Phoenix Suns - Western Conference Finals Roundup
- Matt Elvy
- Jul 5, 2021
- 7 min read
Join us as we review the highs and lows of the of the Western Conference Finals vs the LA Clippers, as well as previewing the NBA Finals.
Series Record: 4-2
Games Played and Results:
W - 120 - 114 - Home
W - 104 - 103 - Home
L - 106 - 92 - Road
W - 84 - 80 - Road
L - 116 - 102 - Home
W - 130 - 103 - Road
For the 1st time since 1993 and only the 3rd time in franchise history, the Phoenix Suns are the NBA Western Conference Champions and are going to the NBA Finals.
This is also the 1st time that future Hall of Fame point guard Chris Paul has made the NBA Finals, after 16 seasons and being one of the top performers in the NBA.
Despite missing All-NBA forward Kawhi Leonard, the Clippers didn't make the series win easy on the Suns. Paul George, at times was great and the best player on the floor and I've got a new respect for Ty Lue. I genuinely didn't realise how good of a coach he is.
I've mentioned Kawhi not playing for the Clippers, but it wasn't all plain sailing for the Suns. Chris Paul contracted Covid and had to miss games 1 & 2 and he also revealed that he's playing with a couple of torn ligaments in his right wrist.
Deandre Ayton continued his fantastic play and minus game 5 was dominant down low for the whole series.
As mentioned, Chris Paul was missing in games 1 & 2. Many were doubtful that the Suns could pull out a win, but Devin Booker had other ideas to open the series. The All-Star would have the best game of his career, producing his 1st career triple double. It was a big 1 as well, 40 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists & only 2 turnovers. Ayton also did whatever he wanted in the paint.
Going in to game 2, the Clippers had clearly made adjustments. They held Booker to just 31%, but once again Ayton had a big game and let's not forget Cameron Payne. The heart & soul of this team had a career high 29 points. The game was close throughout and came down to the wire. The Clippers couldn't hit their free throws in the closing minutes and then of course, the game winning "Valley-oop" which has already gone down in Suns history as one of it's greatest moments.
Skip to 3:17 for the winning play!
The series then went to LA where the Clippers played very well and the Suns played terribly. This was CP3's 1st game back after missing the 1st 2 with Covid and he clearly and unsurprisingly didn't have his legs underneath him. He and Booker both had horrible shooting nights, which I think is the 1st time that's happened all season. They combined for a very sorry 10 of 40 shooting.
Paul George was pretty unstoppable in the 1st half en route to 27 points, 15 rebounds and 8 assists.
1 broken nose in 3 places.
Game 4 was defensive slug-fest. Both teams couldn't put the ball through the hoop, in what felt like a game from the 90's. The Suns only managed to shoot 36%, but that was still better than LA, who only managed 32%. What that did mean is tons of rebounds and Deandre Ayton benefitted the most, pulling in a career high 22 boards, including a career high 9 on the offensive end. Despite the struggles and the Clippers coming back from 14 down at half time, the Suns were able to hang on for the 4 point win.
With the Suns up 3-1 in the series headed back to Phoenix and we fans were ready to celebrate the series win. Optimism was high, as news out of LA was that Zubac, who'd been playing well for them, would be out with injury. Talk online was of Ayton feasting on the Clippers' small frontline, but they adjusted well and every time Ayton touched the ball 3-4 Clipper players descended on him. The Suns seemed too relaxed in this game, whereas the Clippers really were fighting for their Playoff lives. Paul George had a career game with 41 points on 75% shooting, along with 13 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals.
Back to LA, the house that CP3 helped build and the Suns played with the ruthless urgency that they should have in game 5. Everyone played their part in this one. Ayton controlled the paint on both ends, Crowder knocked down 5 3's, Book had 22 points and the Point God had the best game of his career and a 4th quarter for the ages. In that period alone he scored 19 points on 7 of 9 shooting, including 3 of 3 from downtown. He finished the game with 41 points and hit 7 of his 8 3-point attempts.
The series was over and the Suns advance to the NBA Finals.
Superstar Watch (stats for the series):
Booker - 25.5 Points, 5.8 Rebounds, 4.7 Assists, 1.0 Steals, 38.2 FG%, 28.6 3PT FG%, 4.2 Turnovers
Chris Paul - 24.0 Points, 3.3 Rebounds, 8.8 Assists, 1.8 Steals, 41.7 FG%, 37.5 3PT FG%, 2.0 Turnovers
Yep, I've added him to the Superstar section....
Deandre Ayton - 17.8 Points, 13.7 Rebounds, 1.3 Assists, 1.7 Blocks, 69.3 FG%, 1.5 Turnovers
Scorching Suns:
Deandre Ayton
Apart from a slight game 5 dud, Ayton was fantastic all series long. After his performance in the 2nd round against league MVP Jokic, he was riding high and didn't come down in the WCF
Here are DA's numbers from each game:
Game 1 - 20 Points, 9 Rebounds, 10/14 FGs
Game 2 - 24 Points, 14 Rebounds, 12/15 FGs, 1 Block
Game 3 - 18 Points, 9 Rebounds, 9/13 FGs, 2 Blocks
Game 4 - 19 Points, 22 Rebounds, 8/14 FGs, 4 Blocks
Game 5 - 10 Points, 11 Rebounds, 5/9 FGs, 1 Block
Game 6 - 16 Points, 17 Rebounds, 8/10 FGs, 2 Blocks
Ayton continues to impress throughout these Playoffs and is showing that he is a top 5, maybe even top 3 center in the NBA.
To demonstrate his value, as it doesn't always show in the box score, here's a stat I found on Twitter:
Deandre Ayton has held opponents to 37.5% shooting these playoffs, the best out of any player with at least 125 FGA defended.
Ayton leads all players with 267 FGA defended in these playoffs.
This includes:
Nikola Jokic: 24-59 (40.7%)
Anthony Davis: 11-29 (37.9%)
LeBron James: 8-25 (32.0%)
Paul George: 5-21 (23.8%)
Reggie Jackson: 8-29 (27.6%)
Struggling Suns:
I'm on too much of a high right now and really every guy had a pretty good series. Maybe I could have put Jae Crowder here, but he redeemed himself with that game 6 performance.
Stat Line of the Series:
Some excellent performances in this series, but I couldn't decide which was best between these 2:
Devin Booker - Game 1
With Chris Paul not available for game 1 after testing positive for Covid, Devin Booker stepped up in a big way, leading the team to victory with a 40-point triple double - the 1st triple double of his career.
According to the NBA he is the 3rd youngest player in NBA history to record a 40-point triple-double in the Playoffs (24 years, 233 days old).
Game stat line:
40 Points, 13 Rebounds, 11 Assists, 15/29 FGs (51.7%), 3/7 3PT FGs (42.9%).
Chris Paul - Game 6
On the verge of going to his 1st NBA Finals, Chris Paul completely took over. It's the 2nd time we've seen him have a career night in a close out game and this for sure was definitely the biggest of his career.
Game stat line:
Full Game: 41 Points, 4 Rebounds, 8 Assists, 3 Steals, 16/24 FGs (66.7%), 7/8 3PT FGs (87.5%).
2nd Half: 31 Points, 2 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 2 Steals, 12/16 FGs (75%), 5/5 3PT FGs (100%)
4th Quarter: 19 Points, 2 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 2 Steals, 7/9 FGs (77.8%), 3/3 3PT FGs (100%)
Here are some more stats about CP3's game I saw floating around online:
Upcoming Games:
We are facing the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Finals.
This is the Bucks 3rd trip to the NBA Finals, with them winning once in 1971 led by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson.
They entered the NBA the same year as the Suns and beat us in a coin flip for the number 1 pick, that turned in to the aforementioned Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Moving in to this century though and the Bucks made the Finals by defeating the Miami Heat 4-0, the Nets 4-3 and the Hawks 4-2. They were without 2-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The 2 sides met twice in the season, The Suns won both games by only 1 point, so you can expect this series to be close and go 6-7 games. This all depends on Giannis' health though.
The Suns are on a high after being counted out every step of the way and being only 2 seasons removed from a 19 win season. This is also CP3's first trip to the Finals, so there's added motivation there.
Whether Giannis is available or not, I'm predicting the Suns winning this series in 6 games.
Schedule for the NBA Finals:
Game 1: 7 July - 2am Home
Game 2: 9 July - 2am Home
Game 3: 12 July - 1am Away
Game 4: 15 July - 2am Away
Game 5*: 18 July - 2am Home
Game 6*: 21 July - 2am Away
Game 7*: 23 July - 2am Home
Dates/Times are all UK times.
*If necessary
Any Other Business:
Book Making History:
Book is on track to have the best scoring debut in NBA History
Rick Barry, 1967: 531 points
Trae Young, 2021: 461 points
Devin Booker, 2021: 432 points (and counting)
Both Teams Making History:
No player on either the Suns or Bucks roster has ever won an NBA Championship. In fact the only player on either team to have ever make the Finals is the Suns' Jae Crowder.
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