The Phoenix Suns were knocked out from the playoffs in the 2nd round in a shocking manner by the Dallas Mavericks.
The Phoenix Suns had the best record in the NBA during the regular season. They were favored to win the championship this season. Devin Booker had transcended into a superstar, and he along with Chris Paul were tipped to go a long way in the playoffs.
Last year, the Suns lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Finals. However, many believed that this is their season, and they are in the perfect position to win it all this year, and avenge last season’s defeat.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go quite as planned for them. The Dallas Mavericks knocked them out in the 2nd round of the playoffs. Not only did the Mavs defeat them, but they also humiliated the No. 1 seed in the West. In Game 7 at Phoenix, the Mavs won by 33 points and shocked the world.
Chris Paul and Devin Booker had a terrible outing once again in the last game. The Suns had a 2-0 lead in the series, but once again they choked it as their players didn’t rise up to the occasion, while the Mavs players did.
There were many things that contributed to their loss. The major one was their inability in stopping Luka Doncic. He ran through their team and made his teammates perform better as well. On the other hand, the Suns’ players weren’t good at the offensive end either.
With Devin Booker and CP3 having bad games, no other player was able to step up. As a result, they were humiliated and knocked out of the playoffs.
Chris Paul denies rumors of retirement following the exit of the Phoenix Suns
With another choke-job in the playoffs, the pressure was on Chris Paul. He is quite famous for blowing away leads in the playoffs, and this was another instance of it. As a result, many believed that CP3 might retire from the game, as this might have been his last opportunity to win a championship.
Chris Paul said, “You play long enough and you don’t win, every time you lose, they’re going to say it was your best chance, But I think for me, us, it’s we’ll be right back next year. I’ll tell you that much.” He added, “I’m not retiring tomorrow, thank God. Hopefully, I’m healthy coming back. But I’m [going to] keep playing.”
Talking about the shocking and humiliating loss to the Mavs in Game 7, Paul said, “I think we just came out and just didn’t have enough, I think Mont said that’s on him, but I think that’s on me, as the point guard, the leader of the team. To come out and make sure you’re getting the right shots and all that.”
Chris Paul’s co-star Devin Booker who himself has had two shocking performances in the last two elimination games for the Suns was also left devastated by the defeat.
Talking about the inability to perform well in Game 7 against Mavs, Booker said, “They did a good job of getting the ball out of my hands and trapping every action I was in, It was a good, old-fashioned ass-whooping, Beginning to end.”
Suns’ head coach Monty Williams took the blame for the loss to Mavs
Monty Williams is regarded as one of the best coaches in the NBA. He recently won the coach of the year award. Moreover, he is a well-respected entity in the NBA.
However, he wasn’t able to help his team avoid the destruction done to them by the Mavs. The Suns simply had no answer to what was happening to them in Game 7 at home. Monty took all the blame for the devastating loss of his team.
He said, “We basically played our worst game of the season tonight, I talked to them about all year long we’ve been hearing all the praises, winning all the games and setting records and all that stuff. We’ve been taking it. Well, tonight you’ve got to take it [too]. That’s a part of manhood.”
There is no doubt that the Phoenix Suns will bounce back strong next season. However, making a run toward the championship won’t be easy for them. Many teams will get their injured star players back, and the Western Conference will be absolutely stacked up next season.
Even though it is quite early to make a prediction, the Phoenix Suns’ championship window might have just closed down after this heartbreaking loss to the Dallas Mavericks.
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