying we don't foul, but consistency is key when understanding how you can defend."
Jokic, though, denied actively trying to sell calls and said aggression became key to his performance after a slow start.
"I was missing shots, so I was just trying to be aggressive in another way, maybe play a little more physical" Jokic told ESPN.
"It just happened to be that kind of night. This is the most I've ever had."
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has reached out to fans after agreeing to buy a 25 per cent stake in Manchester United, telling them he takes his responsibility to put the club back on top of world football “very seriously” but also calling for patience.
United announced on Christmas Eve that Ratcliffe, the chairman of INEOS, had finalised a £1.25billion deal for a share of the Premier League outfit and will invest more than £236m to refurbish the debt-laden club’s infrastructure.
INEOS will also take over the management of United’s football operations.
Ratcliffe has now written to the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust, the Fans’ Forum and the Fans’ Advisory Board insisting INEOS “are in for the long-term” but advising that success on the pitch “will require time and patience”.
“I wanted to write to you at this time given the critical role of the fans to the future of Manchester United as we recognise our responsibility as custodians of the club on your behalf,” Ratcliffe wrote, echoing various sentiments expressed in a Christmas Eve statement outlining his ambitions for the club.
“I believe we can bring sporting success on the pitch to complement the undoubted commercial success that the club has enjoyed.
“It will require time and patience alongside rigour and the highest level of professional management.
“You are ambitious for Manchester United and so are we. There are no guarantees in sport, and change can inevitably take time but we are in it for the long term and together we want to help take Manchester United back to where the club belongs, at the very top of English, European and world football.
“I take that responsibility very seriously.
“Please note that, as with any deal, it is subject to the usual regulatory sign-off process and therefore we do not expect to speak publicly about club matters until after the deal is completed.”
It is understood that Premier League approval for Ratcliffe’s investment could take between four and six weeks.
The 71-year-old Ratcliffe, a childhood United fan who was born in nearby Failsworth, agreed his stake in the club following an ownership saga that lasted 13 months.
The club’s United States-based owners, the Glazer family, revealed their intention to undertake a strategic review of their options, including the possibility of selling up, in November 2022.
Ratcliffe and Qatari businessman Sheikh Jassim were both in the running to oversee a buyout of the club until October.
Sheikh Jassim withdrew his bid for full control of the club on October 14, with Ratcliffe’s focus shifting to taking a significant minority stake.
Chris Wood retuned to haunt Newcastle with a stunning hat-trick as Nottingham Forest handed new boss Nuno Espirito Santo the first Premier League victory of his reign.
Wood, the man for whom the Magpies’ new owners paid Burnley £25million in January last year in a bid to stave off relegation, took advantage of woeful defending to plunder a treble which ended his former club’s seven-game winning league run at St James’ Park and condemned them to a sixth defeat in seven games in all competitions.
A 3-1 victory was little more than the visitors deserved on a day when Eddie Howe’s men, who took the lead through a contentious Alexander Isak penalty, were ripped apart by Anthony Elanga and Morgan Gibbs-White in front of a disbelieving crowd of 52,207.
Victory on Tyneside served as a boost to Forest’s survival hopes, but left a huge question mark over Newcastle’s chances of repeating last season’s top-four finish with a trip to Liverpool and Manchester City’s visit to St James’ to come either side of their FA Cup third-round tie against Sunderland.
The Magpies set off determined to provide a response to Saturday’s dismal 1-0 defeat at Luton, and their early pressure paid off after 23 minutes when Isak beat keeper Matt Turner from the penalty spot after defender Murillo had been harshly adjudged to have fouled the striker as he turned on Anthony Gordon’s pass.
Elanga, who tormented full-back Dan Burn throughout, hooked wide from Moussa Niakhate’s long throw, and the former Manchester United winger should have scored 12 minutes before the break when he got in behind Burn down the right, but could not find a way past Martin Dubravka.
Isak saw a cheeky chipped attempt turned over by Turner at his near post and Miguel Almiron skied an effort as he slipped at the end of a slick team move, and the Magpies were made to pay for missed chances in first-half stoppage time.
Almiron won possession on the edge of the visitors’ box, but failed to pick out a team-mate, allowing Gibbs-White to sprint upfield and find Elanga, who handed Wood the simplest of tasks to equalise.
It might have been worse for the hosts within seconds of the restart when Gibbs-White glanced a header wide from Elanga’s dangerous cross with Newcastle looking increasingly vulnerable.
Dubravka was relieved when Elanga fired straight at him after Gibbs-White had once again sparked panic among the home rearguard, but the Sweden international made amends with 53 minutes gone when he slipped the ball into Wood’s path and looked on as the striker turned Burn inside out before lifting a shot over Dubravka and into the net.
Howe swiftly replaced Burn and Almiron with Tino Livramento and Callum Wilson, but his side were undone again on the hour when Murillo’s through-ball split a ragged defence and Wood deftly stepped around the painfully exposed Dubravka to complete his hat-trick.
Isak saw a 67th-minute shot deflected wide and Lewis Miley only just missed the target two minutes later with Howe’s men scrapping for a way back into the game, but meeting both fierce resistance and devastating counter-punching, but the damage was done and there was no way back.
National Hunt superstar Constitution Hill made a perfect return to action when strolling to victory in the Ladbrokes Christmas Hurdle at Kempton.
Winning the race for the second season in succession, Nicky Henderson’s charge was sent off the 1-12 favourite taking on just four rivals.
This ended up being his first race of the season after plans to run him in the Fighting Fifth, originally at Newcastle and then in the rearranged version at Sandown, were spoiled by the weather.
While that may have given his rivals some hope he was a little behind schedule, those thoughts were soon banished.
Paul Nicholls’ Rubaud set the pace and Harry Cobden tried to wind it up before the turn for home, but Nico de Boinville was sat in his slipstream.
He pulled Constitution Hill out to challenge on the run to the second-last and the champion hurdler absolutely flew it, taking two lengths out of Rubaud and immediately putting the race to bed.
He was allowed to cruise home for a nine-and-a-half-length win, with Coral subsequently trimming him to 1-3 from 2-5 to retain his Champion Hurdle title in March.
Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said the team can never take Luka Doncic for granted after he brought up 10,000 career points in their Christmas-Day win over the Phoenix Suns.
Doncic reached the milestone in style, scoring 50 points in a 128-114 road win as he became just the fourth player in league history to post a half-century of points on Christmas Day, after Bernard King, Wilt Chamberlain and Rick Barry.
Having entered the game 11 points short of bringing up five figures, he has reached 10,000 points in just 358 games. Only Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, Elgin Baylor, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Oscar Robertson and George Gervin have done so in fewer outings.
Doncic's big moment came early on when he hit a 34-foot three-pointer in the first quarter, and Kidd heaped praise upon his talisman after his dominant outing.
"As I've always said, we can't take him for granted when he's feeling it," Kidd said. "You're just trying to get him the ball as much as possible.
"You're also trying to figure out how to get him some rest because we weren't going to take him out there in the second half, so we needed to ask him or someone to be able to run the offense.
"I thought he did a great job of letting other guys bring the ball up, but when he's going like that, you've got to get him the ball, and you trust your quarterback's going to do the right thing."
Asked how it felt to reach the landmark, Doncic said: "Always, when this kind of award comes with a win, it's even more fun.
"It was a tough road game, and we won. So, outside of the 10K and 50 points, we won the game. So, I'm really happy.
"I love playing in these environments, especially away. It's fun for me. When you make a shot, the whole gym is quiet, so that's the best feeling in the world."
Doncic's mammoth performance proved Grayson Allen's 32-point haul for the Suns redundant, with Kevin Durant also tacking on 16 for the hosts.
Phoenix are now 14-15 and sit 11th in the Western Conference, having lost five of their last six games including each of their last three in a row.
Star guard Devin Booker said of the Suns' slump: "We just have to get it together.
"That's on me, that's on coach, that's on KD, all the leaders that we have in here to make sure that we're prepared."
Nicky Henderson’s Jango Baie battled on gamely to see off Favour And Fortune to win the William Hill Formby Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree.
The race was formerly registered as the Tolworth Hurdle and was being run for the first time at Aintree instead of Sandown.
That was a move that did not go down too well with Henderson at the time, although he may have a different take now after the four-year-old, having just his second race under rules, provided James Bowen with a first Grade One success.
In a race which highlighted the ups and downs of racing perfectly, Bowen’s brother Sean, riding Gordon Elliott’s Farren Glory, seemed to be travelling best of all before falling in the home straight.
Jango Baie (17-2) had beaten Ben Pauling’s Tellherthename narrowly on their respective hurdling debuts at Ascot and the two met again. But Pauling’s charge, having jumped and travelled well until the home straight, soon dropped away.
It was Cannock Park who led for much of the journey and he did not give way until the second-last when the front two pulled away, with Jango Baie winning by two and three-quarter lengths after a good tussle.
Bowen told Racing TV: “It went well, I travelled well, he was a bit keen but he was a lot keener the last day.
“He finished his race off really well and I think he’ll probably want a bit further in time.
“Sean looked to be going really well and at the time I didn’t know what he had left, he did look to be going well, though.
“The best I’d done in a Grade One was finishing third on Top Notch in the Long Walk (2018), that’s the closest I’d been before today.
“He hit the line hard and he’s obviously improving, he’s a Grade One horse now so hopefully he’ll have some nice targets.”
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