After closing out the series with the Clippers 4-1, the Suns are getting ready for the next round of NBA playoffs against the Denver Nuggets.
The following are a few key points of the previous five games of the series and how they will continue to be important moving forward.
Playoff Booker is playing the best basketball of his career
Devin Booker has proven to not shy away from the bright lights. Booker is averaging 34.8 PPG on 57.1% FGS throughout this series. This means he has a better chance of scoring a basket than you having getting heads two times in a row while flipping a coin! When the team’s shots haven’t been falling in, Booker has been able to become that guy for the team and keep them in the game. Apart from fantastic scoring, he has been a menace on defense. During these past four games, he has averaged 2.75 steals and 1.25 blocks. Some might say he is playing like the best two-way SG in the league right now.
Deandre Ayton needs to be Dominayton
DA has received a lot of criticism from the fanbase and the national media. He was the first overall pick in a draft class that has produced many prominent players, the pressure and expectations are there. Sometimes while watching games, I too catch myself yelling at the TV when he misses a pass or just refuses to use his size to his advantage, I get it.
Luckily for the Suns, his performance during game one of this series as compared to game four shows much progression especially when it comes to rebounding. During the first game of the series, the only loss, DA only had 8 defensive rebounds which led to the Clippers having many second-opportunity shots. In the most recent game, he had 9 defensive rebounds and 4 offensive rebounds which allowed Phoenix to have more control of the game as compared to when he wasn’t dominating the boards. If and when the Suns move to the next round against Jokić, DA needs to stay focused on not only getting rebounds but also producing offensively. He is only averaging 14.8 PPG and needs to provide more offense throughout the game since Booker and Durant are receiving the majority of the defense’s attention.
Starting the game strong
Just this past Saturday, the Suns were down 23 to 30 and had to come into the second quarter playing catch-up. During the first game they were down 18 to 30. This trend cannot continue as the team goes deeper into the playoffs. A successful team shouldn’t have to worry about being in a hole, especially when they are playing against proven stars. We all saw what happened during game seven last year, sometimes it can get nearly impossible to comeback when the other team shows up prepared.
Bench Performance
We all heard it after the KD trade, the Suns lost their depth. We all know that is not true, it’s literally the same bench which unfortunately has been a lingering concern all season long. Who is going to perform and be the spark to lead the second unit.
The Suns bench has scored 50 points throughout the entire series. Anyone watching the games can see most of the offensive production is coming from Booker and KD but this cannot be sustainable. Luckily, it looks like Cam Payne will be returning to the lineup soon and can use his experience and pace to get the unit going. Coach Monty also needs to determine who is going to be in their regular playoffs rotation.
We’ve said it before, this team has a lot of potential to make a deep playoff run but there needs to be more players stepping up and consistently providing towards the team’s success.
