Phoenix Suns - Weekly Roundup - Week 19
- Matt Elvy
- May 3, 2021
- 6 min read
Join us as we review the highs and lows of the last week, as well as previewing the week ahead.
Week 19: 26 April - 2 May 2021
Week Record: 4-0
Overall Record: 46-18. 1st in Western Conference & NBA.
Games Played and Results:
W - 118 - 110 Vs New York Knicks
W - 109 - 101 Vs LA Clippers
W - 121 - 100 Vs Utah Jazz
W - 123 - 120 Vs Oklahoma City Thunder
What an amazing week to be a Suns fan. After an 11 year drought, the Phoenix Suns have clinched a Playoff spot. The last time we saw the Suns in the Playoffs was 2010 with Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire leading the way. This isn't a skin of the teeth thing either. No, we clinched the spot beating the LA Clippers, a team we'd previously lost to twice this year and a team who also has title aspirations.
Not only did we secure that Playoff spot, but 2 nights later, we beat a Utah Jazz team who has sported the best record in the league all season, knocking them off the top spot to take 1st ourselves. The win gave both teams the same record, but we have the tie breaker against them (told you after our 2nd win against them that it would come in handy).
We also took down the New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden, the hottest team in the league at the time. They were on a 9-game win streak and were playing excellent basketball, but the Suns had just come off a rough loss to the Nets and it was the last game of their road trip - they did not want to lose and Chris Paul did not let them.
CP3 has been his usual self this week, controlling the tempo of games and making timely shots, exactly when the team needed them and the national media have started paying attention. With the eastern road trip, coupled with the Suns capturing that Playoff spot, he has catapulted himself firmly in to the NBA MVP conversation.
All of these achievements came in the 2nd week of the Suns' toughest part of their schedule. The trip on the East coast saw them face Playoff bound teams every game and 2 lots of back-to-backs. They would then return home and defeat the Clipper and Jazz. Over the stretch they had a fantastic record of 7-2, the 2 losses coming in Boston and Brooklyn.
What a time to be a Suns fan!
Superstar Watch:
Booker - 25.6 Points, 4.1 Rebounds, 4.4 Assists, 0.9 Steals, 48.7 FG%, 34.4 3PT FG%, 3.2 Turnovers
Chris Paul - 16.2 Points, 4.5 Rebounds, 8.8 Assists, 1.4 Steals 49.4 FG%, 38.4 3PT FG%, 2.3 Turnovers
Scorching Suns:
Chris Paul (2nd week in a row)
As I mentioned above CP3 had a great week and it's garnered MVP talk from the national media. In the NBA.com's Race to the MVP Ladder article he's been ranked 4th in the race, this is up from 9th the week before.
It wasn't just his stats that stood out this week, but the way he went about collecting them. He took over in the 4th quarter in the victory over the Knicks, scoring 7 points and dishing 2 assists in the last 2 minutes of the game, to secure the comeback win. Then against the Clippers, a game we led all the way, every time LA tried to mount a comeback, Chris would come along and stop them, by manipulating their defence to get an assist or hit his patented mid-range jumper.
For the week he averaged 19.5 points on 61.2 FG%, 47.1 3PT FG%, 3.0 rebounds and 9.0 assists.
Honourable Mention:
Devin Booker
Book averaged 29.3 points this week on 54.7% shooting, but struggled from 3 at only 26%, which is why I couldn't give him the number 1 spot here.
Struggling Suns:
Cameron Johnson
Is it me or is Cam suffering from some bad luck to finish out the season? The guy caught covid and missed 6 games, then as he started to find his rhythm upon returning, he gets hit in practise fracturing his nasal bone, having to play in a mask.
Unfortunately all of this has resulted in him struggling to find the shooting stroke he had last year, as he's shooting just under 36% from 3, compare to last year, where he was over 37%. Since coming back from those 6 missed games, he's down at 33%.
For the week he's averaged 20.7% from 3 and 28.6% overall.
There is a positive though, in the win over OKC on Sunday, he had 11 points on 5 of 10 shooting.
Stat Line of the Week:
Chris Paul vs LA Clippers
I've already spoke about CP3's leadership in this game, but all that leadership led to this fantastic stat line.
Game stat line:
28 Points, 3 Rebounds, 10 Assists, 3 Steals, 10/15 FGs (66.7%) 4/8 3PT FGs (50%).
Honourable mentions:
Mikal Bridges Vs New York Knicks
21 Points, 4 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 2 Steals, 8/12 FGs (66.7%) 3/6 3PT FGs (50%).
Rookie Watch:
Jalen Smith - 2 games this week.
Smith played less than 30 seconds in the win against the Clippers, but as the Suns had created a good lead, got just under 5 minutes against the Jazz. Jalen was 3 for 3 from the field, including a 3-pointer, for a career high 7 points. He also grabbed 1 rebound.
Season Stats
23 Games, 4.1 mpg, 1.4 Points, 0.9 Rebounds, 0.1 Assists, 0.1 Blocks, 0.1 Steals, 42.4 FG%
Ty-Shon Alexander - 0 games this week.
Ty-Shon played in the same games and for the same amount of minutes as Smith this week.
Season Stats
11 Games, 3.1 mpg, 0.5 Points, 0.5 Rebounds, 0.2 Assists, 0.1 Blocks, 18.2 FG%
Upcoming Games:
We have 4 games this week.
Another 4 game week and the road trip that started on Sunday against the OKC Thunder continues as we head to Cleveland and Atlanta. We're back home as the Knicks visit Phoenix, then back on the road again, to face the Lakers.
The Cavaliers (21-43) are having another rough season. They have 2 fantastic young guards in Colin Sexton and Darius Garland, along with center Jarrett Allen, who they acquired from the Nets, as part of the James Harden trade. Last time we faced the Cavs, we won by 6 points, without Chris Paul. Book had his way with their young backcourt, exploding for 36 and Deandre Ayton had a huge rebounding night with 16, including a career high 8 offensive boards.
The Hawks (35-30) are currently fighting for homecourt advantage in the Eastern Conference Playoff race. This could be a tight one if Trae Young has a high scoring night (or has the refs in his pocket) and are still trying to gain that homecourt advantage. Last time we met all our starters scored in double digits and Saric had 20 off the bench.
Back home on Friday to face the Knicks (36-28). They are the team that currently hold the 4th spot in the East, who Atlanta are chasing. We all know what happened last week, with us snapping their 9-game win streak. Julius Randle has been a beast this season and could win the Most Improved Player.
The Lakers (36-28) seem to be spiralling at the wrong time. LeBron James has insulted the Play-in format this year, but if they continue to lose games, which could happen with Schroder about to miss 2 weeks due to health and safety protocols.
With that in mind, this could potentially be a 1st round match-up for the Suns (I personally hope not) and a good test against the defending Champions.
I'm predicting that we go 3-1 this week, with the 1 loss coming against the Lakers or Hawks. What do you think?
Any Other Business:
Team of the year?
Heard an interesting stat on the JAM Sessions podcast the other day -
In the last calendar year (30 April 2020 - 30 April 2021) the Suns have 53-18 record.
+500 teams record
The Suns continue to lead the league with the best winning record against other +500 teams. Their record currently sits at 25-9.
Go On My Suns!
This past Friday we met Kim (@uk_suns). We had some technical difficulties meaning my review of the pre-ceding week and me acting a little crazy over the Suns securing a Playoff spot, however the important part - meeting Kim - is all available to watch over on Instagram.
Thanks for your continued support with this little venture and we should be back again this Friday with a new guest at 7pm (UK time).
You can catch the all the replays on our Instagram page - make sure you're following to be notified when we go live.
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