Get your brooms out, the Phoenix Suns are moving on to the Western Conference Finals, after sweeping the Denver Nuggets. It was a dominating performance throughout the series, start to finish, with the third quarter being the defining quarter throughout the series, as the Suns were +34 in all four third quarters put together. It was also the quarter where league MVP Nikola Jokic was ejected in game 4, after frustratedly swinging on Cameron Payne, an ejection that I believe was the right call. Phoenix dominated the series. We can talk about Denver’s shortened offseason and the fact they were missing their 2nd best player, but that should not take away from what the Suns have accomplished. How has Phoenix gotten here? How do both potential Conference Finals opponents match up with them?
On October 8th, 2018, the Suns fired General Manager Ryan McDonough, promoting James Jones, a former NBA 3 point contest champion, to the role of interim GM, and on April 11, 2019, Jones became the full time guy in the desert. The Suns had tied for the second worst record in basketball, a worse record from 2017-18 where they had the first pick in the draft, but were really unlucky with the new lottery odds and picked sixth in the draft. Jones was questioned early, when he traded the 6th pick for Dario Saric and the 11th pick, where he drafted Cameron Johnson, and he traded T.J. Warren for cash considerations. People ripped him at the time and for good reason, Warren is a really good player who would help any team and Johnson was not projected to go that early. However, he was right on the Johnson pick, he has become a huge part of their team. Jones then proceeded to fill the gaping hole the Suns had at point guard with Ricky Rubio in free agency and hired Monty Williams as the head coach, to try and help star Devin Booker make the playoffs.
The Suns started well in 2019-2020, then they cooled off in the middle of the season and were one of the last teams to qualify for the bubble. I even wondered why invite the Suns and not the Hornets, who seemed to have a better chance to make the playoffs in a weaker Eastern Conference. Boy was I wrong, yes Phoenix missed the newly formed play-in tournament but it is where they proved to themselves (and the world) they belonged, going 8-0 in the bubble and just missing out on the play-in, if the NBA had used this year's play-in rules they would have made it because they finished 10th. Phoenix felt like they were close to breaking through, so they traded for the ‘Point God’ Chris Paul, sending Kelly Oubre Jr., Ricky Rubio, Ty Jerome, Jalen Lecque, and a 2022 first round pick to the Thunder. Then, they signed Jae Crowder to a 3-year deal in free agency. They had a star in Devin Booker, an up and comer in Deandre Ayton, they had very good depth, the Suns were ready, and yet no one saw a 51-21 record and a trip to the Western Conference Finals on the way.
In a normal 82 game season, if the Suns were to finish the season with their .708 winning percentage they would have won 58 games. That is a lot of wins and a lot more than the 19 they won in 2018-19. They have an elite backcourt, a big man who has developed into one of the best in the sport (funny how adding Chris Paul led to the flourishing of Deandre Ayton). They have really good guard depth, with guys like Cam Payne, E’Twaun Moore, Langston Galloway, and Javon Carter. They have really long and athletic wings that can shoot, Mikal Bridges, Jae Crowder, Cam Johnson, and Torrey Craig all being examples. They are loaded with talent and cause a bunch of match-up issues for both the Clippers and Jazz, though let’s not act like those two teams don’t present a bunch of issues for the Suns as well.
The Utah Jazz were the best team in the NBA all season winning 52 games and grabbing the number 1 seed in the Western Conference. They are one of the best 3 point shooting teams in the NBA, have the best defensive player in all of basketball, and would have the best player in the series. The Jazz and Suns rosters are built similarly. A veteran point guard who has been very consistent all season, a superstar 2 guard who can get any kind of bucket they want, an elite center, they are coached well, and are very deep. However, I think the Jazz are the better team. Donovan Mitchell is a legit superstar in this league and has been unguardable all postseason. Rudy Gobert would give Deandre Ayton fits at the center spot. They have a better bench with guys like 6th man of the year Jordan Clarkson, Joe Ingles, Derrick Favors, and Georges Niang. They have a loaded 9-10 man rotation, they can throw different looks at any team throughout the game and throw different defensive looks at Devin Booker and Chris Paul. The Suns do have their advantages as well, Paul and Booker are a dynamic backcourt, the CP3-Ayton pick and roll would give the Jazz a bunch of problems, just like it has to every other team. However, I just think the Utah Jazz are the better team as they have an answer for most everything the Suns could throw at them.
The Clippers have something the Suns do not have, an elite pairing at the wing position. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are two of the best players in the NBA. They can score, pass, dribble, rebound, and play elite defense. The Clippers are also the best 3 point shooting team in the entire NBA. They play small, with Marcus Morris Sr. and Nic Batum at the center spot for most of the game. They have good point guard play with Reggie Jackson, Patrick Beverley, and Rajon Rondo. They are just a really good basketball team. One area that will be really interesting is whether the small ball is a positive or negative for Phoenix, could Deandre Ayton exploit the Clippers smaller guys or would he be exploited. I could see Devin Booker having a Luka Doncic type series, not where he is scoring 40 points every night, but that his numbers are better in the first half then the second half, when Kawhi Leonard starts to guard him, the same way the Clippers would wait until the forth to have Leonard guard Doncic. Phoenix would be relying heavily on guys like Bridges, Crowder, and Craig to try and contain the two Clippers stars. The Clippers would rely on Jackson, Beverley, and Rondo to try and slow down Chris Paul at the point guard spot. There would be a lot of huge factors in this potential series, but the biggest would be the play of Deandre Ayton and whether he could force the Clippers to play Ivica Zubac at the center position, and go away from the small ball look that has killed teams all season.
The Suns could beat both the Clippers and Jazz. They have the talent, the toughness, the coaching, and the depth to do it. But those two teams are both better than the depleted Lakers and Nuggets teams they were playing, and maybe if Anthony Davis had not gotten hurt, the Suns might not be in this spot at all. However, that is sports, injuries happen and the Suns are here and now have not only a legit chance to win the West but also the entire NBA championship. What a turnaround it was in the desert.
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