Brunson scores 36, Towns adds 34 as Knicks beat Suns 138-122 for 4th straight win

PHOENIX (AP) — Jalen Brunson scored 36 points, Karl-Anthony Towns added 34 and the New York Knicks beat the Phoenix Suns 138-122 on Wednesday night for their fourth straight win.

All five Knicks starters scored in double figures. Josh Hart had 19 points, 11 rebounds and six assists.

Devin Booker scored 33 points on 12-for-23 shooting and Jusuf Nurkic had 14 points and 12 rebounds for the injury-depleted Suns, who have lost five straight.

New York never trailed, hitting its first eight shots, including four 3-pointers. The Knicks carried that momentum to a 44-28 advantage after one quarter and a 76-58 lead at halftime. Brunson had 23 points before the break on 8-for-9 shooting, including hitting all four 3s.

The Suns cut the deficit to 88-77 midway through the third quarter, but the Knicks responded with an 11-2 run.

Phoenix star Kevin Durant missed his seventh straight game with a left calf strain. Teammate and three-time All-Star Bradley Beal was out for the fifth straight game, also because of a strained left calf.

Knicks: New York's starting to look like the team many envisioned when they traded for Towns — a four-time All-Star — before the season. The starting lineup is deep with scoring options and makes it tough for the opposing defense.

Suns: It's been a tough slog of late for Phoenix and the struggles can't totally be blamed on injuries. They came out flat against the Knicks, particularly on defense, giving up easy transition buckets and good looks from 3-point range.

Brunson splashed home a 3-pointer on the first possession of the game — a harbinger of things to come.

The Knicks shot 18 for 23 (78.3%) in the first quarter, including 8 for 11 (72.7%) from 3-point range.

Knicks travel to Utah on Saturday, and Suns host the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

New York Knicks guard Josh Hart celebrates a made 3-pointer by Knicks' Mikal Bridges against the Phoenix Suns during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

New York Knicks center Jericho Sims (20) dunks against Phoenix Suns guard Monte Morris during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau argues with officials during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Phoenix Suns Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Phoenix Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer, right, gets called for a technical foul by referee Phenizee Ransom during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the New York Knicks, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) shoots over Phoenix Suns forward Royce O'Neale (00) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) gets off a shot between Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic (20) and forward Royce O'Neale, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — A new draft text released early Thursday which will form the basis of any deal reached at United Nations climate talks on money for developing countries to transition to clean energy and adapt to climate change left out a crucial sticking point: how much wealthy nations will pay.

Negotiators at the talks — known as COP29 — in Baku, Azerbaijan, are trying to close the gap between the $1.3 trillion the developing world says is needed in climate finance and the few hundred billion that richer nations have been prepared to pay.

But the draft text "presents two extreme ends of the aisle without much in between," said Li Shuo, Asia Society Policy Institute Director. “Other than capturing the ground standing of both sides, this text hardly does anything more.”

Rob Moore, Associate Director at European think tank E3G said that “negotiators need to make a huge amount of progress over the next few days and the road to agreement will need to see rapid and candid engagement, with numbers on the table.”

The lack of numbers in the draft text could be a “bluff," said Linda Kalcher, of the think tank Strategic Perspectives. The COP29 presidency, which prepares the texts “should know more ... than what they put on the table,” she said. She added that the draft reveals that developed nations are still keeping their cards close to their chest.

There are three big parts of the issue where negotiators need to find agreement: How big the numbers are, how much is grants or loans, and who contributes.

Official observers of the talks from the International Institute of Sustainable Development who are allowed to sit in on the closed meetings reported that negotiators have now agreed on not expanding the list of countries that will contribute to global climate funds — at least at these talks. Kalcher said on the question of grants or loans, the draft text suggests “the need for grants and better access to finance.”

Earlier on Wednesday, lead negotiator Yelchin Rafiyev said the latest version of the climate finance text released would be far from final but will be clear step forward. But experts said Thursday that a deal is still a long way off, and the summit appeared headed toward the same drama and overtime finish as seen in previous years.

Iskander Erzini Vernoit, director of Moroccan climate think-tank Imal Initiative for Climate and Development, said that some developed nations “are slowly waking up” to the fact that keeping warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial times will require over a trillion dollars in finance. "But many are still asleep at the wheel,” he said.

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

A security person stands near a logo for the COP29 U.N. Climate Summit, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024, in Baku, Azerbaijan. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Activists participate in a demonstration for climate justice at the COP29 U.N. Climate Summit, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024, in Baku, Azerbaijan. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)