Suns Defeat LA Clippers & Secure a Playoff Berth
- Matt Elvy
- Apr 29, 2021
- 3 min read
After a 109 - 101 win over the Clippers, the Suns are returning to the NBA Playoffs for the 1st time in 11 years.
It's been a long time coming, but the Phoenix Suns are finally heading back to the NBA Playoffs. Their last appearance was 2010, lead by Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire, reaching the Western Conference Finals and losing to the eventual NBA Champions - the LA Lakers.
With "The Valley" proudly printed across their chests, the team came in to this game focused. They scored 39 points in the 1st quarter, hitting 7 of the 10 3-point attempts. Cameron Payne was on fire, scoring 11 of his 15 points in only 6 minutes, connecting on 3 of 4 3's in that stretch.
The Suns lead the whole game, with the Clippers not even able to tie the game at any point. The Suns needed this win, not only for the Playoff spot, but as a confidence booster against this LA team that has defeated them twice in the previous 2 match-ups this season. In those game Paul George had been on fire and been the main difference in them, however the Suns were able to keep him to just 9 of 21 from the field.
Chris Paul was absolutely fantastic in this game and for the 2nd game in a row improved his MVP stock. He finished with 28 points, doing pretty much all his damage in the 2nd half, with 25. Like a true Superstar, Paul chose particular points to take over. In the 3rd quarter the Clippers reduced the lead to 6, so he proceeded to score 7 points, set up a Torrey Craig and get the ball to Ayton, lead to a foul and 2 made free throws. The Suns were now back on top by 11. A similar scenario occurred with 6 minutes remaining in the game. LA reduced the deficit to just one point, so over that last stretch Paul would score 12 points and dish out an assist. Overall, along with the 27 points, he finished with 10 assists and shot 10-15 from the field.
Devin Booker didn't have a great shooting game, but contributed 21 points in the win. Deandre Ayton also had quiet game offensively, but was great on defense, which has become the norm, but also grabbed 11 rebounds, 6 of them on the offensive end. His value can't always be seen in the box score and evidence of this is his plus/minus rating of +16, despite only connecting on 2 of his 8 shots.
Next up is the Utah Jazz on Friday. They are currently without Donovan Mitchell, so this is great opportunity for us to close the gap on the race for 1st place.
The Drought is Over
It's been a long, long wait and us Suns fans that have suffered throughout this 11 year drought.
For those that have with stuck with the team, through Hakim Warrick, Hedo Turkoglu and Michael Beasley signings, players not wanting to be here, towels thrown at coaches, missing the Playoffs in 13-14 by 1 game, wasted draft picks, 3 point guards, no point guards & actual goats pooing in the GM's office, this win and this season is for all of you!
GO ON MY SUNS!
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