The Phoenix Suns beat the Brooklyn Nets 113-107 at the Barclays Center on Saturday, achieving their 16th straight win. They are now just one victory away from matching the team's record 17-game winning streak reached in 2006-07, when they were led by back-to-back NBA MVP Steve Nash, now the Nets' head coach.

The Suns built a comfortable double-digit lead from the beginning of Saturday's game. Devin Booker shot at 5-9 in field goals (FGs) to score 16 points, helping his team to lead 34-20 in the first quarter. As long as he was doing his business on the floor, the Suns' offense was too sharp for the Nets to stop: Booker went 4-6 in FGs to get 10 points in Q3 and the Suns further extended their lead with a 34-26 run in that quarter.

By contrast, when Booker sat on the bench, the Nets were able to launch efficient counterattacks, for example cutting their deficit to five (51-46) with a 15-0 run in Q2.

That's when Chris Paul stood out to save the day. He exploited a mismatch against LaMarcus Aldridge twice to get five points in a row, making sure that the Suns could enter the halftime break with a 10-point lead.

Then in Q3, Paul had another nine points, five rebounds and two assists, joining hands with Booker to drive the Nets to the edge of the cliff with a 21-point lead (91-70).

Paul dropped 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists for the Suns in Saturday's game, becoming the first NBA player to get 20,000+points, 10,000+assists and 5,000+rebounds.

"Obviously, everybody knows the ultimate goal is to win a championship," Paul said after the game. "But if you don't enjoy the small victories throughout the regular season, then what the hell are you doing?"

The Nets bet everything on a small-ball squad made of Kevin Durant, James Harden, Patty Mills, DeAndre' Bembry and James Johnson in the last quarter. It seemed a risky decision but had good reasons: first, the Suns had no Booker, who had committed a fifth personal foul, to punish defensive weaknesses like Mills; secondly, there was no slow big man for Paul to target in a mismatch.

Moreover, the agility of such a small lineup began to make the Suns uncomfortable and forced six turnovers. Durant, who played nearly 33 minutes in the first three quarters, squeezed out his last strength to put down 15 points, three assists, two steals and one block in Q4. Harden started to charge the Suns' rim as well as adding eight points for the Nets. Meanwhile, Bembry and Johnson continued to work on the offensive glass.

The Nets saw the hope of catching up again after Durant denied a corner 3-pointer by Mikal Bridges. They were trailing by seven points (108-101), with two minutes left, and the Nets had the ball.

Then Mills missed two triples in the left corner, where he had been 2-3 previously. That regretful play cost the Nets their last chance in the game, but Mills did not shoulder the biggest responsibility for this loss.

Nets home fans showed who they blamed by booing Harden when he committed his seventh turnover. Although he had the fourth triple-double of 12 points, 13 rebounds and 14 assists this season, Harden again played in a way the Nets surely did not want to see on the court. Over half of his 15 FG attempts were jumpers and Harden missed all of them, including six behind the arc. By contrast, he was 4-7 in the paint. When he had the ball, Harden was either indecisive or trying too hard to share the ball. It was his lack of aggressiveness that gave the Suns courage to pour most of their defensive attention on Durant.

"Honestly I'm trying to figure all that out right now," Harden said. "I'm trying to figure it out. Trying to figure out when to score, when to be a playmaker, when to run offense, when to do a little bit of everything. Just trying to figure it out, it's been a little difficult."

The Nets still lead in the Eastern Conference despite this home loss but in six games, they have lost by 23 points to the Milwaukee Bucks, the Miami Heat and the Chicago Bulls, by 18 points to the Golden State Warriors, by 16 points to the Charlotte Hornets, and now by six points to the Suns after trailing by over 20 twice on the floor.

Four of the six teams are likely playoff opponents in the East and the other two may be the Nets' rivals in the Finals, if they make it there.

Other games on Saturday (away teams come first):

Minnesota Timberwolves 121-120 Philadelphia 76ers

New York Knicks 99-90 Atlanta Hawks

Orlando Magic 92-105 Cleveland Cavaliers

Miami Heat 107-104 Chicago Bulls

Charlotte Hornets 143-136 Houston Rockets

Washington Wizards 120-114 Dallas Mavericks

New Orleans Pelicans 105-127 Utah Jazz