Watch: Kevin Durant ties career-high in assists, posts triple-double in Suns' win

According to StatMuse, Durant's 10 first-half assists were the most in any half of his storied career.

Guards Devin Booker and Eric Gordon were the main beneficiaries of Durant's selfless play, combining for 47 points, with Gordon shooting 10-of-15 from the field and 7-of-11 from beyond the arc.

The performance should quiet some skeptics about Durant's feelings toward the Suns after they were called into question following a report from ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

"Start with Kevin Durant. You talk to people in Phoenix and around that organization," Wojnarowski said on a Christmas Day edition of "NBA Countdown.” "They can feel the frustration with Durant. Part of that, certainly, is the missed games for Bradley Beal. This team was built around those three stars. The underwhelming supporting cast that comes from those massive trades for Durant and Beal that really gutted the organization and left them having to sign a lot of minimum players to fill out the payroll."

While it's encouraging to see Durant respond to the rumors by putting together one of his best performances of the season, Phoenix still has plenty of work to do to get to where it was expected to be. 

Having the trio of Durant, Booker and Beal in the lineup at the same time for an extended period would be a promising start, as they've played just 24 minutes together. 

Still, getting there won't be easy, especially considering the Suns have the third-most difficult remaining strength of schedule in the Association, per Tankathon.